Duhan van der Merwe was ready to write off this season. Ankle and hip problems had turned his world upside down. One minute he was on a British and Irish Lions tour. The next he was watching from the couch as Scotland played without him.
But then Gregor Townsend called. Out of nowhere.
The Scotland head coach offered van der Merwe something he never expected: a spot with the Barbarians against South Africa this Saturday in Gqeberha. The 31-year-old winger jumped at it.
“I couldn’t believe it,” van der Merwe told reporters. “Gregor knows what I’ve been through this season, what a very tough time it’s been. He phoned me up and said, ‘Look, I’ve got a real good opportunity for you to go and get some minutes under your belt.’ It was a no-brainer.”
From Lions tour to the sidelines
Van der Merwe’s drop in form was hard to watch for Scottish fans who’d seen him shred England three times in a row. He was benched against New Zealand in November, then left out of the Six Nations starting lineup for the opener. Darcy Graham passed him as Scotland’s all-time leading try scorer while van der Merwe rehabbed in the gym.
He got one Six Nations start, against Wales in Cardiff. That was it. His only real shot at redemption came in Edinburgh’s last two regular-season games, against the Dragons and Connacht. He played well enough to earn Townsend’s call.
“He has put a lot of trust in me to look after myself, enjoy the experience and join up with Scotland next week,” van der Merwe said.
That next week is the Nations Championship, where Scotland faces Argentina, South Africa, and Fiji. Three brutal tests in three weeks. Van der Merwe knows he’s auditioning for a spot on the World Cup roster.
“It hasn’t been easy losing my spot,” he said. “But I feel I’ve started to turn the corner a bit. Over the next couple of weeks recovery is going to be a key part. There’s a lot of travelling involved. But building up to the World Cup you want to be involved in these games.”
Facing the world champs twice in one month
Saturday’s Barbarians match is a warm-up in name only. Van der Merwe lines up against the Springboks, the team he was born into. He’s faced them five or six times before. He knows what’s coming.
“It doesn’t matter who South Africa picks,” he said. “They’ve got unbelievable talent. Whoever they pick, it’s going to be a very tough task on Saturday. And again at Loftus in a few weeks’ time. They’re always very passionate, physical, big men. And they’ve got some real X-Factor players in the back line.”
Scotland’s summer slate is no joke. Argentina first. Then South Africa in Pretoria. Then a Fiji squad that van der Merwe described as “pretty scary.” But he insists this team believes it can beat anyone.
“There’s a lot of competition in our squad,” he said. “It’s a very healthy environment.”
Van der Merwe recently became a British citizen, alongside his wife Nika, nine years after moving to Scotland via Montpellier. He’s committed to this program. And Townsend, who dropped him, is now the one giving him a lifeline.
That phone call changed everything.
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