Faf de Klerk will go to the World Cup in France a changed man – older, wiser, more experienced and a veteran of the Springbok set-up that will look to defend the Webb Ellis Cup.
In 2019, at the start of the World Cup in Japan so handsomely won by the Boks – in which he played a pivotal role – De Klerk had just broken into his 20s regarding Test caps.
By the time the Boks meet Scotland on 10 September in their opening match in Marseilles, he will be on the verge of 50 ... if not already on it.
The 31-year-old will undoubtedly be one of the leaders within the 33-player squad, and will be the old hand among a group of scrumhalves, which includes Cobus Reinach (21 Tests), Jaden Hendrikse (12) and Grant Williams (4).
“All of them are excellent players and all of them bring something different to the party,” De Klerk mused of his fellow halfbacks, after the World Cup squad announcement earlier this week.
“Hopefully I can share some experiences that I have been through.
“They are very accomplished players. The only thing is just the pressure situations that they probably haven’t dealt with yet.
“From my side, it is just about doing my job and role. If I need to help somewhere, I will do that.”
Although pragmatic about his responsibility with the Boks, there can be no doubt that De Klerk will do a lot of heavy lifting in the coming weeks to marshal the backline, maintain a calm approach and support Manie Libbok on his outside in training and on matchdays – especially now that Handre Pollard’s situation remains obscure and shrouded by the will of the rugby gods.
De Klerk admitted that the injury setback surrounding Pollard is a concern, but that there is enough know-how and leadership in the squad to compensate for it.
The gulf in experience between Libbok and Pollard is significant.
The Stormers star has seven caps to his name, while Pollard has 65 and, moreover, the 29-year-old is also the recognised vice-captain of the squad.
Nonetheless, De Klerk is steadfast in his belief.
“We are lucky enough to have a squad and a group that now has a lot of caps,” De Klerk said.
“We are close to 50 caps average in the squad. There are a lot of leaders in the group and all over the park.
“There are guys that have played for longer and there are younger guys stepping in as leaders as well.
“(Pollard) will be missed, but there are also guys that we believe in that can step up and do that job.
“We’ve had three or four different captains this year, and that shows the quality of the guys.”
De Klerk is one of the fail-safe mechanisms – along with Damian Willemse and Willie le Roux – at No 10 in the team should something untoward happen to Libbok, and if Pollard – who is on standby – has not fully recovered from injury.
While it can be inferred through mention and motion that it is not ideal, De Klerk argued that he understands the brief at flyhalf should the assignment crop up.
“I’ve played there before, and I have trained there a lot. I think the best preparation is just training, making sure I am aligned and I know everything,” the former Lions No 9 said.
“I have played in the system for many years, so it won’t be too difficult for me to slot in there. It is going to be a challenge if I do have to. If it happens, I will step up and hopefully perform well.”
De Klerk & Co depart tomorrow from OR Tambo International for World Cup warm-up matches against Wales and New Zealand on 19 and 25 August and respectively.
By then, his role will be fully revealed.
IOL Sport