Justin Geduld of Western Province is a sight for sore eyes on the rugby field. He is able to rely on a combination of speed, balance, strength on the feet and vision to pick out perfect lines. This has helped him to unhinge even the most well-organised and tightly guarded midfield defensive structures.
Yesterday he completed his successful 2012 calendar year in the best possible way when he crossed the tryline four times during the inaugural NBM Sevens Premier League rugby tournament main game. Geduld and the team of promising young Sevens players called the Samurai went on to defeat the Cheetahs 29-14 in the final and claimed the R1 million prize money in the process.
Educated at Tygerberg, the 1.75m tall outside centre is no stranger to Sevens rugby success. He was part of his school’s all-conquering South African national title winning team at the 2010 and 2011 @lantic Champions tournament.
Despite being a slightly built player, Geduld’s success has not been limited to Sevens rugby. He has stood out in the 15-man game as well. Sadly there isn’t an award for the ABSA under-19 player of the year. Had there been one, he would surely have been the leading contender to win that award. Instead he had to settle for WP under-19 backline player of the year, contributing 12 tries to his team’s cause. Two of those tries were scored during the ABSA under-19 final. Of the two, one was an absolute game-breaking gem and proved just what a genius this youngster is with ball-in-hand. His irresistible form during finals highlights another of his great qualities – Big Match Temperament. The ability to get the job done under pressure in important games was evident in both the 15-man and Sevens finals.
In an age when top level rugby is trending towards taller and heavier centres to carry out modern rugby tasks successfully, it’s not certain what the future holds in store for Justin Geduld who is clearly well below the sort after average in terms of dimensions. However with all that talent and the speed to boot, there is bound to be a place somewhere on the park in senior rugby one day for this small modest young star.
@BoishaaiPa: I am sure they will make you proud
@rugbyfan: Apologies for the long delay….did a shutdown for a while!…Boishaai will be there and there abouts again in 2013…good pack of forwards and a decent backline…we dont like to predict and just hope the boys enjoy their season and make us proud…
@BoishaaiPa: What are Boishaai going to be like in 2013 imagine good as always
@BoishaaiPa: Ye was at the Lions game in 74 as well we got murdered that day. You right about the defense pantern in those days was alot different.
@rugbyfan: The first big game I watched at The Boet was the 1974 Lions against the boks. In 76 I was a ballboy for the all blacks against the Gazelle. I watched many a team play against EP…but that game against SWA I remeber Stoop beating our boys on the outside gap…not in Gerbers channel. He countered from the back in open play and chipped and picked up etc. Defences wasnt set up like nowadays…he just ran the ball from anywhre …
@Gungets Tuft: 100%. Every time you turn the TV on there is a sevens tournament on. Great for the pace boys.
@rugbyfan: Stoop. Remember him. Fast and dangerous.
@BoishaaiPa: thanx :grin:
@All Black: Gerber was most likely one of the best if not best attacking centres this country has produced, yes and agree his defenses skills were not great seemed not to worry much about that maybe that was the problem with the whole EP set up in the 80,s they had some great teams but just never made the grade the first Currie Cup match i ever watched in PE was EP vs SWA were EP had Gerber/Franz Erasmus/Schalk Burger Snr/Garth Wright and if i remember correctly remember they were slaughtered by one man alone the SWA fullback by the name of Andre Stoop (Who was a convict serving time) i think the final score was like 53-10 to SWA, that day Stoop must have taken 10 gaps right through Gerbers channel.
@QC86: Camp was apparently great, weather was hot and practise was even hotter. Seems like DT is focussing on players doing the job they will be picked for…so high premium on skills ability in your position. Like hookers have to hit 100% of their targets etc..pretty intense.
@QC86: no, unfortunatly he lacks bulk. As AB mentioned above..as they move up in the ranks to higher level rugby the gaps becomes smaller and the intensity higher. A smallish body wont survive those rigours. I would love to be proved wrong though!
@All Black: Isn’t Sevens getting a shot at the Olympics as well?
It is a brilliant alternative for the smaller gas-men and has the potential to be more popular than the 15 man game – short, sharp, just like T20 cricket. The purists will be outraged but the punters will pay their money anyway.
