Rassie Erasmus Gives Promising Update on Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s Injury

Rassie Erasmus Gives Promising Update on Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s Injury

  • Rassie Erasmus has revealed encouraging news about Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu's recovery as the Springboks prepare for their next Test
  • The Springbok coach also explained how injuries forced South Africa to rethink its flyhalf options during the Nations Championship
  • Feinberg-Mngomezulu's expected return could provide a timely boost ahead of the Rugby Championship and clashes with Argentina and New Zealand

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Rassie Erasmus lifts lid on Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu's recovery
Injury boost for Springboks as Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu closes in on return. Image: Phil Walter
Source: Getty Images

Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has delivered encouraging news on Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu's recovery after weeks of uncertainty surrounding the young playmaker. The update comes at an important stage of South Africa's season, with the world champions preparing for a demanding run of Tests.

Rassie Erasmus confirms Sacha is close to returning

According to SABC Sport, Erasmus confirmed Feinberg-Mngomezulu is expected to travel with the Springbok squad to Buenos Aires for their Rugby Championship clash against Argentina on 8 August.

The talented flyhalf has not played since 30 May, when he suffered an injury while representing the Stormers. Stormers coach John Dobson previously described the setback as "pretty serious", but the 23-year-old has since undergone surgery and completed his rehabilitation.

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Speaking after the Springboks' victory over Wales, Erasmus said:

"We've got Sacha coming back now, he will go with the guys to Argentina."

Injury setbacks tested Springbok flyhalf depth

Feinberg-Mngomezulu's absence forced the Springboks to rotate several players in the No. 10 jersey throughout the Nations Championship.

Manie Libbok started against England before Handré Pollard took over against Scotland. Youngster Vusi Moyo was then handed his Test debut against Wales after Pollard missed the match because of a hamstring injury.

Erasmus revealed Pollard has since recovered, saying:

"Handré pulled his hamstring. Handré is fit now, he wasn't fit for this game, so we didn't have Sacha, we didn't have Handré."

Young flyhalves continue to impress Erasmus

With both senior flyhalves unavailable, Erasmus opted to back 20-year-old Moyo instead of moving experienced players into the position.

Moyo, who remained with the senior squad rather than joining the Junior Springboks for the World Rugby U20 Championship, converted three tries during South Africa's 43-0 victory over Wales before making way for Libbok.

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Erasmus also praised Junior Springbok flyhalf Yaqeen Ahmed, saying South Africa is working to strengthen its depth at flyhalf after recent injuries exposed the need for more quality options.

Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu
Rassie Erasmus has shared a promising update on Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu's injury. Image: Craig Butland
Source: Getty Images

Argentina clash could mark Sacha's comeback

If Feinberg-Mngomezulu completes his recovery as expected, he could make his first appearance in more than two months when South Africa face Argentina in Buenos Aires.

His return would hand Erasmus another proven playmaker as the Springboks build towards the highly anticipated Greatest Rivalry series against New Zealand later this season.

JP Pietersen backed Vusi Moyo before his Springbok debut

Briefly News also reported that former Springbok wing JP Pietersen backed Vusi Moyo to thrive at Test level even before the youngster made his debut against Wales.

Pietersen said Moyo's impressive performance against the Barbarians convinced him the 20-year-old was ready for international rugby.

Source: Briefly News

Authors:
Dzikamai Matara avatar

Dzikamai Matara Dzikamai Matara is a sports writer at Briefly News. He previously worked as a news and current affairs editor at iHarare for eight years. Before that, he was a profiler, sports, human interest, entertainment, and current affairs writer at Pindula for two years, where he produced profiles and news articles. He completed two years of Mechanical Engineering coursework at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He has also completed YOAST SEO for Beginners (2023), YOAST Block Editor Training (2023), and YOAST Structured Data for Beginners (2023).