It was while he was working the hardest to come back from the biggest injury setback of his career that Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu had a very clear vision of the kind of player he truly wanted to be.
When the young DHL Stormers flyhalf did return to the field after extensive rehab from his 2024 knee injury, the rugby world saw that vision for itself as he lit up the game on his way to being crowned the Vodacom Player of the Season in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship.
“I had quite a lot of time to reflect within the three-and-a-half months of my injury. I decided I need to stay true to myself and follow what I believe is right for me on the field. I decided to play rugby like I enjoy it,” says Feinberg-Mngomezulu.
He took that vision and turned it into some of the most scintillating, skillful and thrilling rugby seen from a man wearing the number 10 jersey, and he touched the game with a youthful magic that played a key role in his team’s journey to the quarter-finals.
It was all forged in the crucible of injury towards the end of 2024 and the intense work he put in to find another gear deep within himself, and which took his game to another level completely.
“I’m not shy to admit that I’ve been injured a few times and have begun to understand the rehab process. But this time it was different. I had a different focus and drive to get back to playing good rugby again. I wanted to come back harder and stronger, and I feel I did,” he says.
“I think that’s why I’m so honoured by the Vodacom Player of the Season award. Prior to my return from injury I was very clear about wanting to return and play at an optimal level. I was really working hard behind the scenes. I have never worked so hard in my career to come back. I wanted to push myself as hard as I could to help my team, and this award really encapsulated all of that for me.”
It was also Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s own search beyond his sport and into other sports that helped to crystalise this for him.
“Coach Rito Hlungwani gave me a book and it’s one I dive deeply into. It’s called Relentless and it looks into what that really means. It’s a mindset where nothing can sway you off from what you want to achieve. It spoke about the challenges other athletes like Michael Jordan and Kobie Bryant and Dwyane Wade have faced. In this high contact sport we play there are always going to be setbacks.
"But the best players have experienced these setbacks and used them as fire to come back as even better players. So I thought, why not me? Why can’t I also turn this rollercoaster of emotions and disappointment and lack of game time into something where I can chase what I want to achieve in this sport.”
When he did return to the Vodacom United Rugby Championship, that fire ran wild on fields from Cape Town to Llanelli as Feinberg-Mngomezulu embraced what he says makes this competition such a powerful developer of new young talent in rugby.
“I can’t speak more highly of the Vodacom United Rugby Championship. If you look at Cameron Hanekom as the Next Gen Player of the Season and the Elite XV, I played with him and we all had similar aspirations. It’s quite comforting to know there are other players in your age group in this competition like Cameron, Canan Moodie and Paul de Villiers, and it gives you the belief that if they can do it why can’t you.
“You play against the best players in the world and it’s the perfect platform as a player. You play in different conditions every weekend from sun to rain to artificial pitches. It’s the perfect place to grow and learn outside of your comfort zone.
"It’s a big blessing for us to be a part of this competition because it gives you a taste of the international rugby experience that you want from Italian, Welsh, Scottish and Irish teams. There’s no better place to develop as a young individual and I’ve been so happy to be a part of this competition.”
For what his coach John Dobson has called “a generational talent”, this was indeed a performance that underlined a new breed of young rugby star chasing their dreams in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship.