'I'm always growing': Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu determined to stay grounded amid hype

The 23-year-old playmaker has quickly made a name for himself with impressive performances for both the Stormers and South Africa but admits he sometimes has to tune out the noise to stay focused and grounded - especially when he sees his own face on a billboard.

"At this point, I'm cringing a bit," the Bok star said in a wide-ranging interview with News24.

"Look, the young version of me would be so proud, so I'm not going to sit here and complain about it. But sometimes I drive past and block my face – it's enough for the day."

Despite feeling uneasy about the massive hype surrounding him, Feinberg-Mngomezulu is confident he has a strong support system to keep him grounded and prevent him from getting carried away by the attention.

"I'm sure my subconscious feels some of it," he said. "But I've got quite a nice system in place where my friends are all guys from school – guys who don't respect me as a Springbok. I could play nine [great] games out of 10 and they'd tell me about the one out of 10 I was bad at.

"It's people like that who keep me on my toes and stop me from enjoying the articles too much. This is a high-pressure environment with so much scrutiny, so it's nice to have one or two nice things said about you every now and then. I enjoy it, but I don't indulge it - I hope it never becomes part of my make-up."

Helping Feinberg-Mngomezulu to stay locked in amid all the hype is a strong determination to keep improving as a player. The youngster is far from the finished article despite his huge potential, and doesn't have any problem admitting that.

"Being patient probably comes from steady growth; the moment you stop seeing yourself grow, you probably become impatient and paranoid. I literally feel like I can grow every day in every part of my game.

"I make a lot of mistakes – in training and in matches – so I'm always growing. Because I can see the end goal, I remain patient. If I couldn't see it, I'd be impatient and impulsive."

Meanwhile, Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus and the coaching staff are carefully managing Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s development, mindful of the pressures that come with early success and high expectations.

"For Sacha, like most of the other youngsters, he only has eight Test caps. I remember the first time Jonny Wilkinson played against us, he didn't have a great game. But he became a great player," Erasmus said, adding that managing a player like Feinberg-Mngomezulu is a careful balancing act.

"Understanding what we are trying to do and believing what we are trying to do, while still being Sacha, that is what we want him to strive for.

"Everybody also hypes him up and it's difficult to try and live up to what the people are saying, make magic every single time or do the unbelievable thing that no one thinks you can do. Sometimes it's about balance, and Tony Brown is really working hard with him. I think he is taking it on board and understanding what we want him to do."