Steval Pumas squad struggle with injuries
There's only a couple of weeks left before the Steval Pumas start their 2014 Vodacom series campaign, but yesterday, in a meeting with coach Jimmy Stonehouse, it was clear there was reason for concern as four of his big forwards and two backline speedsters were still on the injury list.
The power man in the front row, Vincent Koch, is recovering from a knee operation an it’s expected that he will only be back in action mid-February.
Newbies, speedster Marcello Sampson and kicking sensation Justin van Staden, are recovering from a shoulder operation and knee injury respectively.
But Van Staden, who joined the group last week after the 2013 top scorer Carl Bezuidenhout was released by the union for an international career in England, will start this week with some running exercises.
“My greatest concern at this stage is the injuries to the two forwards Frankie Herne (hooker/flank) and Brian Shabangu (flank). Frankie has torn his ankle ligaments at this weekend’s sevens tournament in Middelburg, while Brian has seriously injured one of his fingers at a K-Fit session which will leave him out of the action for at least
six weeks.
“Then our line-out specialist Eduan van der Walt is back in town,
but we doubt that he’ll be playing at all in this series,” said
Stonehouse.
Apart from these six injured players, the coaching staff is still
very positive about the progress and fitness of the players.
“You must remember, due to the longer season last year with the play-offs and the holidays, our preseason was very short.
“We only have two confirmed warm-up games after the Blue Bulls cancelled their game on short notice.
“The Vodacom series kicks off on March 8 and luckily we have some depth in the squad which gives everyone some game time,” he continued.
This weekend the Pumas will travel to the Free State to face the Cheetahs, where- after they will face off against the Lions in Johannesburg on February 22.
Stonehouse announced that they were planning a business breakfast at the new Emnotweni Casino arena before the first home match against the Vodacom Bulls on March 14 and enthusiasts should diarise this date.
At this stage 50 tables are for sale and businesses can book their spot with Stonehouse and his team. Details of the programme and booking will be made available soon.
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