Cheetahs scrumhalf works hard on rehab
Oranje uses injury time productively
Cheetahs scrumhalf Raegan Oranje is on the mend from a knee injury suffered in the European Rugby Champions Cup (EPRC) warm-up game against Griffons in Bloemfontein.
Oranje, originally from Komani, has been playing for Cheetahs for 11 months after moving from Griquas in May and seems to have gelled with the Free State team.
Oranje said: “I made a line break and was tackled on the side of my knee.”
He underwent an arthroscopy — a microscopic video camera is inserted into the knee to assess damage, followed by a mosaicplasty operation procedure.
“Simply put, this is a transplant of cartilage into the hole in my knee,” Oranje said.
“At the moment the knee is feeling better each week with an increased range of motion and very little pain, so all is well.”
He has been told it will take at least six months before he can play again.
However, this depends on the pace of his healing. He says that at the present rate he will be
back in six months.
The injury had been frightening, but he was grateful for the support from those around him at a time when he needed it the most.
“The people in my circle have been my strength. Their positivity really makes the
recovery journey easy.”
He is setting goals to return to number one spot for selection.
Oranje said that running out onto the Toyota Stadium for his debut against Western Force for the Cheetahs and hearing the Harley Davidson motorcycle
roar was the biggest highlight of his rugby career.
He has used the time off productively.
“I am taking time to fix the smaller skills in my game, whether it's passing or just analysing the game to broaden my rugby knowledge.”