Iron sharpens iron and Manie Libbok can prove he has the mettle

A touch over 12 months ago, the Cape Town native was picked at flyhalf for the Boks' Rugby World Cup semifinal against the men in white. Torrential rain and England's staunch kicking game made things difficult for Libbok. Never one to die wondering, Bok boss Rassie Erasmus hooked this playmaker off the stage in just the 31st minute, handing the proverbial reins to seasoned iceman Handre Pollard.

The veteran slotted eight points, including a now-famous match-winning long-range bomb to book the Boks a place in the final.

Fast forward to this Bok season and Libbok was handed the responsibility in Santiago against Argentina, but missed a last-gasp penalty resulting in the Boks going down by a point. Despite the media harping on his kicking woes, Erasmus backed Libbok again the following week in Mbombela.

Free of his placekicking duties thanks to Jaden Hendrikse, Libbok was sublime. He showed the skills that earned him the jersey, holding the ball up brilliantly on attack, playing vital roles in two tries and landing cheeky kicks out of hand in dangerous areas.

Now, the talent has a similar chance at redemption and the safety of Pollard - who played a full 80 minutes last week - on the bench.

"We always like to give players another chance like we did in Mbombela," Erasmus told the press this week.

"We know it wasn't Manie losing a Test match in Santiago and we know as a team we lost that Test match. I've said it many times - a normal pass with three on two is much easier than a kick in front of the poles.

"Again, if he doesn't make it, he knows we are not going to be upset with him.

"We know what his skill set is. If he gets through this like he did in the Argentina Test match, he will be a better player on the other side. If he doesn't, we've got security on the bench with Handre and then we will still work on him."

And with the competition heating up for the Bok flyhalf position, Saturday is a free pass for Libbok to flex his mastery. The man has nothing to lose.

"There is Sacha [Feinberg-Mngomezulu] knocking really hard, Damian [Willemse] and there is even Siya Masuku doing well at the Sharks," said Erasmus of the deep flyhalf talent pool.

"We've also got Jordan [Hendrikse] in camp with us, and we would love to give him an opportunity on tour."

Iron sharpens iron and Libbok can prove he has the mettle with a solid performance on Saturday.

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