It is inevitable that DHL Stormers hooker Andre-Hugo Venter will follow in his legendary father’s footsteps and play for the Springboks, writes MARK KEOHANE.
Writing for TimesLIVE, Keohane highlighted Venter’s impressive performances in the Vodacom URC and Champions Cup this season.
He praises Venter’s exuberance, strength, and experience at the age of 22, foreseeing him as a valuable addition to the Bok squad alongside Malcolm Marx and Bongi Mbonambi.
Acknowledging Venter’s rugby lineage, Keohane underscores the former Junior Springbok star’s understanding of the work ethic required for excellence at the highest level.
He also believes that John Dobson’s backing of Venter, with strategic game planning, reflects the Stormers coach’s commitment to nurturing homegrown talent and making – rather than buying – Springboks.
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“It is not a matter of ‘if’ but rather ‘when’ Andre-Hugo Venter plays for the Springboks,” Keohane writes. “Venter has played with the enthusiasm of a teenager, the intensity of a heavyweight and the maturity of a veteran for the Stormers in the past two seasons.
“Rugby is in Venter’s genes. [Andre] Venter epitomised every quality of the Springboks, as an individual and as a player. His teammates were awed by an on-field engine that never died and a mentality that mastered discipline.
“Andre-Hugo is of similar ilk.”
He, too, credits Dobson’s transformative leadership in developing a new ‘golden generation’, noting the recruitment of Wandisile Simelane on loan from the Vodacom Bulls, as well as backing youngsters like Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Suleiman Hartzenberg, Connor Evans and Evan Roos.
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