SIZZLING SACHA

This young Bok is heating up the field with his torpedo boot and incredible instinct for the game

- NASIFA SULAIMAN

THERE are plenty of bright young things in the world of sport - players with skill and speed who make it all look so easy. But every now and then someone comes along who stands out even among this prestigious pack.

And right now that person is Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, the 22-year-old whose composure and talent has some rugby fans calling him the next Dan Carter - the legendary All Black considered one of the best of all time.

Sacha made his mark as soon as he was called up to the Bok squad, nailing a long-range penalty in South Africa's thumping of Wales in June and delivering a near-perfect performance against Portugal last month.

Bok coach Rassie Erasmus was watching from the box and the delight on his face said it all: here was the future of the game. The Rugby Championships are next and Sacha, equally efficient at flyhalf and centre, is part of the squad who will face Argentina, Australia and New Zealand.

Becoming a Springbok was an emotional moment for the young star. "When you get a Springbok jersey with your name on it - I can't summarise it, it's what you literally dream of," he says. "An out-of-body experience."

AS A child, Sacha could pick and choose when it came to sports - he was one of those kids who was good at everything, and he played plenty of cricket and football in primary school.

But by the time he was in high school at Bishops in Cape Town he'd set his heart on rugby. Wesley Chetty, his coach at Bishops, says the "massively talented" Sacha had a good grounding from his years spent on the soccer field.

"Football was hugely beneficial to his kicking game and allowed him to be comfortable through the process," he tells YOU.

Wesley describes Sacha as a well-mannered kid who was crazy about rugby. "As a 14-year-old he was a waterboy for the first team and was just obsessed with the game. I started coaching him through high school."