Even black players have off days

They are talking in the Cape of the revelation that has been the play of Hanyani Shimange during the past few weeks of the Currie Cup season.

The Springbok back-up hooker came on for Federico Mendez against the Sharks two weeks ago and his arrival coincided with Western Province’s dramatic recovery in that match, where they arrested what was a difficult situation to eventually win 45-21.

Much of this was due to the way the WP lineout settled once Shimange came on eight minutes before halftime. After Mendez had missed almost every throw in the first half, Shimange got it right and was on the button almost every time.

He also contributed hugely around the field, playing like a man possessed as a support player and in helping spark the forward drive. It was good rugby, and he continued where he left off when he started for WP against the Lions last weekend.

Again Shimange was all over the place in the tight-loose. His lineout throwing was also quite outstanding, and this earned him a standing ovation as he left the field 20 minutes from the end so that Huia Edmonds could get a run.

The reason for the standing ovation was not difficult to figure out. Hookers have been a much maligned group at Newlands over the past few seasons, and of course we are not talking about the ones who set up their business in Strand Street or on Koeberg Road.

It started with Tjoppie van den Heever a few seasons ago. The former Border Bulldog spoiled a promising start at WP with a nightmare throwing performance which contributed directly to WP losing a few games. When Pieter Dixon played WP were normally a lot more settled, but the former Maritzburg schoolboy was also often injured.

When he didn’t play, WP invariably struggled. These problems were supposedly the reason that Shimange was lured down to the Cape from the Cheetahs at the end of last year.

But Shimange has hardly played since being in the Cape, and this is why it is slightly amusing in a sad way that people are talking of his play being a revelation. He played a lot of good games before coming to Cape Town, which is why he is a Springbok. The only problem is that since being linked to Newlands, he has only really seen the bench, both at national level and provincial level.

So the reason we have not been wowed by his play before may be because he just hasn't played.

Shimange’s last start in a big game before the one against the Lions this past weekend was the Super 12 match between the Stormers and the Bulls at Loftus back in May. That is not sufficient game time for a player to gain momentum, so it should be small wonder that when he has been on the field for brief moments, he has failed to shine.

But now that the accident of Mendez’s walkabout performance against the Sharks has offered him an extended run, he has shown what he can do. He has shown that next year he must at the very least be rotated with Schalk Brits for the Stormers in the Super 12, and if the Stormers management fail to do this, it will be unacceptable.

What worries me is that in typical South African fashion, the “I told you so” brigade will suddenly come out of the woodwork when Shimange does falter, as all players do at some stage, and this will be seen as an excuse for him to be banished once more to the bench. We have seen it with black players before.

So let’s remind ourselves then of the words of Western Province assistant coach Gary Gold when he was asked about Mendez’s failure in Durban: “All players have bad days”.

May I add my tuppence to that, and ask the WP management to recognise that if this is true, then so do black players too…