The injury set to keep Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu out of rugby for three to four months is a huge blow for the Stormers and Springboks, but the damage would have been far greater were it not for the emphasis John Dobson and Rassie Erasmus have placed on building depth.When Feinberg-Mngomezulu left the field limping from an injured ankle after a despairing tackle from a Cardiff player trying to prevent him dotting down nearer the posts, Dobson, the Stormers’ director of rugby, and Springbok coach Erasmus would both have winced with discomfort. Their discomfort could only have increased when the Bok flyhalf left the DHL Stadium on crutches after the game.Dobson confirmed it is a serious ankle injury, and it was later learnt that the nature of the injury means Feinberg-Mngomezulu is likely to be sidelined long enough to put in serious doubt his participation in the forthcoming southern hemisphere international season, headlined for the Boks by the Greatest Rivalry Series against New Zealand.It also means he misses what is set to happen before that: the Boks’ eagerly awaited first Nations Cup clash with England at Ellis Park on July 4 plus next week’s Stormers URC semi-final against Leinster in Dublin. Losing a world-class potential match-winner is the last thing Dobson needs, given that Leinster are already a formidable challenge to surmount at Aviva Stadium, and the Stormers were already without injured Bok scrumhalf Cobus Reinach.It effectively means the Stormers go into their most important game of the season without their two Bok halfbacks. However, if you expected Dobson to be consumed by a pall of negativity around the loss of his star player, you’d be mistaken. If anything, he was more concerned about the concussion that has also robbed him in Dublin of the services of his pacy winger, Seabelo Senatla.There’s a reason for that. Great player that he is, Feinberg-Mngomezulu is replaceable by Jurie Matthee, who delivered one of his customary, mature performances when he came on as a last 30-minute replacement for Feinberg-Mngomezulu. Although the backup to the Bok, Matthee is an important member of the Stormers’ squad, and that he has been made to feel important was shown by his decision a few months ago to sign a contract extension until 2029.Feinberg-Mngomezulu has also signed on until that year, and Matthee is certainly good enough to be a first choice at another club, but Dobson knows how valuable Matthee can be when he is needed for occasions like next Saturday’s, so he’s made it clear to the player how important he is to the overall plan.In contrast to the scattergun approach to contracting we have seen at times from the financially well-heeled Sharks, Dobson has been highly targeted when it comes to recruitment and retention. The angst over Senatla’s absence and the loss of the pace that made the former Blitzbok such a menace to Cardiff in the contestable kicking game underlines why Dobson was so eager to embrace a homecoming for double World Cup winner Cheslin Kolbe.With both Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Matthee contracted long term, plus South Africa under-20 Yaqeen Ahmed looking set for a bright future, flyhalf is no problem to the Stormers. Wing is, and the Stormers have struggled to properly execute their game model without real pace out wide.Damian Willemse, who was excellent at fullback against Cardiff, was used at wing in three games but can be added to the list of flyhalf options for Dobson. He will be on Erasmus’ list of pivots too, thanks to his solid performances there in 2022 when Handré Pollard was injured and before Manie Libbok came through at the international level. The Boks will miss Feinberg-Mngomezulu, but Erasmus’ rotation policy in selection has ensured that Pollard and Libbok have had plenty of international exposure, and, should one of them be added to the injury list, Willemse has been a proven campaigner in the position at the highest level and can be used there if needed.