Reluctant 'Beast 2.0' Mchunu 'breaks' Maritzburg College 'tradition' with Springbok elevation

There's a quip going around that Ntuthuko Mchunu has gone against Maritzburg College "tradition" in getting picked to play for the Springboks.

In the professional era, the school has only produced backs for the national team, notably three flyhalves in Joel Stransky (1993), Butch James (2001) and Peter Grant (2007), as well as current Bok No 13 Jesse Kriel (2015).

One has to go all the way back to 1937 to find Maritzburg's last Bok forward, George van Reenen, who earned two caps as No 8.

"Yeah, we were actually chatting about that," said the purposeful but affable Sharks loosehead, who's been included on the bench for Saturday's second Test against Wales in Bloemfontein.

"We couldn't recall the last time a forward actually made it into the national team. It's great for the school and it's a real privilege for me."

READ | Ntuthuko Mchunu's rapid rise unsurprising to some: 'He was destined to play for the Springboks'

Ironically, Mchunu would hardly look out of place being classified as a bulky yet sprightly backline player.

As a recently converted loose forward, the 23-year-old has stolen the show over the past few months for his electrifying pace, notably a stunning individual try he scored against the Lions in last year's Currie Cup.

But the Springbok coaching staff have also clearly seen enough evidence of his solid fundamentals to groom him for the highest level, inevitably meaning that comparisons will be drawn with the legendary Tendai 'Beast' Mtawarira.

The 117-cap World Cup winner has indeed been a mentor to Mchunu yet the 2018 Maritzburg head boy is fairly emphatic that he wants to write his own unique script.

"It's a massive thing being called Beast 2.0 but I just want to create my own legacy," he said.

"He's someone who