'An all-round player': Jaque Fourie opens up on Lions' new midfield gem
SPOTLIGHT: South Africa is a factory when it comes to producing talented midfielders and Henco van Wyk is another one off the production line.
The youngster, who was crowned the Junior Springbok Player of the Year for 2021, has been outstanding in the opening rounds of the United Rugby Championship this season.
He was a star in the Lions’ unbeaten URC tour recently and he was included in the URC’s Fantasy Team of the Week for Round Five after his barnstorming performance in the win against Edinburgh in Scotland.
Van Wyk is strong on defence in that outside centre channel, and he has the speed and guile to unlock tough defences just like a former Lions player – Jaque Fourie.
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Fourie is now the defence coach at the Lions and he is proud of the young man wearing his old jersey.
“We worked hard on defence with Henco. He is a good defender and he is a good attacker,” said Fourie.
“He showed it against Cardiff when he had to shift to the wing. He is just an all-round rugby player.
“We just have to work on that [defence] and get the players around him to help him with that.”
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⭐️ Fantasy Team of the Week ⭐️
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Big goals
Van Wyk’s performances have garnered plenty of attention, but the young man is not letting the pressure get to him.
“If you feel pressure from the outside, it will just go to your head,” said Van Wyk.
“I just want to perform in every game and give my best for the team.
“I don’t feel pressured by the media or anything else.”
The young midfielder also has his sights set on a Springbok jersey in the future.
“It’s a dream for me to become a Springbok. I’m going to give it a crack and I am going to give it my all,” said Van Wyk.
“It’s been a dream since I started playing rugby.”
The Springboks will be taking a huge squad over to Europe for their November tour as they have some midweek matches in the guise of South Africa ‘A’.
Van Wyk is one of those players that could be a part of those matches. However, he not letting talk of possible selection distract him from his goals with the Lions.
“I’m not thinking about that now. I am at the Lions now and I just want to give my best in every game.
“It’s just about serving the team.”
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Henco van Wyk bursting into Monday’s like… 🔥@Vodacom #URC | @LionsRugbyCo pic.twitter.com/Hag5cmjNvH
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