Phepsi should be fine to face Lions

Captain Phepsi Buthelezi suffered a head knock against Griquas and will miss the Sharks’ Currie Cup game against Western Province in Cape Town tomorrow, but coach Sean Everitt is confident the eighthman will have recovered in time to join the squad in Johannesburg as they go into lockdown ahead of their match against the British and Irish Lions on 7 July at Ellis Park.

The focus of the Sharks is facing a testing time because they have the crucial match against Province to concentrate on, but also the excitement of the game against the British and Irish Lions.

“I presume Phepsi will be ready for the Lions, he feels 100% but just didn’t pass all his tests. So he’s nearly there and it wasn’t a serious concussion. Hopefully he’ll be able to join us on Friday when we fly to Johannesburg and go into a six-day quarantine. We are allowed to train on Friday, Monday and Tuesday, and we’ll have PCR tests on Friday, Monday and Wednesday before the game.

“Our message to the players this morning was that we need to be squeaky clean and we would like them to treat it as if they are in self-isolation, just coming to the stadium and going home. Otherwise they could miss out on the opportunity of a lifetime against the Lions,” Everitt said yesterday.

The weather in Cape Town is expected to be poor, so it is excellent news for the Sharks that the booming boot of flyhalf Curwin Bosch is back.

“It’s great to have Curwin back. Everyone goes through disappointments in sport, it’s not the first time he’s had it and he’s over what happened with the Springboks. But he’ll want to make sure he puts in a good performance.”