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Latest Springboks update on the Pollard, Am injury rehab situation
Jacques Nienaber has delivered an injury update on two of the star names excluded last week from the squad of 33 named by the Springboks for the upcoming Rugby World Cup. The South Africans will start the defence of their title with a September 10 pool fixture versus Scotland in Marseille and will do so minus two of their 2019 XV in Handre Pollard and Lukhanyo Am.
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Pollard missed the recent Rugby Championship with the calf injury that he sustained near the end of the Gallagher Premiership season with Leicester, while Am has been sidelined by the knee injury he sustained in the August 5 Test friendly win over Argentina in Buenos Aires.
Both players are expected to be fit once the tournament in France is underway but that prognosis wasn’t enough for head coach Nienaber to name them in his World Cup squad. Instead, he named the RWC standby pair as two of the five additional players that have travelled to the UK for the two-game tour versus Wales and New Zealand.
It means they can continue their rehab for now under the supervision of the Springboks medical team. However, neither player will be allowed to travel to RWC base camp in Toulon unless someone in the official 33 picks up an injury and needs to be replaced during the finals.
What is the latest on their respective rehabs? Having announced a Springboks XV to face Wales that has 11 changes from last time out in Buenos Aires, including a recall for the fit-again skipper Siya Kolisi after his 17-week lay-off, Nienaber said: “Handre is not injured, he is returning from injury.
“His injury has subsided, but he is still in the process of return to play and with that, as we did with Jaden (Hendrikse) and Siya, there is a process that gets followed by the medical team and by the performance team.
“I don’t want to be too scientific but there is a certain load that a player must do during the week to try and get a performance on Saturday. It’s trying to expose him to that load and let him get comfortable with that load with his injury and try not to risk it so much that he re-injures himself, so that is the balance that we sit with Handre.
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“Currently, he doesn’t have his calf injury. It’s an injury recovery. With Lukhanyo, it’s different. Lukhanyo is still injured. He sustained his injury two weeks ago and is still recovering from that, but he will go over the next week or two into the same process that Handre is currently in now.
“The next question will be what is the difference between him [Pollard] and Jaden and Siya? Jaden was probably cleared to play six weeks ago. They [Hendrikse and Kolisi] were cleared to return to full training and take contact and tackle and kick the ball and all those rugby-related stuff.
“Where the other guys are, a guy like Handre is still busy with that return to full contact, return to having a Test week, or a full-on preparation week. He is still building up that tolerance and load, so that is where he is currently.
“How long will it take, it’s like with any rehab thing: if there is a stiffness or a setback in terms of something that happens, then we step back a bit and we slow it down and then we add load again and see if he can tolerate it so it is almost like a give and take thing.
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“They are not in the 33. If there is an injury and they go through full progression and they are fit and they are cleared by the medical team, then they will be up for selection but currently they have not been cleared by the medical team and they are not in the 33 currently.
“They have to get cleared first. That is point number one and we can’t select them. And when they are cleared by the medical team and they are up for selection then, if there is an injury in the squad then they can get selected.”
How close are they to being declared available for selection by the time of the opener versus Scotland if an injury does arise in the meantime to one of the chosen 33? “I’m not sure about Lukhanyo.
“Hopefully Handre if he gets cleared by the medical team. He is now in a process of returning to training and the next progression will be return to play, so he is still busy with getting into that facet of his rehab.”
Comments on RugbyPass
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2 Go to commentsThis game was just as painful as the Hurricanes game. It was real fork-in-the-eye stuff.
2 Go to commentsNow if they could just fire the Crusaders ground PA guy who likes to play his dance music and just loves the sound of his own voice the entire game, even when play is going on. And I thought their brass band thing of a few years ago was bad.
5 Go to commentsUnfortunately when you lose by far the two form players this season in Roigard and Aumua, you're left replacing two game changing Tanks with a couple of pea-shooters. Which is also about the speed of TJs pass.
2 Go to commentsBit rich coming from the guy with zero loyalty to anyone or any team, including happily taking a players place in a league world cup squad because well, SBW wanted to play in it and thus an already named player got told he was no longer going. And airing stuff like this, which may or may not be true, doesn't exactly say you're a stand up guy either SBW. Just looking to keep his name in lights as usual.
37 Go to commentsTamati Tua. …the Taniwha NPC midfielder. Ollie Sapsford, Hawkes Bay NPC midfielder…doing well
2 Go to commentsFiji deserve to be in the rugby championship, fans love seeing the Fijian national team play, the Fijian Drua is a wonderful idea but the players can still be stolen to play for NZ and AUS…
1 Go to commentsThe first concern for this afternoon are wheather forecast…
1 Go to commentsWhy cant I watch Rugby games please?
1 Go to commentsBeautiful shot from Finau, end of story. Gutted for Shaun Stevenson though.
4 Go to commentsThe Chiefs definitely didn’t win ugly. They had the superior scrum, a dominant lineout, and their defence was excellent once the Waratahs scored their two tries (thanks to some lucky refereeing calls mind you). They put pressure on the Waratahs lineout throughout the game, and the mind boggles as to why the referee did not award a yellow card or a penalty try against the Waratahs for repeated scrum infringements on their own try line before Narawa’s first try. And the Chiefs were slick with their passing and running angles on attack. It was a dominant performance all round, even with many questionable refereeing decisions.
1 Go to commentsWasnt late. Ref 2 assistants andTMO all saw it so who are you to say it was?
4 Go to commentsAre the Brumbies playing the Blues twice in a row?
4 Go to commentsBig difference from the Saders. Forwards really muscled up and laid a solid platform. Scooter brought some steel and I liked the loosie combination. Newell has been rather disappointing this season but stepped up big time - happy also to see Franks dot down. He should do that more often! Reihana had a good game and there seems to be more flair and invention with him in the saddle. McNicoll plays well from the back and is reliable plus inventive when he joins the line. Keep it up chaps!
5 Go to comments🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
33 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
4 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusaders , you can keep going.
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