Life is tough on Springbok scrumhalf Faf de Klerk at the moment.
While he was playing for Sale Sharks in England he was nominated for the RPA Player of the Year award in May this year and after a string of great performances for the Springboks, he would have been one of the first names on coach Rassie Erasmus’s team list for the start of the World Cup in September.
But then Herschel Jantjies took the field in his first Test in Australia, scored two tries and announced himself as the undoubted No.2 to De Klerk.
The latter returned to the starting XV in last weekend’s 16-all draw against the All Blacks, but then suffered a concussion that saw him replaced by Jantjies.
BRILJANJTIES: Herschel Jantjies. Photo: Raghavan Venugopa.
We all know what happened next as Jantjies scored the try that levelled the match for the Boks in the end.
As for De Klerk, he failed his concussion test and is now in a race against time to be fit for the Boks’ next assignment against the Pumas in Argentina next week.
A statement released by Saru on Monday, reads: “Springbok scrumhalf Faf de Klerk will undergo a graduated return to play process after his failed head injury assessment during the Test at the Westpac Stadium.”
If his reintroduction is gradual, Jantjies might just start against the Pumas.
TOUGH CALLS: Rassie Erasmus. Photo: Paul Childs/Reuters.
And another good showing in that clash might give Erasmus a heavy headache as to who to start when they face the All Blacks in their World Cup opener in Japan.
Of Jantjies, the Bok boss says: “I think for him try-scoring looks like a really simple thing.
“A guy like him, if you can keep the natural game flowing and you don’t over-coach him, his service is nice and crisp - his feeling for the game is great, his support play - if we keep encouraging that, he’ll keep improving and keep doing the things he is doing.”