Lions flank Vincent Tshituka ensuring Bok selectors take notice

Lions flank Vincent Tshituka is a man for the big occasion, and after some barnstorming performances for his team over the past few weeks, he must surely be on the Springbok radar.

Though he is still working towards getting his South African citizenship, the DRC-born player has been in scintillating form recently and has played a big part in the Lions renaissance that has seen them win four United Rugby Championship games in a row against foreign opposition.

He has been named Man-of-the-Match in three of those four games, only missing out on the award against Ospreys, while his performances against top-five teams Munster and Edinburgh will certainly have raised his profile.

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“He is definitely in good form. His work-rate off and on the ball, on defence or attack, is special at the moment,” said Lions coach Ivan van Rooyen.

“He’s definitely one of the guys who stops momentum (of the opposition) and gives momentum to the team, so with the way he is playing it’s difficult not talk about him (being in the Bok frame). I would think that in boardrooms his name would definitely be written on a piece of paper.

“He is a physical athlete. He has speed and the ability to beat players and stop players. He has the ability to get one or two offloads in.

“He’s a great guy that brings a lot of energy to the team room. He is special for us and I think you can see from his performances that he’s enjoying his rugby here.”

Team player

Tshituka’s impressive form has also given his fellow players a massive lift, and as a popular character in the dressing room, he always puts his teammates at ease.

But once he hits the field it is all business, and he is currently churning out the performances.

“Vince always has a joke and is a funny guy, but when he gets on the field he does his job,” said Lions stand-in captain Reinhard Nothnagel.

“That’s the thing we as players respect the most, so even if we have a bad training week, when I stand next to him on the field I know he’s going to do his job.

“That’s what makes him a special player for our team – he just goes at 150% every time, and if he makes a mistake, he rectifies it within two phases after that. So he is very valuable to us.”

Despite the fact that performances like these would usually get a player a look in, Tshituka still has to clear the massive hurdle of the Springbok conveyor belt of loose forward talent.

Pieter-Steph du Toit is the current Bok number seven, while Kwagga Smith and Franco Mostert were his back-ups last season.

Jean-Luc du Preez and Rynhardt Elstadt were also in the mix last year, and with some exciting youngsters staking a claim this season, it will still take a lot of work for him to force himself into the squad.