Heavy blows for Cheetahs

2008-09-09 22:16

Pieter Jordaan

Bloemfontein - The injury bogeyman has dealt the Cheetahs rugby team some heavy blows this week.

The coaching team will have to come up with more emergency plans on Wednesday than merely replacing the injured wing pair Wilton Pietersen and Fabian Juries.

Coach Naka Drotské also confirmed on Tuesday that both flyhalf Chris Rossouw and another wing, Springbok Jongi Nokwe, will not be able to play against the Sharks in Durban on Saturday.

Neither Rossouw (concussion) nor Nokwe (ankle injury) has recovered sufficiently to tackle the Durbanites, and the Cheetahs' depth in the backline will be severely tested.

"It's tough to lose three wings," said Drotské. "But it's nothing we can't overcome - it's a chance for someone else to put up his hand."

Candidates for doing that are Eddie Fredericks, JW Jonker and Kabamba Floors. Drotské and co are likely to pick their wing pair from this threesome when they name their team on Wednesday.

Fredericks and Jonker should be the favourites, as Floors has only just started practising in the new position.

Fredericks is experienced and Jonker scored a beautiful try as a replacement wing in the Cheetahs' recent win over the Lions.

Rossouw, whose experience and place-kicking have been an important ingredient in the Cheetahs' success in the Currie Cup series up to now, will be unavailable for the Free Staters for a second successive game.

As in last weekend's game, when they lost against Western Province, Tewis de Bruyn is likely to play flyhalf, with Meyer Bosman taking care of the place-kicking. Jacques-Louis Potgieter is also a candidate for the number 10 jersey.

- Volksblad