Oupa is no geriatric
The Free State Cheetahs are making a habit of unearthing a real gem or two every year. Teboho Stephen Mohoje may just be the latest rough diamond on display in Bloemfontein.
Affectionately known as Oupa, the 23-year-old normally plays blindside flank, but made his Currie Cup debut at lock in the 15-18 loss to the Sharks last week.
He may be a bit rough around the edges, but Mohoje is certainly one for the future.
"Not bad for a guy who normally plays as a No.7 [blindside] flank, to come in at lock on such short notice," Cheetahs assistant coach Hawies Fourie told this website, when asked about Mohoje's debut last week.
"Given the limited time he had – which left him with only a few training sessions – he certainly impressed us with his workrate, as well as his ball carries," Fourie said, adding that the rookie can be "very happy" with his debut performance.
The Cheetahs mentor felt that Mohoje may just be the latest find in Bloem.
"Oupa is certainly one of the players that will come through in the future," Fourie said, adding: "He is very committed and works very hard at his game.
"You can see he has the desire to reach the top [of his game] and he has the right attitude.
"I feel he will certainly make the grade, there's no doubt about that."
Born in Qwa Qwa and schooled at Louis Botha Technical High School in Bloemfontein Mohoje came through the Cheetahs systems.
He played for the Free State Cheetahs at the 2007 Under-18 Academy Week as well as the 2008 Under-18 Craven Week. He then progressed to the Under-21 side, playing for them in 2010 and 2011.
He made his first class debut when he had a loan spell at the Griffons in 2012, but returned to the Cheetahs and made several appearances for them in the 2013 Vodacom Cup.
However, it was in this year's Varsity Cup competition where he showed his real value, when the Shimlas loose forward was named the "Player That Rocks" for the competition.
By Jan de Koning
