Playing in different conditions is a big part of the learning process of a young player and, if you will excuse the hoary attempt at pun, at Kings Park against the Blue Bulls last weekend he took to it like a duck to water. Bosch produced an excellent showing of game management and control as he made sure the home side capitalised on their forward ascendancy in wet conditions.
The Bulls tried hard but were pinned in their own half for most of the game and it was mainly thanks to Bosch’s increasingly more educated boot that they never got a look in. It should please Coetzee, for while Handre Pollard, who played part of the Durban game for the Bulls, is the current back-up to Elton Jantjies, it is Bosch who is the next cab off the rank.
Bosch says that his time with the Boks, both in camp in the early stages of the Rugby Championship and in the training camps held during Super Rugby, has helped him enormously and has enabled him to do what Coetzee wanted – return to the Sharks as a better player with a clear understanding of what is required of him.
“The coaches told me I had to work on my defence and game management but they are happy with where I am at the moment,” said the former Port Elizabeth schoolboy.
“My cover tackling has not been a problem but when you are standing in the flyhalf channel and have 110 kilogram forwards running at you, you have to make a different kind of tackle. Every day I am working with the Sharks coaches on front-on hits, making sure I get into position to launch the tackle.”
It was his defensive issues that prompted the Sharks coaches to initially select Bosch as a fullback, and there is still some uncertainty over where he is going to settle. If Jantjies or Pollard nail down the flyhalf position, he could by the 2019 World Cup be an interesting fullback option for the Boks.
However, for Bosch himself the issue appears to becoming more settled.
“It is still early days for me, but I am feeling increasingly comfortable in the No 10 jersey. I think the decision is naturally being made for me as the season unfolds,” he said.
Bosch said he is not too fazed about his omission from the Bok squad and said it was all about him gathering experience, which he feels he has profited from. He knows he is young and has a long career ahead of him.
“When I came to the Sharks I had goals in mind. I expect things of myself, so having achieved what I have so far is minimal compared to where I want to go ultimately. This year has been about stepping stones to becoming a better player so that I can achieve those goals.”
