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Cape Town - The Springboks have an injury list that is currently littered with big names, but one that is about to be scratched off is that of flyhalf Pat Lambie.
The Sharks pivot has been out since April with a neck vertebrae injury, and while his participation in this weekend's season opener against a World XV at Newlands will only be determined on Wednesday, team doctor Craig Roberts is delighted with the progress made.
"Pat has done really well. It was a bone injury so the bone is healed. He’s had scans and that bone is as solid as it can be," Roberts said on Monday.
"In terms of getting him back on the park there is no limitation in terms of the injury flaring up. The decision we needed to make is: is it safe for him to play? And that decision has been made that, yes, it is safe for him to play."
While there may be no physical barrier standing in the way of Lambie's return, Roberts acknowledged that the mental aspect of being out of the game for so long was something to consider.
"The big thing for him is confidence. For any player, we obviously like to build him in," said Roberts.
"It’s different with him because it’s not an injury that is going to flare up as the load goes … he’s good to go."
Kick off on Saturday is at 17:00.
