Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu has been hailed as “a generational talent” by his DHL Stormers boss John Dobson.
The Springboks star has been in sparkling form of late, scoring 50 points, including four tries, during Cape Town victories over Connacht Rugby and Benetton Rugby in the last two rounds of the Vodacom URC.
He is sure to be a key figure for the sixth-placed DHL Stormers as they set their sights on making a big impact in the play-offs.
Giving his thoughts on the 23-year-old fly-half, Dobson said:
“I am the coach of the team he plays in, but I can’t claim to have coached him for a second. He is a generational talent.
“He is such a good guy and so level-headed.”
Dobson says that’s all the more important with the hype surrounding the versatile young back having gone stratospheric.
“We had that with Siya (Kolisi) when he was here before he went to the Sharks,” he said.
“He would walk into a petrol station and you would have people howling and dropping their pumps!
“It feels curious for the team. When one player is elevated by hype above the rest of the team, it’s sort of contrary to rugby values. That worries me a little bit from a team perspective. It’s a tricky one.”
Reflecting on what the future holds for the eight-times capped Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Dobson said:
“Probably our biggest challenge is to make sure he stays on the field.
“That’s not something we control.
“It’s nerve-racking stuff because he has done his knee twice.
“We have to be very careful about his body without changing who he is.
“You can’t say to him, listen, you have been tackled six to eight times a game, it’s too much for a fly-half’ because that would take away who he is.
“It’s a real tightrope for the whole Sacha project, but it's brilliant to have.”
The Cape Town-born Feinberg-Mngomezulu scored a scintillating hat-trick of tries in the narrow 34-29 victory over Connacht and then crossed again in the 56-5 demolition of Benetton.
He also landed nine shots at the sticks against the Italians, six conversions, two penalties and a drop goal, and demonstrated his astute tactical kicking game.
“It was entirely clinical and mature, the way Sacha and Warrick (Gelant) kept drilling the ball into the corners in the second half. We were so territorially dominant, so in charge,” said Dobson.
