SOCCER CITY, SOWETO – Cameron Hanekom has discovered that sometimes the most important work in Test rugby begins when the scoreboard clock reads 60 minutes.
For the Springboks’ latest heavyweight collision with the All Blacks, the Vodacom Bulls No 8 knew precisely what his marching orders were: hit the accelerator, inject energy and make life miserable for a New Zealand side already carrying an hour of rugby in its legs.
He did exactly that.
Hanekom delivered another bruising cameo at FNB Stadium on Saturday as the world champions edged the All Blacks 29-24, taking a 2-1 lead in Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry and leaving Baltimore with the series still firmly in their grasp.
For a player who spent months fighting his way back from injury, the sight of him crashing into Test rugby with increasing authority is becoming one of the more intriguing threads in Rassie Erasmus’ selection tapestry.
“It has been a very special experience so far. I think playing against the All Blacks in any capacity will always be special,” Hanekom said.
“This is my second game against them and the atmosphere in the stadium was crazy. The passionate way in which the supporters sang the national anthem was very special and we finished our last game on home soil on a good note.”
Hanekom’s resurgence has been anything but a gentle stroll.
He returned to Vodacom URC action for the Bulls against Cardiff in March, reclaimed the green and gold against England in July, then produced the defining moment in Buenos Aires when he scored the winning try against Argentina in August.
Now he is becoming another sharp edge in the Springbok bench arsenal.
The strategy is brutally simple and ruthlessly effective: soften the opposition through set-piece pressure, then unleash fresh muscle when fatigue starts turning legs to lead.
“We pride ourselves on our scrum work, rolling mauls and lineouts,” Hanekom said.
“There are many other things that we can still work on, but we ticked the boxes in most areas.”
That is where Hanekom fits into the machinery.
He is not being asked to reinvent rugby when he enters the fray. He is being asked to turn up the temperature.
“From a personal point of view, I knew that I, like all our replacements, had an important job to do,” he said.
“That is to bring energy and help the guys who have already been on the field for 60 minutes. When I got the opportunity, I knew I just had to give it everything.”
In other words, the Bok bench is no place for passengers.
It is a loaded revolver.
Hanekom is increasingly looking like one of the bullets Erasmus keeps in the chamber for the final quarter, when Test matches become trench warfare and tired defenders start leaving cracks in the armour.
At 24, his Test career is still gathering speed. Yet his return has already given Erasmus another weapon capable of changing the shape of a match.
The All Blacks may have survived the first 60 minutes.
The problem is what waits after that.
