Steyn a star in Bok side

LONDON – South Africa may have gone down to a seventh successive defeat against England when losing 23-21 at Twickenham but one consolation was the performance of teenage full-back Francois Steyn.

Not since Andre Joubert retired have the Springboks boasted a full-back who combines ferocious defence with such an audacious flair for attack. But Steyn, making only his second Test appearance and first in the No 15 jersey after a debut on the wing the week before in the 32-15 defeat against Ireland looked, albeit on limited evidence, to be a worthy successor to Joubert – once dubbed the Rolls-Royce of full-backs.Last year Steyn’s greatest claim to fame was spending time at All Black great Murray Mexted’s academy in New Zealand and then the Natal Sharks’ Academy in Durban.This season though the 19-year-old was ushered into the senior Sharks side and sprung to prominence after converting a 55-metre penalty in a tropical deluge against Western Province at Kings Park.His did enough in his first season of provincial rugby to win a call-up in Jake White’s end of year South Africa tour squad.He repaid that faith by playing a vital role as the Springboks came within a whisker of winning their first match against England at Twickenham since 1997.At Lansdowne Road, Steyn grabbed a try and was one of the few Springbok successes of a dire defeat by Ireland.In London he was in a more familiar role at full-back and showed his intent early on, by attempting a huge 60-metre drop goal which fell short and wide.Undeterred by the heckles of the 80,000 crowd, he slotted a breathtaking 55-metre drop minutes later to level the scores at 6-6 and set the tone for a period of sustained South African domination.In cruising to an 18-6 lead, Steyn continually harried England and still had his moments in defence when the world champions hit back in the final quarter.”We have a rising star in Steyn,” said coach Jake White.”You know Jonny Wilkinson was discovered before the last World Cup and look what an impact he had.Steyn is having the tour of his life.”I reckon that even if I put him on the bench he would still come on and win the man of the match award.”However, not even his biggest fan would suggest Steyn turned in a faultless performance.In common with his team-mates, he made a few mistakes as the Boks surrendered a seemingly impregnable 12-point advantage.But he did show enough to suggest, after a long interval where the likes of the wayward Gaffie du Toit and the suspect Percy Montgomery have struggled to convince as Test-class full-backs, that South Africa may have unearthed a gem of a No 15.Nampa-AFPBut Steyn, making only his second Test appearance and first in the No 15 jersey after a debut on the wing the week before in the 32-15 defeat against Ireland looked, albeit on limited evidence, to be a worthy successor to Joubert – once dubbed the Rolls-Royce of full-backs.Last year Steyn’s greatest claim to fame was spending time at All Black great Murray Mexted’s academy in New Zealand and then the Natal Sharks’ Academy in Durban.This season though the 19-year-old was ushered into the senior Sharks side and sprung to prominence after converting a 55-metre penalty in a tropical deluge against Western Province at Kings Park.His did enough in his first season of provincial rugby to win a call-up in Jake White’s end of year South Africa tour squad.He repaid that faith by playing a vital role as the Springboks came within a whisker of winning their first match against England at Twickenham since 1997.At Lansdowne Road, Steyn grabbed a try and was one of the few Springbok successes of a dire defeat by Ireland.In London he was in a more familiar role at full-back and showed his intent early on, by attempting a huge 60-metre drop goal which fell short and wide.Undeterred by the heckles of the 80,000 crowd, he slotted a breathtaking 55-metre drop minutes later to level the scores at 6-6 and set the tone for a period of sustained South African domination.In cruising to an 18-6 lead, Steyn continually harried England and still had his moments in defence when the world champions hit back in the final quarter.”We have a rising star in Steyn,” said coach Jake White.”You know Jonny Wilkinson was discovered before the last World Cup and look what an impact he had.Steyn is having the tour of his life.”I reckon that even if I put him on the bench he would still come on and win the man of the match award.”However, not even his biggest fan would suggest Steyn turned in a faultless performance.In common with his team-mates, he made a few mistakes as the Boks surrendered a seemingly impregnable 12-point advantage.But he did show enough to suggest, after a long interval where the likes of the wayward Gaffie du Toit and the suspect Percy Montgomery have struggled to convince as Test-class full-backs, that South Africa may have unearthed a gem of a No 15.Nampa-AFP