Publications
Partners
Johannesburg - The arrival of Johan Goosen back on the Free State Rugby scene couldn’t have come fast enough for the Free State Cheetahs, especially after they had a crippling double injury blow from their victory over the Blue Bulls last Friday night.
Cheetahs assistant coach Hawies Fourie told supersport.com he is very confident about Goosen's chances to be back in action against neighbours Griquas this coming weekend.
Goosen injured his shoulder in scoring a stunning try against the Highlanders in the Super Rugby tournament, and was forced into a four-month layoff because of the injury.
His return couldn’t come at a better time, especially as the Cheetahs have lost their regular halfback combination of Riaan Smit and Piet van Zyl for the rest of the Currie Cup due to injury.
Riaan Smit, the man who took over the kicking duties from Goosen, will miss the rest of the season with an elbow injury, while Van Zyl, the nippy halfback, dislocated his collarbone against the Blue Bulls and will also not play again this season.
Tewis de Bruyn has recovered from his injuries and will deputise for Sarel Pretorius at halfback, while Ryno Benjamin is also fit again and is likely to take over from Smit, who played on the wing against the Bulls.
Fourie said that Goosen’s return though, was a massive boost for the side ahead of their clash with Griquas.
“He is just seeing the specialist this afternoon (Tuesday) just to make 100% sure, but he was training with us last week and if he gets the all-clear he will play. We saw what he meant to the Super Rugby team, and we hope to have Johan available for a number of Currie Cup games, even though we’ve heard mutterings about the Springboks.
"We will see how long it will be before they call him up, but at the moment he needs game time to get his self-confidence back.”
The rest of the Cheetahs' injury list shows there is still some light at the end of the tunnel, with Heinrich Brüssow returning in around 3-4 weeks, the same time period for Coenie Oosthuizen, who will undergo a “pain block” operation on his neck before returning.
Boom Prinsloo however, will be out for four months with his shoulder injury.
Cheetahs assistant coach Hawies Fourie told supersport.com he is very confident about Goosen's chances to be back in action against neighbours Griquas this coming weekend.
Goosen injured his shoulder in scoring a stunning try against the Highlanders in the Super Rugby tournament, and was forced into a four-month layoff because of the injury.
His return couldn’t come at a better time, especially as the Cheetahs have lost their regular halfback combination of Riaan Smit and Piet van Zyl for the rest of the Currie Cup due to injury.
Riaan Smit, the man who took over the kicking duties from Goosen, will miss the rest of the season with an elbow injury, while Van Zyl, the nippy halfback, dislocated his collarbone against the Blue Bulls and will also not play again this season.
Tewis de Bruyn has recovered from his injuries and will deputise for Sarel Pretorius at halfback, while Ryno Benjamin is also fit again and is likely to take over from Smit, who played on the wing against the Bulls.
Fourie said that Goosen’s return though, was a massive boost for the side ahead of their clash with Griquas.
“He is just seeing the specialist this afternoon (Tuesday) just to make 100% sure, but he was training with us last week and if he gets the all-clear he will play. We saw what he meant to the Super Rugby team, and we hope to have Johan available for a number of Currie Cup games, even though we’ve heard mutterings about the Springboks.
"We will see how long it will be before they call him up, but at the moment he needs game time to get his self-confidence back.”
The rest of the Cheetahs' injury list shows there is still some light at the end of the tunnel, with Heinrich Brüssow returning in around 3-4 weeks, the same time period for Coenie Oosthuizen, who will undergo a “pain block” operation on his neck before returning.
Boom Prinsloo however, will be out for four months with his shoulder injury.
