World Cup curse continues to haunt Bok skipper
ALWAYS a bridesmaid, never a bride. Springbok captain Jean de Villiers’s Rugby World Cup campaign is over after fracturing his jaw for a second time in two months.
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer described the injury as a “major setback”.
The 34-year-old Bok centre fractured his jaw in the 46-6 rout of Samoa in Birmingham at the weekend.
The injury is another cruel twist of fate which sees De Villiers’s World Cup rugby campaign cut short for a fourth time.
De Villiers made his Springbok debut 13 years ago, and has represented South Africa in the World Cup three times before.
In 2003, he suffered a serious knee injury that brought an end to his participation in the tournament.
Four years later, as the Springboks went on to lift the Webb Ellis trophy for a second time, De Villiers played no part beyond the pool stages, tearing biceps muscles in the Boks’ opening match in France – incidentally, also against Samoa.
That ended his 2007 tournament, although he is listed as a World Cup winner.
In 2011, De Villiers went off after 25 minutes in the first game against Wales in Wellington, New Zealand, with a rib injury.
He made a brief appearance later in the tournament, but South Africa were knocked out by Australia in the quarter-finals.
At the weekend, De Villiers’s World Cup jinx hamstrung him once again, with the skipper picking up another tournament-ending injury.
Springbok team doctor, Craig Roberts, said the fracture was on the opposite side of De Villiers’s jaw to the injury sustained against Argentina in Durban in August.
Roberts said: “Jean took a heavy blow to the right side of his jaw in the 72nd minute of the match.
“X-rays and scans after the game confirmed our fears that it was fractured.
“The left side of his jaw was fractured on the previous occasion.
“He will return to South Africa for further specialist treatment.
“Apart from Jean’s injury, there were a lot of bumps and bruises following a very physical match but we will re-assess those in the next day or two.”
In a press statement released by SA Rugby, Meyer said it was “sad” to lose the “glue” that kept the squad together.
He described De Villiers as “one of the most experienced players in the team”.
“After injuring his knee last November in Cardiff, he worked incredibly hard to get back to full fitness and plans worked out perfectly, but rugby is a physical sport and injuries happen.
“We are very heart-broken for him and we will miss his influence a lot.
“He has been very unlucky with injuries, but his character clearly showed when he had to go back on the field when Jesse Kriel picked up an injury.
“Jean has fought back from all his injuries and this is the kind of character and fighting spirit we will need to show going forward in this competition,” Meyer said.
He added that De Villiers’s injury was a huge emotional setback for the team.
“We will now have to regroup and refocus before we start our preparations for (next) Saturday’s match against Scotland.”
The Boks bounced back from the shock loss to Japan by beating Samoa emphatically at the weekend, securing another bonus point in the six-try romp.
After the news broke that De Villiers’s World Cup was over, disappointed fans took to social media.
Jean Smyth said: “Inspiring the way that Jean de Villiers fought back from serious injury over and over.
“109 tests for the Springboks, he will be missed. #Legend.”
“After everything Jean de Villiers has been through injury-wise over the past 12 months, what a cruel way for a true warrior to end his Rugby World Cup,” said Tim Harper.
Andre Dorfling posted: “And so injury has again forced Jean de Villiers to come home.
“This man has the worst luck. Damn it. “He must be devastated.” Sashin Gonzalez said: “You have to feel for Jean de Villiers.
“Comes back from a horrific injury, finally silences his haters and now misses another World Cup.”
Derek Watts tweeted: “Sad exit from #RWC2015 for Springbok skipper Jean de Villiers.
“After a great Samoa comeback, he’s been ruled out with a broken jaw.”