Rassie Erasmus praises record breaker Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu

DURBAN – Coach Rassie Erasmus has hailed Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu as an “incredible talent”, after the fly-half scored a record 37 points to lead South Africa to a crushing 67-30 victory over Argentina in the Rugby Championship on Sept 27.

But the two-time Rugby World Cup-winning coach warned that the 23-year-old is not yet the finished article after the triumph in Durban took the team to the top of the table.

Feinberg-Mngomezulu put in one of the great performances in a Springboks jersey, scoring a hat-trick of tries and kicking 10 of his 11 attempts at goal for eight conversions and two penalties. The conversion he missed rebounded off a post at Kings Park Stadium.

His tally broke the record for most points by a South African player in a Test, held by Percy Montgomery with 35 points against Namibia since 2007.

“We are very happy to win because it is one hell of a willing, very good Argentina side. Both teams were really up for it, but individual brilliance made a massive difference for us tonight,” said Erasmus.

“No one would disagree that Sacha was brilliant on the day.

“Sacha did incredible things, but it does not just happen. He has grown a bit over time. He only has 14 caps now and there have been many mishaps in the lead-up to this game.

“You have to give players a chance to build their reputation and skill set at Test level.

“And there have been a lot of people helping him. Damian de Allende (inside centre) helped a lot today, Damian Willemse (fullback) was very good and Manie Libbok came on and did well.

“It is not just about building combinations, but understanding how we want to play.”

South Africa’s other tries came via Malcolm Marx, Cheslin Kolbe, Morne van den Berg, Pieter-Steph du Toit (two) and Libbok. Los Pumas had a penalty try, with Santiago Chocobares and Tomas Albornoz also crossing the line.

Springbok captain Siya Kolisi said he was thrilled with Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s game management.

“I thought Sacha was amazing. It is not just his tries, but the way he controlled the game. He kept a cool head and put us in the right places,” Kolisi said.

“His point of difference is when he runs with the ball, and so many different people came out of their shells today. When we click as a team, every player is able to show their special thing.”

Springboks outside centre Canan Moodie said Feinberg-Mngomezulu has a positive effect on all the backs.

“Sacha was amazing, you can see he was full of confidence. It’s good when players can express themselves and we are encouraged to go out and have fun,” he said.

Argentina coach Felipe Contepomi said Feinberg-Mngomezulu is a real thorn in the side of opponents.

“You can tell he is a brilliant player. But obviously when you are the opposition coach, you don’t want him to play.”

Captain and hooker Julian Montoya said his team needed to maintain effort throughout games.

“We were able to score 30 points, but we had opportunities we did not take and we conceded too many points. It hurts a lot and some tough talk is needed.”

The bonus-point win leaves South Africa top of the standings by a point and in pole position to retain their crown when they face Argentina again at Twickenham in London in their final fixture on Oct 4.

Meanwhile, Chile punched their ticket to the men’s 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia with a play-off win over Samoa.

After a 32-32 draw last week in the United States, Chile won the return leg 31-12 at home in Vina del Mar on Sept 27 to qualify for a second straight tournament. AFP, REUTERS