Nuggety Kayser has golden game

Deon Kayser just loves the expansive approach favoured by the Sharks nowadays.

Following the nuggety midfielder's superb showing during the 69-26, 11-try demolition of the Pumas at Absa Stadium on Saturday, which saw them go one point clear of the Blue Bulls in Section Y of the Bankfin Currie Cup - and which saw Kayser scoop the Man of the Match award, he said he couldn't recall the last time he had scored a hat-trick.

"I can't remember scoring that many tries in a game before," he said.

"I've had a bit of a drought, so they came at a good time."

They certainly did. Kayser was hampered by a persistent groin injury for much of the early season, reducing his Super 12 campaign to a stop-start affair. But Saturday's performance, his fifth consecutive appearance in this season's Currie Cup, confirmed that he still retains all the qualities which have endeared him to shrewd observers of the art of midfield play, such as former Bok centre Dick Muir.

You name it, he's got it - lightning speed, slick hands, a nose for the half-gap, the determination to stop physically bigger opponents in their tracks, the rare quality of being able to snatch loose ball on the ground and, most importantly of all, the refusal to give up regardless of the odds stacked against him.

Just ask Robbie Fleck, the Stormers centre, about the folly of prematurely celebrating a try when Kayser is on your trail and you have yet to ground the ball. It tends to leave you lying on a heap on the ground separated from the ball.

His simple recipe for success: "I just play to enjoy myself," Kayser insisted. "That way, there's no pressure."

He also believes that the greater involvement of the Sharks backs this season has helped to bring out the best in his own game.

"We've got a licence to run the ball (if we believe it is on) and that definitely suits my game. Maybe in the past the Sharks were known more for their forward domination, but we've tried to spread the ball more this season and, with us getting a lot more ball on the front-foot, there have been more opportunities for the backs."

Kayser has always laughed off the perception that, standing 1,75m tall and weighing 78kg, he is too small to succeed. "I've played the whole of my rugby career with that perception," he responded. "But it just motivates me more. Hopefully I've shown that I can play with the big boys as I don't think I'm going to get any bigger now."

Kayser said he didn't dwell on his prospects of adding to the 13 Bok caps in a career that has seen him emerge victorious in the face of great adversity and widespread scepticism over his ability to stand up physically.

He had to bide his time on the bench when he first made the trek from EP to join a star-studded Coastal Sharks squad in the Super 12. Slowly but surely he made his mark in the regional side.

Perhaps his greatest achievement came in the 1999 World Cup when he delivered a series of standout performances before breaking his jaw during the dramatic semi-final loss to the Wallabies. He suffered a similar injury shortly after his comeback to the game the following season.

Now he's ready and rapidly returning to his best. Along with many of his provincial teammates.