Boks receive Kolbe injury boost, but suffer Moodie blow

In what will certainly come as welcome news for the Boks, Cheslin Kolbe is set to play his first match since July after Toulon confirmed the Springbok wing has fully recovered from a jaw injury and will start this weekend.

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The Bok superstar will start in the No 14 jersey against Brive on Saturday, with his highly-anticipated return coming with less than a month to go until the Springboks embark on the end-of-year of Europe, where they will play Ireland in Dublin and France in Montpellier.

Kolbe’s availability will be particularly welcomed after IOL Sport reports that talented youngster Canan Moodie is set for around eight weeks on the sidelines due to a hamstring injury he picked up during the United Rugby Championship game against Edinburgh recently.

Moodie was one of the youngsters who filled in for Kolbe while he was out injured, but he now won’t be available for the the final Tests of the year.

In further worrying news, it was confirmed during the Rugby Championship that Handre Pollard had picked up a knee injury that appears to have put him in doubt for the end-of-year tour.

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Pollard made a sooner-than-expected return to action against Saracens on Saturday, but then limped off just 27 minutes into his Leicester debut.

It’s not yet clear whether it was just a precautionary measure, but it’s understandable that there is now renewed concern over the possibility of Pollard having returned to action too soon.

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Pollard’s experience was missed by the Boks

After Pollard was injured, Damian Willemse shifted to flyhalf before suffering a concussion that left the Boks in a position where they had little option but to turn to Frans Steyn, who started his first Test at 10 since 2008.

Meanwhile, it was recently confirmed that the Boks’ World Cup-winning lock RG Snyman will still be unavailable for the foreseeable future.

Snyman arrived in Ireland in May 2020 to join Munster following the cancellation of the remainder of the 2019–20 Japan Top League due to Covid-19. The Bok lock then made his debut for Munster in their 27–25 defeat against Leinster on 22 August 2020, though his first appearance for the province lasted only seven minutes after he suffered a torn ACL during a lineout.

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It was the start of plenty of challenging times to come for Snyman, who has been beset with injuries throughout his first stint with Munster, while he was also dramatically involved in a firepit accident last year, with the towering second rower suffering severe burns.

Towards the end of last year, powerful lock underwent knee surgery after re-rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee, with Snyman having managed just four appearances in two years for Munster, while he has largely been unavailable to the Springboks.

In what seemed to be some encouraging news on the injury front, though, Munster recently confirmed there are positive signs in terms of his recovery. Yet, the latest update is not so positive, and it appears highly unlikely that Snyman will be available for the Boks or his club any time soon.

“He’s not quite there yet,” Munster head coach Graham Rowntree commented. “He’s had a very difficult year and we’re not pushing him. All I can say at this point, for the foreseeable, he’s not quite ready yet.”

It also can’t be forgotten that the Boks will still be without Lukhanyo Am, who is recovering from a knee injury.

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TOP 10 IN THE LATEST WORLD RUGBY RANKINGS:

1. Ireland – 90.03

2. France – 89.41

3. South Africa – 89.00

4. New Zealand – 87.30

5. England – 86.25

6. Scotland – 81.93

7. Wales – 81.28

8. Argentina – 81.21

9. Australia – 80.65

10. Japan – 77.74

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