Stormers Springbok’s Suffers ANOTHER Fresh Injury Blow With a ‘Dangerous’ Neck Ligament Issue
Two-time Rugby World Cup winner with the Springboks Steven Kitshoff has suffered a neck ligament injury that will keep him out for a minimum of six weeks.
Kitshoff last played for South Africa in the World Cup final last year, after which he made the move to club side Ulster where a knee injury ruled him out for most of the season, effectively ending his time early with the side and sparking a move back to the Stormers.
The loosehead prop had finally worked his way back to fitness making his return with Western Province in the Currie Cup. However, in a final round clash with the Griquas in Kimberley, the veteran suffered his latest injury.
Could be longer than six weeks
Stormers director of rugby John Dobson revealed that the injury will be reassessed after six weeks and only then will the entire sidelined period become clear.
“He’s done some ligaments quite high up in his neck. In six weeks is the reassessment date,” Dobson said on a URC media round table.
“From what I understand, he is out for six weeks at least. Ligaments in the neck are quite a dangerous cocktail. It’s a cocktail that we want to be quite conservative about. It’s one we want to take very cautiously. So it will be six weeks at minimum. We will then be able to say how many weeks after that.”
The injury timeline throws Kitshoff’s hopes of wearing the Springboks jersey this year in doubt again with the earliest possible return being in the middle of October and that is provided the period off the field is not extended after the six-week assessment.
Impossible to replace
The Stormers boss explained that the Capetonians will not look for a replacement as there is no hope of finding a player of Kitshoff’s calibre in the market and Dobson would rather back a young player.
“The market’s done for this coming season. You can’t replace Steven Kitshoff, there aren’t many of him just floating around. There’s no point. That’s a different level.
“We’ve got enough depth. Leon Lyons has come in from Griquas, Sti is fit again, and we have a promising youngster in Vernon Matongo.
“You don’t replace Steven Kitshoff at this stage. Everybody is contracted. We had the best scrum differential last season without Kitsie. We also have a promising youngster called Brok Harris who will just have to go again.
“It’s the cards we’ve been dealt. I just hope Steven is nearer to a six-to-eight week absence. There’s no prospect in us finding an uncontracted loosehead who can make a difference. You rather back your youngsters.”