@rugbyfan: Agreed. De Villiers seem to come out of his shell in the last few games but I watched some flashbacks of Danie Gerber the other night and told my kids that this was center play. Defenses were poor but damn he was special.
@All Black: Agreed look at Sonny Bill he,s big/fast/tackles and as clever as a fox and has ball handling skills to match that what the modern centre is.
Only issue i have with the SA centres is they lack skill and are one dimensional. Might be big and fast but usually pretty well do one thing charge and dont pass.Maybe the Bulls mentality there
If a centre wants to make it in the big time he has to be reasonably big. Super 15 centres are massive and it is not all about attack but also defense. Nonu would do serious damage to a player of this size. Aplon has more skill than most these days and has also put on some serious bulk. The problem is that he is still regarded as too small, even on the wing. Whether I agree with that is another issue. The way rugby has gone you are looking for Barritt type centres at 12 and 13. If DeJongh had been 10 cm’s taller he would have started for the Boks on many more occasions. Skill and vision are huge but they need to be coupled with some physical attributes. Every year at Craven Week we see these small brilliant talents running around scoring tries. The problem is that defenses are not that well organised and they have gaps to run at. As you get into pro rugby these gaps become few and far between and the size factor kicks in. Brent Russell was brilliant and special but how good would he have been if he had the bulk to protect his channel and hand off/knock over the opposition as well. A good big kid will always be better than a good small kid. Now 7’s is a different story. The big guys battle with the pace and space of 7’s and what a way to spend a rugby career? Travelling the world and getting paid. If I was him I would look no further. Sevens is growing by the second and is going to overtake the 15 man game as far as 2nd and 3rd tier countries are concerned.
@BoishaaiPa: what does cappie have to say about the u20 camp?
@BoishaaiPa: does justin have all three in your opinion?
Sitting in Stilbaai at the moment with the WP u/19 cappie right next to me reading these comments…Justin is special..size helps..skills helps..but there is a third criteria..vision..you need at least 2 of the 3 to be a great centre…and in the right combinations..the last centre I can recall that had all 3 was Danie Gerber.
@beet: i am going to be glued to that TV :grin:
@QC86: Snap. That is my exact combo with Hanco at 9 and Pollard at 10.
@beet: hard to find that complete package that horsey and i were talking about,so back to combinations,jan,justin and obi and tyler plus kolbe,should be a nice mix
@QC86: Ja, real pity about the development of Jan Serfontein. All the good work by Grey College seems to have been undone this season. The Bulls have this unfortunate Heyneke Meyer dark cloud hanging over everything they do at Loftus from recruitment to game plan to player development.
My feeling is that if anything this season, Paul Anthony lost the under-19 title because with his squad he should have had it sown up. But failure to develop the backline into a proper versatile attacking option came back to bite them hard in the arse.
That said I believe Nollis Marais, their u21 coach is a beacon of hope for the Union. At least he is not obsessed with blinkers on crashing centres. Often his team has shown creative touches in the midfield.
@Muzi: i am not sure Jan falls into the skill group,hardly ever passes a ball,big strong and bump ,yes, skill not so sure
1st and foremost, speak to his peers, all can’t speak highly enough of him, I know quite a few of the u19 players from this year
Watch his performance at the 7s against the Cheetahs, check the quality of the players in that team, he thrived despite the quality of the opposition, that lad is special, he’s so small, but stands out like a sore thumb among guys much bigger
The problem is that you’ll find a player who lacks size but does a better job on the field than a bigger player, but selectors will take the bigger if he has good hands, but may lack proper skill. In my opinion : Andile Jho vs. Jan Serfontein
@HORSEFLY NO.1:
Daniel Kriel – (1.94 m and 103kgs)
Rohan janse van Rensburg – (1.83m and 101kgs)
Jan Serfontein -(1.87m and 98kgs)
All these 3 junior centres have size and skill.
Players in general or centres?
@HORSEFLY NO.1: name a few with both
@QC86:
Or size at inside centre and skill at outside centre. But in a country like SA you are bound to find boys with both.
@HORSEFLY NO.1: the two dont often come in the same package,but i would take skill over size all day,if they weren’t in the same person or package
Size and skill for me. Eg Dan Kriel. Small players just don’t do it IMHO
:grin: give me Justin before size anytime