Reinach reassures young buck as Bok halfbacks look to hit the deck running

Such is their lack of familiarity, scrumhalf Cobus Reinach and flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu may as well do a speed date  in Brisbane ahead of the Springboks’ Test against the Wallabies on Saturday.

The unlikely pair will form a partnership in the Springboks’ opening Rugby Championship clash at Suncorp Stadium and though they both played against Portugal in Bloemfontein they are yet to operate in concert as halfbacks.

“I haven’t played with him as a No 9 and 10,” Reinach said.

Still, the scrumhalf has been impressed with the intellectual property already in residence with the 22-year-old. “The whole week he showed he’s got a rugby head on him. He is a young boy, but he is hugely talented and I am really excited for him to go out there.

“He’s got the backing of the 22 other players and the rest of the squad here just to go out there and express himself and enjoy the moment.”

Reinach stressed that if there were errors they’ll have the young player’s back.

“He is going to do well, there’s a lot of X-factor in him. He’s going to pull a few strings and create a few opportunities, I think.”

The object of the exercise is partly to see how Feinberg-Mngomezulu responds to new challenges in his fifth straight Test this season.

Reinach, a loyal squad member, has yo-yoed in and out of the team but rarely disappoints when presented an opportunity. He played five matches at the 2023 Rugby World Cup (RWC), starting in the quarterfinal and semifinal against France and England before losing out to Faf de Klerk in the final.

Now the 33-year-old, who faces considerable odds for inclusion in the next RWC, has to strike up a partnership with a player that is perhaps the poster boy of the Springboks’ future.

“Since the squad came together you start building relationships,” Reinach said. “You learn to understand how a guy’s head works. It won’t be a problem. We train together a lot, we know each other and we eat together every evening.”

In match day combat, however, they will have to make decisions and find each other on the run. The Springboks’ attack is a work in progress and though they ran amok against Portugal they found the going tough in that department against Ireland.

A change of halfbacks will perhaps deliver the incisiveness Springbok attack coach Tony Brown has been looking for.

The introduction of trial laws that offer the attacking scrumhalf more protection, may provide Reinach the breathing space to spark the Boks.

“It will clean up the game around the ruck a little,” he said of the law that compels defending players bound to the ruck and maul to stay put.

“It will allow the nines to take one or two steps before we attack the line and choose an option. In some games you don't want to run anyway. It doesn’t really matter, it’s about how you plan for that week in terms of attack. I’m excited to see how quickly we can get the ball away there.”

Reinach, who will be playing his third Test against the Wallabies in Australia, explained why the Boks have found the going tough Down Under.

“In the past maybe we looked beyond Australia at other games like against the All Blacks. We didn’t prepare as well because there were more games to come, or tougher games to come. We are not doing that any more. We just focus on what’s coming this weekend.”

The Boks left for Australia earlier than usual, and much of what they have been doing in preparation of Saturday’s Test suggests they mean business.