The Springboks reported three serious injuries upon their return so South Africa after completing a gruelling two-match tour of New Zealand.
Aphelele Fassi, Lood de Jager and Jean-Luc du Preez are all expected to be on the sidelines for quite some time.
Taking to social media, Fassi – who suffered a leg injury in Wellington – posted a message to say that surgery had been a success, and that he would be focusing now on rest and recovery.
it would seem likely that this injury will keep him out of action for the remainder of the year, while De Jager and Du Preez are also not expected to be available for selection this season.
Springboks have two more games in the Rugby Championship
With only two points separating the first-placed Wallabies, on 11 log points, and the last-placed Pumas (on nine points), while the second-placed Springboks and third-placed All Blacks are level on 10 points, the competition is set to go down to the wire.
While the Springboks and Pumas will battle it out in the last leg of the southern hemisphere showpiece, the All Blacks will take on the Wallabies for the Bledisloe Cup, and given how tight the standings are, any team could snatch the title, which the Springboks won last season for the first time since 2019.
“It’s great to be back in camp and to see the excitement and enthusiasm among the players, and we are keen to get back into the swing of things after a few days off to recover from the trip back from New Zealand,” said Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus.
“We have two massive encounters ahead against a psyched-up Argentinean team, who, just like every other side in the competition, believes they can win the trophy, so the extra two training days were vital for us.
“The players are fresh and charged up for the challenge ahead, and that excites us because we are going to give everything to build on our last result and give ourselves the best possible chance to win the title.”
Erasmus added: “The players jumped straight back into action, and our focus on Friday and Saturday is to improve the areas of our game we would like to after reviewing the last match against the All Blacks, as well as our fundamentals, which will be critical against a well-rounded and Pumas outfit.
“They have a powerful pack and classy playmakers in their backline, so we need to be sharp at training and ensure that we are ready mentally and physically when we approach game day next week.”
