Ulster Rugby vs Munster

WIEHAHN HERBST THE PROP AT THE TOP

Wiehahn Herbst is a prop forward in whom Ulster have invested to establish a daunting front row to challenge the very best.

“We’re very happy here, and it definitely helped that I had played with and been friends with Ruan, Franco and Louis, so the welcome was warm from them and their families. And the boys in the Ulster squad, all the people on the staff, went out of their way to make it easy for me,” he says with a grateful smile. Does he miss South Africa, where only a couple of years ago he was part of the international training camp? “Well, sometimes, because I’m an outdoor boy, I miss being able to get to the sea quickly, and just as easily drive into the Bush for a bit of hunting. “As for the Springboks, that was every youngster’s dream, and I was no different, but for some reason I fell out of the reckoning and you just deal with it. It was great that the opportunity then came to play here in Ulster, a club with a reputation, especially in South Africa. “Ruan and Johann Muller, I knew well, and I was aware of how they felt about playing at Kingspan, so coming over didn’t hold any fears.” And that journey has revived his international ambitions, though he speaks of them reluctantly and with honesty. “I will qualify to play for Ireland in just over a year, and maybe if things go well for the side, and for me, I might get a chance. International rugby is the pinnacle of any player’s career, and I’m no different, and Ireland is my rugby country, no doubt about that.” Since signing last year, Wiehahn experienced Ulster in some really impressive form, not least because of the firm anchor he was providing at the coalface of the scrum. “I believed we had a good season last year, and for me the standout games were against Leinster and against Leicester. We showed what a good team we were, and for myself I felt that I was justifying my place in the side. I don’t lack confidence, but I was aware last year that I was in a key position and that there was pressure to perform. “I do need to feel that pressure, the butterflies in the stomach. I do need to feel those before any game. To me it says I’m ready, I’m prepared, let’s go! “There were disappointments, of course, and being injured for the last two games at a critical stage of the drive towards the PRO12 was hard to take.

The modest 27-year-old, born in South Africa, clearly enjoys life at Kingspan Stadium, and he’s quickly established himself as a fans’ favourite. His arrival to join a strong group of props on either side of the scrum is a signal of Ulster’s determination to create competition in every position, and there can be no doubt that Herbst’s trip to the northern hemisphere was never a gamble. He argues that prop forwards develop much earlier in the professional era, but even he was regarded as something of a prodigy when he made his Currie Cup and Super Rugby debuts for Natal Sharks before he was 21. “I was fortunate, I was absolutely steeped in rugby, starting when I was just six. I loved the game then, and I love it still, but with a top club like Ulster you know you have responsibilities. “If I don’t do my job in the front row then the other players suffer, and we have so many talented players of international calibre that you just have to be in the best shape you can be, and in the best form you can produce.” Wiehahn speaks quietly but with a clear sense of purpose. He is truly an exemplar of the modern professional rugby player. “Yes, I am fortunate to have played at such a high level for the Sharks and for Ulster seriously, but that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy it. I do, very much, especially the good games, the togetherness and particular passion of this squad, the special atmosphere at Kingspan. “It was fantastic in December when we had that great win over Toulouse at home, the players were getting reward for some hard work, the coaches had done their homework and given us the freedom to play. “And that crowd, it was something else! I just want to have more nights and days like that at home, and indeed away from Belfast. I know I made a good decision coming here, I’m really settled and life is great. “I get the best of both worlds actually, because when you go back to family in South Africa it is home, but when I get back Northern Ireland is very definitely my home too!” Currently he’s enjoying the time he gets to spend with his wife Denise and their son Zian, born just a few months ago.

WIEHAHN HERBST

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