THEY DO EVERYTHING bigger in South Africa, even St Patrick’s Day according to CJ Stander.
Ireland’s 6′ 2″, 114 kilo blindside was infamously told he was too small to make it as an international rugby player in his home nation. Yet the stand-in Munster captain has moved almost seamlessly from the provincial scene through his four Test caps during this Six Nations.
The motivation that drives him through tackles and over try-lines though, is no longer drawn from a desire to make that coach regret the advice to move out of the back row:
“In the beginning I would say I wanted to prove a point to the people who had said that to me, but for now I’ve just changed my direction,” the Irish South African said in Carton House this afternoon.
“Because if you play just to prove someone else wrong, then you’re going to have to look at yourself if you prove that.
So for now I’m just trying to play my own game, bring an energy and physicality to the team that I can bring. And if there’s a question about my size then I’ll step up and show someone my size and power by running hard and straight at them.”
It’s a skill that’s difficult to argue with, and the 25-year-old has proved himself just as able to make inroads in the Six Nations as he is in the Pro12. The first three months of this year have been a learning curve for him, but despite the results on the board, not an unduly steep one.
“It’s been an unbelievable journey. Everyone has made it easier for me to step in,” says the blindside who will have to fend off competition from his Munster captain Peter O’Mahony for the blindside berth later this year.
‘Swim out of the muck’
“If I honestly look back now, getting my first start and my first two or three weeks in camp was massive for me. I thought maybe I’d get into the group then try to get into the team, but that was massive.
“That’s the way I like it though, I like to be thrown into the deep end then just swim out of the muck. So I’m glad for that and glad Joe gave me the opportunity.”
The opportunity has made him a sharper player, Stander says, bringing his A game to every session rather than just turning the tap on on matchday.
“I’ve learned to train more the way you’re going to play. (It’s) almost like your actions need to be instinct rather than a decision. That’s what I’ve learned from Joe, that’s the thing especially he talks about.
“I learned in my first cap the pace is so quick, the intensity is so high, that you have to make the right decision or you will be shown up.”
“If you make the wrong decision you’ll be in the wrong position, you’ll miss a tackle or you’ll drop a ball. You can’t afford that split-second, it has to be instinct.
“At Pro12 and Champions Cup there’s a bit of time to think what’s going on, but at Test level you need to do your thing and it has to be the right decision or you could end up looking like a fool almost.”
For the day that’s in it, Stander was asked his feelings on St Patrick’s Day. He’ll get a closer look at Dublin’s post-parade atmosphere from the windows of the Shelbourne tonight, but it likely won’t match up to his experiences in his home town of George or his college days in Pretoria.
“It is quite big,” he says of Ireland’s 17 March festivities, “but in South Africa it’s massive. Everything’s green, the water’s green and people really enjoy themselves for three or four days.”
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