South Africa and Sale Sharks to lose injured Faf de Klerk
South Africa have received a major blow to their Autumn Series prospects with the news that Faf de Klerk is facing five months out injured.
According to the Daily Mail, the Springboks and Sale Sharks scrum half faces surgery on the hip injury he has battled since the second test against the British & Irish Lions.
The 30-year-old World Cup-winning scrum-half returned to his Gallagher Premiership title-chasing club with the problem, and it now appears that the blow is so severe that rest and physiotherapy alone will not restore the livewire no.9 to action.
De Klerk first suffered this hip problem in July, but then was able to play against Australia twice and the All Blacks twice during Rugby Championship clashes in September and October.
It is reported that on his return to England the Sharks discovered his injury had not gone away, so sent him for scans in London last week.
It is understood de Klerk’s operation will take place before the end of October, meaning he will be unavailable until 2022. This means de Klerk will miss his country’s autumn Tests against Wales, Scotland and England which get underway in Cardiff on Saturday November 6.
Nines in demand in France. https://t.co/UVjmGAk6WH
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 18, 2021
Cobus Reinach replaced de Klerk in the series-clinching third test in Cape Town with Herschel Jantjies on the bench.
On a domestic front, de Klerk’s prolonged absence – perhaps until next March – would be a hammer blow for his club.
Operating alongside a number of other current and former Springboks plus fit-again Manu Tuilagi, de Klerk made Sale a good bet to improve on their third-place finish and semi-final defeat suffered last season.
With fast-developing 20-year-old Raffi Quirke expected to join up with the England squad for the autumn Tests and the more experienced Will Cliff injured, Sale are extremely short of scrum-half options.
They may therefore need to quickly enter the loan market – where Bath have recently snapped up Gloucester no.9 Joe Simpson who had previously enjoyed a few weeks covering for injuries at Saracens.
It's 14 years but long memories are not necessarily fond ones for Kiwi fans… ?????https://t.co/mj7dEr9aAO
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 18, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
Sux that homophobia is still a thing though. I wonder how many players who could have become legends never kept playing rugby because they felt unwelcome.
6 Go to commentsCrazy he’s only 28, feel like he’s been around forever - don’t mind the move, safe pair of hands and creates depth in a thin position for ABs. Hopefully aides Kemara’s growth also without thrusting too much responsibility on him
1 Go to commentsMen should show strength and be mean, but they should be able to show emotion to those close yo them in certain times, birth of your child, death of family, proud moment. This article is stupid
6 Go to commentsWhat a weak article…absolute drivel and clickbait, well done. Will stick to rugby365 thanks
6 Go to commentsHonest, discipline, humility… Priceless.
2 Go to commentsSo many excuses. No mention of the SA number 2 being taken out illegally in the 2nd minute. That act of foul play had a massive impact on the SA game. Face it, NZ play pretty dirty very regularly, and it’s only since 2016 they’ve been held to higher officiating standards via stricter officiating and TMO reviews. They deserved to have a man down. Sorry. Fix the yellow and red cards and NZ will win more RWCs. Plus, there WAS a knock on invalidating the one try, so it was NOT a try. Period. Here’s a Kleenex…
212 Go to commentsOverheard conversation between NZ and SA rugby fans everywhere: We’re the greatest! No! we’re the greatest! We’re the greatest! No we’re the greatest! Ireland are arrogant! True but they beat you! We’re the greatest! No! we’re the greatest! Etc. etc, etc.
23 Go to commentsTypical crap Aussie weather
11 Go to comments“If they’d have beaten England, I still feel we would have been talking ‘is this the best team ever,’ ‘is this the best team that’s ever played in the Six Nations'” he said. “I still think they’re not quite that good. I actually don’t think they’re that good.” So Trimble is saying he doesn’t think this is the best 6N team of all time. He is silent on if it is the best Irish team of all time. Can’t disagree with him. Just another misrepresentative clickbait headline from the guys at RP.
23 Go to commentsWow, do we really still have to listen to all the excuses and “unfairness” of it all. Even blaming the bounce of an egg shaped ball for the loss. But the article is about context, so what about the Springboks having to play the other 5 teams in the top 6 and still beating a comparatively rested AB team on a very empty tank.
212 Go to comments“Teams would generally have three coaches below their head honcho; attack coach, defence coach, forwards coach” do they? I’m not sure what the NZ set up is tbh, but the other 4 sides top 5 sides all have very different structures to the one outlined in the article! As well as attack, defence, and forwards coaches, SA, Ireland, and France also have specialist scrum coaches. England have a specialist scrum coach too, but arguably don’t have a forwards coach, with that role taken on by Borthwick. SA also have a backs coach in addition to defence and attack, and Ireland and England have fitness coaches, with England also having two skills coaches.
2 Go to commentsWorst article I've read in a while. Trying to disguise a backhand slap as a compliment. The whole article is a bit weird and negative. I think South African men are emotional in general… think Clad le Clos’s father 2012 London Olympics.
6 Go to commentsIreland are going to win the world cup.
23 Go to commentsIt was the strangest result ever. Etzebeth should've been yellow card for his cynical retiring move and a penalty try. Birth second half tries by the Allblacks were fantastic and the TMO operating outside the law to rule out the first try was egregious. Yes, the boks got the win but it was through some bizarre officiating that allowed them to sneak home against 14 men that dominated them. The quieter Bok supporters know and acknowledge the Allblacks were the better and dominant side. Justifying the win because they beat a pre world cup Allblacks selection is silly.
212 Go to commentsA very English thing to do hey Courtney, blerrie kant
4 Go to commentsIt sounds like Andrew is trying to convince himself or has just lost all perspective. The team did look jaded for the last couple of games of the six nations but a few things were wrong there. Italy tackled their hearts out and made Ireland work hard for every try. Outsmarted by Scotland? Huh? Ireland got held up over the line about 4 times. Scotland did nothing on attack the whole game other than one breakaway near the end. A recharge and reset is needed which they hopefully will have had before the SA your.
23 Go to commentsIncluding SA and Argie teams was great for the quality of rugby, but middle of the night games and player travel/ jet lag make that unworkable. I think that SA in Europe and Argie building an American league with USA, Canada etc would be better long term. If Oz can't sustain Rebels then next cab off the rank should be a Japanese team. Keep regional comps to time zones, both club and test rugby. Then existing test windows for test tours plus RWC.
8 Go to commentsMisogynists have feelings too!
6 Go to commentsCrowd sizes of the URC v the Premiership must be a big factor.
1 Go to commentsWell you’ve made a proper tit of yourself, haven’t you! 😂
173 Go to comments