'Springbok dream not far away' - Haashim Pead stays grounded after rapid rise

Speaking in an interview with RugbyPass, the 20-year-old opened up about his quick step up to the senior ranks and his determination to stay patient while waiting for more opportunities.

After starring for the Junior Springboks at last year's U20 Championship in Italy, where the Boks won the title, and Pead was named player of the tournament, he was quickly snapped up by the Lions and global agency Roc Nation.

Despite limited game time in the URC so far, Pead has been working hard in training alongside Springbok Morne van den Berg to be ready when the opportunities come.

"All you want to do is play rugby," he said. "To get used to those types of games, you have to play more and more in those competitions, and that's how you get that sharpness.

"The physicality, intensity and speed of the game at senior level - everything goes up a whole lot. The Lions have been really good in easing me into that.

"After training sessions, I would work with Morne - he really helped get my fitness up, my passing sharp, my box kicking. Every day since the beginning of the URC, I've been on it.

"I know if I do start a game, I will definitely be sharp and on it and there won't be that doubt that I'm not ready."

That mindset ties directly into his long-term goal of playing for the Springboks. Rassie Erasmus invited Pead to the first national alignment camp of the year, and it made him realise that the ambition is within his reach.

"It opened my eyes that the Springbok dream is not as far away as you think," he said.

But Pead is also aware of where he still needs to improve, and for all his attacking ability, he now understands the importance of backing it up with a strong defensive game.

"For me, a big thing was to bring my energy when it comes to attack and you speak to other players and they're like, 'yeah, rugby involves attack but it also involves defence - you can't just give everything on attack and rest on defence'.

"Ever since then, I've been working on my defence, making sure I get stuck in and involve myself a lot more."

Pead comes from a tight-knit Cape Malay community in the Bo-Kaap, and inspired by Springbok stars like Siya Kolisi, is already thinking about how he can use his platform to give back.

"I want to do things I wasn't afforded," he said. "When I was a kid, there weren't these types of opportunities or things weren't really given to us.

"That's the way Siya started with his foundation. He got some boots from Adidas and took them to the Zwide township, where he is from.

"I want to start my own foundation, not just for my community but other struggling communities within the Western Cape."