There’s a lot of focus on England’s young loose-forward sensation Henry Pollock, but on the day that he was winning his man of the match award in the Gallagher Premiership final, the Springbok Jasper Wiese made his own statement.
A few seasons ago, as he emerged from the shadow of his predecessor in the Bok No 8 jersey, Duane Vermeulen, there was a feeling that Wiese, then playing for Leicester Tigers in England, faced stiff competition for his place. Evan Roos was in sublime form off the back of the DHL Stormers scrum in the inaugural Vodacom URC season, won the Player of the Tournament Award, and, after that, Elrigh Louw and Cameron Hanekom both started to push.
Both Roos and Hanekom were included in the 46-man Bok squad for the home leg of the Nations Championship, which kicks off with a clash with Pollock’s team, and it seems more and more likely that Pollock might get to start that game, but there isn’t any need to speculate on who will start the big game.
Wiese was in imperious form as he produced a bullocking display against the Barbarians, and it was his dominant carries early in the game, with help from his skipper Siya Kolisi, that put the Boks on the front foot and settled nerves. He played an influential role in creating the platform for what became an 80-31 victory, with his customary high work rate reminding us that South Africans have their own players to make a fuss about it.
Apart from his success in getting the Boks across the gain line, he also contributed defensively, and we had to sift through 22 video clips, all told, before establishing which were the best ones, including, of course, his well-taken try off a long throw at an attacking lineout.
Wiese is far ahead of his peers, and if he and Pollock do find themselves on a collision path in Johannesburg on 4 July, the English youngster might just find himself with a bigger challenge than he has hitherto faced in his burgeoning career.