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Cape Town - The Springbok Sevens team won’t have their star duo of Werner Kok and Cecil Afrika available for this weekend’s HSBC World Rugby Cape Town Sevens event.
Coach Neil Powell confirmed on Wednesday that Kok - last season’s Sevens Player of the Year - will undergo an operation on a troublesome knee.
“He picked up a knee injury in Dubai so he’ll be out for a while. We still have to determine exactly how long. He will undergo an operation on Thursday so he’ll be out for quite a while," said Powell.
Powell said Afrika was laid low by a hamstring injury picked up in Dubai last weekend.
“He’s got a hammie (hamstring injury) so he won’t be available for this weekend, but we should have him back early next year.”
The Blitzboks were drawn in Pool B for the inaugural Cape Town Sevens tournament.
They finished fifth in the opening leg in Dubai last Sunday and will play fellow African countries Zimbabwe and Kenya, as well as England, who were losing finalists in Dubai.
The Blitzboks will open their tournament against Zimbabwe on Saturday, December 12 at 12:49, followed by a clash against Kenya at 16:10.
As hosts, the Blitzboks will have the honour of playing the final match on Day 1 against England at 19:56.
The Blitzboks are the reigning SA-leg champions, having beaten New Zealand in last year's final at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth.
