Cape Town - Stormers hooker Ramone Samuels' career is hanging in the balance due to a troublesome ankle.
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This was revealed by Stormers coach John Dobson during a media briefing at the team's High Performance Centre in Bellville on Monday.
Dobson said he expected to have a fully fit squad available for the start of the 2020 Super Rugby competition, with the exception of Samuels.
The 25-year-old has not played rugby since suffering an ankle injury in a friendly match against French club Montpellier in August 2018.
"The guy that we have grave concerns about is Ramone. I think he's potentially got a career-threatening injury. It's very sad. He's got a nerve that's not regenerating in his ankle. The break was so bad... a call (on Samuels' future) is going to be made in February."
Samuels, who is the brother of Stormers utility back Damian Willemse, has been on the Cape franchise's books since 2017.
Samuels was schooled at Paul Roos in Stellenbosch and after playing for the Western Province under-19 team after school, he moved to Johannesburg where he spent time at the Lions.
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