The Stormers will likely give Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu a break this weekend, opening the door for Yaqeen Ahmed.
Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu jumps on Yaqeen Ahmed to celebrate his try against Scarlets at the Cape Town Stadium over the past weekend. Picture: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images
The Stormers have an interesting decision to make at flyhalf this week, with them expected to finally give star No10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu a break, ahead of his Springbok duties in the Nations Championship next month.
Since returning from injury for the Boks against Argentina in August, Feinberg-Mngomezulu has basically played non-stop, featuring in every Bok game from then, and has only missed one possible game for the Stormers when he returned to SA from Australia while they were on tour.
Before the past weekend’s match against Scarlets, Stormers Director of Rugby John Dobson said that they needed to give their Springbok players a break, specifically mentioning Feinberg-Mngomezulu, and he mentioned giving him time off again on Saturday.
Open door
That opens the door for rising Junior Springbok star Yaqeen Ahmed to possibly step into the breach, and he will be full of confidence after coming off the bench and scoring the decisive final two tries to earn his team a 52-40 win over the Welsh visitors last weekend.
The 20-year-old Ahmed would usually be jostling with Jurie Mathee as the next Stormers flyhalf option, but the latter man is injured. Utility back Damian Willemse is another attractive option at 10, especially against a dangerous Ulster team that pushed the Bulls close at Loftus over the weekend.
However, Ahmed has now featured for the Stormers in three games this season, touring with them to the UK at the start of their campaign, where he came off the bench in their opening win against Connacht in Ireland, and then started in their loss against high flying Edinburgh in Scotland.
So he has shown he can stand up against top teams already, especially after making his Stormers debut against the All Blacks during Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry back in August, but whether Dobson will want to risk pushing him again, or back a dependable option in Willemse remains to be seen.
Speaking after his match-winning heroics against Scarlets, Ahmed admitted it was tough coming on in a tricky situation after wing Seabelo Senatla went off for a Head Injury Assessment, and he said he was grateful to have players like Feinberg-Mngomezulu around him, helping guide him.
Back in team
“I’m just happy and grateful to be back in the team and to get those last 20 minutes. Obviously, it was quite tough with Seabelo going off, so I thought I needed to stand up as a youngster and help manage the game,” explained Ahmed.
“Those last 20 minutes were really tough, especially with all the injuries happening, but I’m just glad I got the opportunity to play and do my thing. There’s nothing better than playing for the Stormers at Cape Town Stadium.
“Having those voices in my ear, like Sacha when I came on, makes such a big difference to my decision-making. I think we pulled through in those last few minutes. Now it’s about looking ahead to the next game, reviewing this performance and seeing where we can get better.”
Ahmed also readily admitted that his growth was being boosted massively by the Boks in the Stormers setup, and that he was receiving assistance from many of them, including Willemse.
“I think it’s a privilege to have the Springboks in the setup because, as a youngster, you’re so eager to learn from them and what they bring from being with the Boks,” said Ahmed.
“Whatever information I can get and use, whether it’s from Sacha or Damian, I’ll take it with both hands because I know it will help me improve in the future. They help you so much and take the time to invest in you.”
