Big injury update from the Springboks’ camp
Although not much has been said, there is one notable injury development that has taken place in the Springboks’ World Cup camp.
Just prior to the Springboks’ clash against Romania on Sunday, prop Vincent Koch unfortunately suffered an injury in the warm-up, which saw him being withdrawn from the match-day squad and Frans Malherbe being drafted onto the replacements’ bench, with Trevor Nyakane starting at tighthead.
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Koch was sent for scans, and although there may have been real fears that a knee injury could force the Springbok stalwart out of the World Cup, it seems that he is able to remain with the squad.
Although the 33-year-old was unable to train as the Springboks began preparation to face Ireland this Saturday, it’s notable that he was still present in the team camp – albeit with strapping to his knee.
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The fact that Koch is still with the Springboks, while there have been no other formal statements since Sunday, does suggest that his injury is not serious enough to warrant a change to the squad.
POLLARD BACK WITH THE SPRINGBOKS
While Koch sat out Tuesday’s training, there was a notable return for Handre Pollard, who is set to come into selection contention for the final pool game against Tonga.
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Director of Rugby Rassie Erasmus made it clear that Pollard would have to get back up to speed with the team’s training sessions before he is selected to play.
“Handre has joined us, but he won’t come in (the selection mix) immediately unless we have injuries,” said Erasmus.
“He only returned to playing last Friday, and we must first get him up to speed with the training sessions and then we’ll get him back in the mix.”
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