DHL Stormers injury report – 08/04/13
The Stormers lost 24-26 to the Cheetahs and the coach on Monday confirmed that Taute had, as been expected, been ruled out for the rest of the 2013 Vodacom Super Rugby season with a ruptured ACL.
The full DHL Stormers injury update is as follows:
– Jaco Taute (ACL): Out for the rest of the season and will undergo surgery to repair his damaged knee.
– Elton Jantjies (knee – medial ligament): He will miss the Sharks match with a medial ligament strain. But he should be fine to play in about three weeks. “He could be ready for the first tour match (against the Hurricanes in Palmerston North on April 26),” said Coetzee. “It’s not torn, it’s an old injury which he aggravated.”
– Siya Kolisi (ankle) trained and ran freely after going over his ankle slightly against the Cheetahs.
– Andries Bekker, Louis Schreuder and Jean de Villiers sat out training but they will be up for selection against the Sharks.
– Rynhardt Elstadt (shoulder) and Don Armand (intercostal rib muscle injury) both sat out training and are in doubt for the Sharks clash. Armand is considered the least likely starter of the two.
The following players are still unavailable for selection:
– Tiaan Liebenberg (elbow ligament): He will not be available for the Stormers’ overseas tour.
– Scarra Ntubeni (shoulder): He returned to full training on Monday. He will hopefully play 40 minutes in the Vodacom Cup for DHL WP (next weekend – April 20 – against SWD) and then go on tour with the Stormers.
– Deon Carstens (back): His rehabilitation is ongoing.
– Ruan Botha (ankle): He broke his ankle during line-out practice over a week ago and has been operated on. He will be out for at least three months.
– Eben Etzebeth (ankle): He should be back for the Stormers’ second game on tour (against the Blues on May 3).
– Schalk Burger (bacterial meningitis): He is still in hospital, but in a stable condition. (Read the full Schalk Burger statement HERE.)
– Peter Grant (ankle): He will not be available for the Stormers’ overseas tour.
– Gerhard van den Heever (knee): He will not be fit to face the Sharks, but will come under consideration for the tour.
– Bryan Habana (knee): His rehabilitation is ongoing and he will be fit to tour. “I don’t want to get too carried away about his exact return date but he will definitely make the tour,” said Coetzee.
ALLISTER COETZEE QUOTES:
On bouncing back from the Cheetahs loss: “The honesty in the team is refreshing. We had a great chat about it on Saturday night – as long as you have your changeroom behind you it will come right.
“We’re under no illusions – we know it won’t be easy… We need to pick up our accuracy and our intensity – that’s what needs to happen.”
On their mounting injury list: “If you already have 11 players out, you then get numbers 12 and 13, then it starts getting tough,” the coach said.
“It’s not good for continuity, but it’s the nature of the beast (in rugby). Our mantra has always been not to concentrate on the injured players, but rather to worry about those players that are available to us.”
* CLICK HERE for ticketing information ahead of Saturday’s clash against the Sharks (kick-off 17h05).
