A Rare Break From Rugby In The Off-season May Allow Elton Jantjies To Realise His Potential In The Lead-up To The 2019 World Cup, Writes Jon Cardinelli Of Sa Rugby Magazine
Elton Jantjies is an enigma. One can never be sure whether the genius or the impostor will wear the No 10 jersey on any given Saturday.
One can never be certain that a white-hot attacking display against a top-ranked side won’t be succeeded by a mistakeridden performance the very next week.
While he remains one of the best fly-halves in the country and one of the most dangerous attacking players in the world, Jantjies is yet to make the Springbok No 10 jersey his own.
His strengths and weaknesses have been debated at length in the media, with some coming to the conclusion that the problem is as much mental as it is physical.
Last year, Rassie Erasmus waded into the debate and offered up a theory of his own. The Boks coach said Jantjies’ long struggle for consistency may be linked to fatigue.
The fly-half was on the park for all 1,520 minutes of the Lions’ 2018 Super Rugby campaign. A closer analysis revealed he had been playing non-stop – for the Lions in Super Rugby, the Boks over the course of the test season and for the NTT Shining Arcs in the Japanese Top League – for the better part of five years.
“I have no doubt about his talent and we must find a way for him to perform to the highest level,” said Erasmus. “That’s our job as coaches: to help him do that.”
The decision was taken to manage the player carefully throughout the 2018 test season. After representing the Barbarians in early-December, Jantjies linked up with the Lions for their pre-season training programme instead of heading to Japan.
He certainly made an impression in his final appearance of 2018, though.
The Barbarians started to gather momentum after Jantjies was introduced late in the second stanza and Handré Pollard was moved to fullback. Jantjies had a hand in two tries and then held his nerve to slot the game-winning drop goal in the 79th minute.
この記事は NZ Rugby World の Issue 199, April - May, 2019 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は NZ Rugby World の Issue 199, April - May, 2019 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
The 20 Most Memorable Rugby Acts Of 2020
2020- Most Amazing Rugby Acts
RUGBY ROYALTY
FRANS STEYN’S IMPACT AT LAST YEAR’S WORLD CUP ADDED MORE PRESTIGE TO A DECORATED CAREER THAT ISN’T OVER YET. CRAIG LEWIS FROM SA RUGBY MAGAZINE REPORTS.
WINGING IT FOR LONGER
TYPICALLY POWER WINGS DON'T LAST LONG IN THE ALL BLACKS. BUT CALEB CLARKE AND RIEKO IOANE ARE HOPING TO BUCK THE TREND.
TOUGHEST JOB IN THE WORLD
NZ RUGBY WORLD EDITOR GREGOR PAUL HAS A NEW BOOK OUT CALLED THE CAPTAIN'S RUN. IN IT HE EXPLORES WHAT IT TAKES TO LEAD THE WORLD'S BEST RUGBY TEAM, HOW THE JOB HAS CHANGED AND HOW THE VARIOUS LEADERS HAVE DEALT WITH PRESSURE, FAILURE AND SUCCESS.
WOW FACTOR
SCOTT ROBERTSON IS UNORTHODOX BUT HE'S ALSO BRILLIANT AND WANTS A JOB WITH THE BRITISH & IRISH LIONS.
RUGBY REBORN
COVID BROUGHT ECONOMIC CARNAGE IN 2020 BUT RATHER THAN BEING SEEN AS A WRECKER OF FORTUNES, THE PANDEMIC WAS ACTUALLY A GIANT BLESSING.
BATTLE FOR THE BLEDISLOE
THE UNPRECEDENTED CONDITIONS OF 2020 SAW THE INTERNATIONAL CALENDAR HASTILY REDRAWN AND IN A UNIQUE TWIST FOR THE PROFESSIONAL AGE, THE ALL BLACKS PLAYED FOUR CONSECUTIVE TESTS AGAINST AUSTRALIA.
PACIFIC POWER HOUSE
FIJI HAVE NEVER QUITE BEEN ABLE TO FULFIL THEIR ENORMOUS POTENTIAL. BUT THEY MIGHT NOW FOLLOWING THE APPOINTMENT OF VERN COTTER AS HEAD COACH.
THE PEOPLE'S CHAMPION
ON AND OFF THE FIELD, SPRINGBOKS WING CHESLIN KOLBE CONTINUES TO MAKE AN INSPIRATIONAL IMPACT.
DEFENCE FORCE ONE
THE BLUES WERE A RADICALLY DIFFERENT TEAM IN 2020 AND MUCH OF THAT WAS DUE TO THEIR VASTLY IMPROVED WORK ON DEFENCE.