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21/01/2008 16:58
Johannesburg - Danie Rossouw, the Springbok utility forward on whom the Bulls had banked to help them out of their lock crisis, will not take any contact before the end of the month and will, therefore, probably not be considered for the warm-up match against the Lions in Windhoek on February 2.
Rossouw is still under rehabilitation for the neck injury he sustained during the World Cup tournament, and with Victor Matfield, Francois van Schouwenburg, and Adriaan Fondse playing elsewhere, and Bakkies Botha, Wouter Moore and Hendrik Roodt struggling with injuries, lock is certainly a concern for coach Frans Ludeke.
The Bulls also announced that their Springbok loose forward Pierre Spies will undergo a series of blood tests at the end of the month to determine when he can start playing again.
The Bulls team doctor, Tommie Smook, as well as Spies are optimistic about his health and judging by his physical condition at training, he is in the form of his life.
Smook said World Cup Boks Gurthro Steenkamp (forearm), Bakkies Botha (ankle) and Akona Ndungane (shin) are all making steady progress with their rehabilitation.
They are in a race against time to be fit for the first Super 14 game when the Bulls take on the Stormers in Cape Town on Saturday February 16.
There is also a good chance that Heini Adams as well as the new lock Wouter Moore (both knee injuries) will be able to play in one of the warm-up matches, the Bulls announced.
The young lock Hendrik Roodt injured his lower back during training and prop Jaco Engels and Springbok flanker Pedrie Wannenburg picked up hamstring niggles, but none of the injuries appear serious enough to concern the Bulls.
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