Kurt-Lee Arendse could prove a like-for-like replacement for the injury-ravaged Cheslin Kolbe over the course of the Rugby Championship.
After four years of consistently punching way above its famously negligible weight, Cheslin Kolbe’s body is starting to show that it’s not made out of vibranium after all.
Besides the ankle injury which almost prevented him from being one of only two Springboks to score a try in a World Cup final, Kolbe has consistently picked up injuries in the intervening years.
A hip injury stalled his progress in his last year at Toulouse; a leg injury got in the way of him playing for the Boks playing in last year’s Rugby Championship and end-of-year tour; a broken thumb meant he ran the risk of the hairdryer treatment from new club Toulon’s president Bernard Lemaitre; now a broken jaw in the final test against Wales has sidelined him until September.
With S’bu Nkosi – the man who deputised for Kolbe in the World Cup semi-final against the Welsh and the Rugby Championship last year – still out with an ankle injury, the matter of the wee magician’s cover with the All Blacks looming has become more pressing.
Kurt-Lee Arendse had a phenomenal debut 💪🇿🇦 pic.twitter.com/pDOU9sEyAw
— Official Blue Bulls (@BlueBullsRugby) July 13, 2022
Thankfully – if that’s the word to use after losing a generational talent to injury – the Boks have the nearest thing to a like-for-like replacement for Kolbe.
Not only is Kurt-Lee Arendse positively Kolbe-esque with physical dimensions measuring 1.80m and 76kg (Kolbe is 1.71m and 80kg), he has the same explosive speed off the mark, intoxicating step and also wears a scrumcap despite not having a fearful bone in his body.
Both have sevens as their foundation, can play fullback and wing, and have a game sense which doesn’t limit their impact on the field to just being fast. And for those big on recency bias, Arendse can call on his last (and only) performance in a Bok jersey to supplement his claims to succeed Kolbe.
Having made his debut as one of the 14 starting line-up changes in that controversial first ever defeat to Wales in the second test in Bloemfontein, Arendse was one of the players to emerge with his reputation enhanced in the game, thanks to a firm defensive display in a match with few chances to run.
That Arendse found a way to make an impact defensively in a game rendered a standing room only affair by a 13-12 final scoreline speaks volumes about how his stint at the Blitzboks made him a good player regardless of what side of the ball he’s on.
“Making my debut for the Blitzboks will always be a special memory,” Arendse told BokSquad.
“It was my first experience of being in a professional setup and the coaches were always willing and available to sit with the guys and explain how the system worked. That helped my rugby develop quicker.
“The preparation for each tournament was harder than the games themselves and that made me mentally strong. That’s what has brought me this far in my career.”
We’ve all wondered what’s in the water in Stellenbosch that makes wee fellas like Kolbe and Arendse channel their inner Eben Etzebeth in contact.
Blitzboks head coach Neil Powell found time to explain it when his former charge was earning his place in the Bok team with consistently jaw-dropping performances in the United Rugby Championship (URC) for the Bulls.
“It’s almost a must in our system, because physically we’re a lot smaller than the New Zealanders and the Fijians so we have to train these guys to handle people much bigger than they are,” he said.
“What contributed massively is our wrestling sessions where we almost encourage the smaller guys to wrestle the bigger boys in the system to get used to the size and the power of the bigger boys. We work really hard on contact skills and being able to manage players that are physically bigger.”
That said, Arendse didn’t exactly earn his place in the Bok squad by being a blunt object of the defensive kind.
Despite a campaign curtailed by a broken hand, the 26-year-old still managed to score seven tries from his 13 URC starts, topped the metres gained stats and finished second in the line-breaks numbers.
A wonderfully balanced runner (like all self-respecting steppers) with an easy but vicious turn of pace, Arendse has the ability to beat his man before or after he comes into possession, and an underrated talent to put others away.
This may explain why Bulls director of rugby Jake White moved him to fullback in the middle of the URC.
“He’s got an amazing ability to work himself into space, beat defenders and create opportunities for everybody around him,” Powell explained. “He has massive X-factor similar to Cheslin Kolbe in terms of his agility and ability to wrong-foot defenders with his stepping.
“What gives him an edge playing at 15 is that if they kick on him he’s got a bit more space to attack, whereas at wing it’s always difficult because of contestable kicks he can’t exactly run back. I think that’s why the Bulls are selecting him at 15 – if you kick long on him you must make sure your defensive lines are solid.”
Ironically, in the context of the queue at fullback in the Bok team the man himself still prefers playing wing.
“With Willie [le Roux], Warrick [Gelant], Aphelele [Fassi] or even Cheslin at fullback you know they can create for you to score as a wing.”
For all the noise he brings on the field, Arendse is painfully shy off it.
“He’s very reserved and the media stuff and the glitz and the glam of the game is not his cup of tea,” said Powell. “He’s very much an introvert, so much so that sometimes as a coach you end up feeling there might be something wrong.
“But it usually isn’t, he’s just in a place where he’s happy, focused and ready to go.”
The Springboks could be without Cheslin Kolbe for the Rugby Championship after he left the field early with a suspected broken jaw in yesterday's win over Wales.
— SuperSport 🏆 (@SuperSportTV) July 17, 2022
Looking at how long it took him to get into the Springbok conversation, Arendse – who is from Lantana in Paarl, went to the same high school as the late Tinus Linee and fellow former Blitzbok Renfred Dazell (Paulus Joubert) and was given the Varsity Cup chance that began it all by the late Chester Williams – has had his obstacles getting to the national side.
After Arendse took the long route in proving himself with the University of the Western Cape and the Blitzboks, and doubting his prospects because of his size, it’s ironic that Kolbe was one of the players (the other was Gio Aplon) who inspired him to keep going.
“It was always a dream for me… I’m just grateful I could pull the Springbok jersey over my head. My goal is to learn and grow in the system whenever I get an opportunity to get on the field.”
That opportunity may come sooner than later.
