‘The honour is of the highest order,’ says Vincent Tshituka about leading SA A against Zimbabwe
· Citizen
Sharks utility forward Vincent Tshituka is thrilled to be leading the South Africa A team in their match against Zimbabwe at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Gqeberha on Saturday afternoon (kick-off 12pm).
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The game is part of a double header that also features the Springboks against the Barbarians at 3pm, and is a build-up to the start of the Boks’ Test season which kicks off with the Nations Championship in July.
Tshituka is one of just five capped Springboks in a largely youthful match 23 that features a slew of exciting Junior Springbok talents, who will be getting a run out before they jet off to defend their title at the Junior World Championships in Georgia from next weekend.
Massive privilege
At the captain’s presser on Friday afternoon, Tshituka, who has captained the Sharks on a number of occasions, said it was a massive privilege to be picked to lead the team, and that he hoped to do the honour justice.
“The honour is of the highest order. There is now a responsibility that has been put on me to captain this team, and I just want to do it to the best of my ability and do the badge proud,” said Tshituka.
“This is definitely a golden era of youngsters coming through. These kids are outstanding rugby players and I think their ability to learn quickly is something I have really been impressed by. So I am looking forward to playing alongside them.”
The most experienced player in the SA A side by a country mile is Lukhanyo Am, with 42 Springbok caps, as the other four capped players are in single figures, while he is also one of just two players over the age of 30 in the match 23.
Tshituka is grateful to have Am’s experience and leadership to lean on, and believes he is the perfect foil for an incredibly young and inexperienced backline that features players between the ages of 18 and 20.
Good to have him
“He is the oldest guy in our team,” said Tshituka with a chuckle. “It is so good having him. He has a calmness and presence that only he can bring.
“It is great to have him there in the backline, especially for his composure with all of the young players around him. Sometimes all they want to do is go go go, and he brings balance to the backline.
“It’s also really good for me as a leader to rely and pull what I can from him as well. So I haven’t really felt that weight of leadership with him around.”
Speaking about challenge of Zimbabwe, Tshituka said they were expecting a tough challenge against a fired up team that has qualified for next year’s Rugby World Cup, and that they would be hungry and eager to prove a point in the match.
“We’ve done our analysis, and there are a lot of guys in their squad who will be highly motivated and will be playing for opportunities and contracts, so you can never underestimate them,” explained Tshituka.
“We all know what it means to walk onto the field representing your country, and they’ll definitely come out with that motivation, knowing they are going to the Rugby World Cup.
“There’s a lot on the line for them, and they’ll be fully committed. We also know a couple of the guys in their team, some familiar faces, and we know what they’ll bring.”