Are Jake and the Bulls on their way to unearthing a new Henry Honiball?

Coaches in general loath making comparisons, but part of Jake White's charm is that he does it a little bit more than most of his counterparts.

Without explicitly stating so, he gave a subtle nod to suggestions that Juan Mostert, his flyhalf on the bench for Friday evening's United Rugby Championship (URC) encounter with Zebre in Parma, has a few similarities to Handre Pollard.

Yet, review a bit of footage of his magnificent exploits at school at Paul Roos and his cracking Varsity Cup campaign for Maties last year and it becomes apparent that the 21-year-old reminds one much more of another brilliant Springbok pivot, Henry Honiball.

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Compact and strong - with a functional Honiball haircut to boot - Mostert's attacking play can fittingly be described through the KwaZulu-Natal legend's nickname "Lem" or blade.

Even his posture - silkily upright - when he breaks the line reminds one of that.

Naturally, White will hope that his defence will eventually be as ruthless as Honiball's - that's the true origin of his nickname - but for now there's more than enough to be excited about.

Juan Mostert??.His solo effort just before the break was a gem for @MatiesSport!#RugbyThatRocks pic.twitter.com/VBR1FXsGZV

"He's got something a bit different," said the Bulls' director of rugby.

"He's big, he's tall. He played SA Schools and comes from Paul Roos. Juan's got everything. You don't play for those two teams at school if you can't play the game well."

Having played a starring role for the SA Under-18 side in 2018's international series against Wales, France and England, Mostert was cruelly denied the opportunity to put himself on the radar via the Junior