Scrum dominance inspires Springbok forward Jan-Hendrik Wessels
A versatile front-rower welcomes intense competition as he balances roles at loosehead prop and hooker under Rassie Erasmus.
Watching his Springbok teammates demolish their rivals at scrum time has inspired utility front-ranker Jan-Hendrik Wessels to make every minute on the field count.
The 25-year-old, who has scored two test tries since debuting against Portugal in 2024, earned his 12th cap off the bench in yesterday’s (July 18) 43-0 win over Wales in Durban.
The Bok scrum dominated the visitors at Kings Park, laying the platform for the likes of wings Jaco Williams and Kurt-Lee Arendse to strike in the seven-try Nations Championship rout.
“We’ve always prided ourselves in the scrums,” Wessels said. “I don’t think it’s always that easy… maybe you need to take a few shots at the rock before it breaks.
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“The front row that was on [Saturday] set a great standard for us to come off the bench. We don’t want to let the team down, and it motivates us to do as well as they do.”
However, the humidity in KZN also played its part, with handling errors costing the Boks an even bigger win.
Durban humidity creates slippery playing conditions
“Even from the bench you could see the ball was very slippery,” Wessels noted. “The guys from Durban know it, and it’s something we don’t always realise.
“On Monday, we thought there would be rain, but the rain dried up. We tried to put a good performance together for 80 minutes.”
Wessels has become one of Rassie Erasmus’ most valuable weapons, as the Vodacom Bulls bruiser is able to seamlessly pack down at loosehead prop and hooker.
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“The coaches are prepping me really well in training – scrums and lineouts. They don’t throw me into the deep end,” he said. “This week playing loosehead, I trained the whole week at loosehead. I think most of my games at the Bulls were at loosehead.
“In the England game I didn’t play hooker, so I went on at loosehead. The Scotland game I went on at prop first, to calm the nerves and get comfortable with the tempo, then later moved to hooker. I enjoy it.”
With flanker Marco van Staden and tighthead prop Thomas du Toit also working on their lineout throwing, competition at hooker has intensified.
Versatility creates options for Springbok coaches
“I always tease the loose forwards that if they get slow, they’ll have to move to hooker,” Wessels joked. “But being versatile always helps.
“If something happens at hooker you’ve got a guy who can throw in at the lineouts.”
The post Jan-Hendrik taking his shots at the rock appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
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