When I noticed that Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu made 12 tackles against Australia, I decided to go back through every Springbok match since Rassie Erasmus took over in 2018 to see if any flyhalf had ever made more. It turns out, this was the most tackles by a Springbok flyhalf in that entire period. That got me thinking, so I decided to dig a little deeper.
If you weren’t already familiar with Feinberg-Mngomezulu, you certainly should be now. The 22-year-old has been in exceptional form for the Springboks throughout this international season, becoming one of only two players to have featured in all six matchday 23 squads. Whether it’s his attacking flair, footballing abilities, or sharpshooting goal-kicking, rugby fans are beginning to take notice of this rising star. Yet, one aspect of his game that I believe remains underappreciated is his work rate and defensive contribution. To highlight just how strong his defensive game has been, I took a closer look at his underlying tackling numbers and compared them with his competition.
Defensive Contribution: Breaking Down the Numbers
The data used for this analysis covers the period from 2nd July 2022 to the present, ensuring that recent performances are reflected. Feinberg-Mngomezulu has split his playing time between fullback and flyhalf, so to ensure a fair comparison, I focused solely on minutes players had from starts at flyhalf. For further accuracy, I normalised the data per 80 minutes played.
Below is a table comparing the tackles made per 80 minutes and their respective percentage of total team tackles made:
These stats focus exclusively on tackles made (not attempted), so in Feinberg-Mngomezulu's case against Australia, his 12 tackles were part of the Springboks’ overall 122 successful tackles (from 140 attempted). His tackles per 80 minutes metric of 12.80 translates into 10.49% of the team's total tackles in that match, which is remarkable for a flyhalf.
Contextualising His Defensive Output
Although Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s data comes from a relatively small sample size due to his limited starts at flyhalf, his defensive impact is nonetheless significant. When you include the minutes he played at flyhalf off the bench, his tackling numbers remain impressive. Over 132 minutes at flyhalf for the Springboks, he has made 20 tackles, giving him an average of 12.12 tackles per 80 minutes.
What stands out is how his tackling output dwarfs that of his fellow flyhalves. With Feinberg-Mngomezulu registering more than double the tackles made per 80 minutes compared to seasoned players like Pollard and Libbok, his contribution as a defensive force becomes even more pronounced.
Comparison Across the Competition
It’s interesting to note that Feinberg-Mngomezulu's tackling output is not only superior in raw numbers but also as a proportion of the team’s overall defensive effort. Contributing more than 10% of the total team tackles in a game reflects a commitment to getting involved in the less glamorous, yet vital, defensive side of rugby.
In contrast, Pollard and Libbok average significantly fewer tackles per 80 minutes, with Pollard contributing only 5.85 tackles (5.56% of team tackles), and Libbok averaging 4.44 tackles (5% of team tackles). These numbers make it clear that Feinberg-Mngomezulu is a unique asset at flyhalf, offering defensive qualities beyond his predecessors.
What the Springbok Coaches Want
Damian Willemse’s minutes at flyhalf in 2022 may have come as a surprise, especially with someone like Manie Libbok available for selection. At the time, it was attributed to his familiarity with the system (and no doubt defensive ragidity), but since then, we've received a few more clues. Jordan Hendrikse was selected at flyhalf for the first Springbok test of 2024 despite playing less than half of his club season minutes at flyhalf for the Lions. And, like Sacha, he excels defensively, averaging 10.17 tackles per 80 minutes in the URC, with an impressive tackle success rate of 94%.
This adds another layer to the tackle volume stats discussed above. While it's one thing to make a high number of tackles, such as 10 per 80 minutes, the true value lies in doing so with efficiency. After all, making 10 tackles would be far less impressive if done at a 50% success rate, where 10 tackles made could be offset by 10 missed.
This puts Libbok in a challenging position. Not only does he make the fewest tackles per 80 minutes among these Bok flyhalves, but he also ranks lower in terms of tackle success rates. This could explain why the Springboks opted to use Libbok differently in defence during the 2023 season — a strategy I explored in more detail in this article here.
The Springbok Flyhalf Dilemma
South African rugby has long struggled to produce flyhalves who can excel in all three key areas: attack, defence, and goal-kicking. Many have managed to master two of these aspects, but few, if any, have succeeded at all three at the highest level.
Historically, flyhalves like Henry Honiball and Butch James were defensively brilliant, but often lacked the accuracy off the kicking tee that is demanded at the international level. More recently, a player like Libbok has brought other strengths to the table, but his goal-kicking (and to a lesser extent defensive contributions) have not been at the required level.
It is noticeably that Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s goal-kicking accuracy is at 85.7% for both club and country, which when combined comes from a sample size of 35 kicks. A decent reflection of what to expect from him.
Conclusion
Though still early in his career, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s tackling numbers offer a clear indication of his work rate and defensive reliability. His ability to consistently deliver a high volume of tackles sets him apart from his peers in the Springbok setup, and it's a trait that should not go unnoticed.
While being an excellent attacking flyhalf involves more than just flashy offloads and defence-splitting linebreaks, Feinberg-Mngomezulu has the potential to combine his accurate goal-kicking, defensive prowess, and increasingly potent attacking game to become a truly complete South African flyhalf.
If you haven’t already, give the video at the top of the article a watch to see the highlights of Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s defensive performance vs Australia.
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