Manie Libbok says he is delighted to see Sanele Nohamba’s rise in form as the DHL Stormers magician prepares to face off with the Lions’ playmaker in Cape Town on Saturday. DYLAN JACK reports.

South Africa’s talent pool at flyhalf is looking considerably healthier than it did a year ago, with Nohamba and the Sharks’ Challenge Cup hero Siya Masuku both putting their hands up for national honours.

Libbok was the only specialist flyhalf in the Springboks squad for the 2023 World Cup, before Handre Pollard completed a recovery to be a key part of the playoff charge in the tournament.

Now, Libbok is facing far more competition for the green-and-gold No 10 jersey, but it’s something that he welcomes as he prepares to oppose Nohamaba in the final round of the Vodacom URC.

“I’m good friends with quite a few of the guys at the Lions,” Libbok said.

“Some of them were present at the alignment camps. We had a lot of chats with one another.  Sometimes we even ‘play’ against one another in the alignment camp. It was good fun, there was a chat, basically.

“Sanele is a quality player. I am stoked with how he’s going and am happy with him. You can see that he is enjoying his rugby. I am just looking forward to the game and doing the job I have to do.

“I am also very happy for Siya Masuku and with how well he is doing. There is always going to be pressure and that’s the same for all the teams.

“Everyone is stepping up and doing their very best in terms of their form for their unions and giving themselves every possible chance to be selected. There is always pressure playing in this competition.

“Across the whole competition, the quality of the rugby is very high, so everyone is pushing hard.

“I am just happy for him and with where he is at with his game and I am wishing him the very best going forward in his career.”

Libbok himself is coming into form at a key stage of the season for the Stormers. In the last three outings, he has missed just two attempts at goal – one of those a long-range attempt to run the clock down on a yellow card.

The 26-year-old kicked 11 points to steer the Stormers to a victory over Connacht in Galway to secure a place in the URC playoffs.

“I am very happy with where I’m at with my kicking. I’ve been working extremely hard with [kicking coach] Gareth Wright,” Libbok said.

“It’s an ongoing thing. My focus was to keep working on it and realise that at some point it would come through again and I will find my groove again.

“I am just happy it happened now, especially going into the playoffs.”

The Stormers will host the Lions in the final round of the URC, with the visitors desperate for a win to qualify for the last eight of the competition for the first time.

“We know they will come out all guns blazing,” Libbok said. “For us, it’s important to keep focusing on ourselves and what we want to achieve and get out of this game, especially going into the playoffs.

“They have threats across the park, from their forward pack to their backline players. They have quality players in their team and they will come out here to give it a proper crack, with it being the last round and a chance for them to get into the playoffs.”

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