Boks’ openside crisis after Smit injury

THE Springboks’ injury problems worsened yesterday when openside flank Roelof Smit was ruled out of the northern hemisphere tour with a torn bicep.

Smit sustained the injury at training at the Latymer School near the Boks’ base in Kensington, plunging the squad into an openside crisis just days before facing England at Twickenham on Saturday. Already the Boks are without the injured Francois Louw, Marcell Coetzee, Siya Kolisi and Jaco Kriel, while Heinrich Brussow and Schalk Burger remain unavailable due to contractual constraints.

Smit was the only genuine openside on tour and is perhaps the only viable openside left in South Africa.

At the time of writing, coach Allister Coetzee had yet to formally decide who to call up as a replacement.

He name-checked the Cheetahs duo of openside Paul Schoeman and blindside Uzair Cassiem, and might turn to the latter as an emergency measure given his superb workrate and physicality.

Coetzee was obviously concerned as he explained the possible permutations.

“We have an openside crisis in the country,” Coetzee said.

“Louw, Kriel, Brussow and others aren’t available but I’m comfortable we have cover.

“Up here [in the northern hemisphere], the game is a bit different because it is narrower and so we might not need a super fast opensider who can get out wide. We also don’t look at an openside who can turn the ball over as the arriving player, but rather to secure the ball.

“Jean-Luc [du Preez] has played there before. I’m not just looking at a guy to necessarily steal ball at the breakdown because there are other ways to get over the ball.

“Schoeman and Cassiem could do the job. But when you’ve lost five players in that position it is problematic.

“We might have to convert someone into the position on a short-term basis.”

Coetzee also ruled out any chance of No 8 Duane Vermeulen answering an emergency SOS because he is due back in South Africa next week for the birth of his second child, according to the coach.

Nizaam Carr, who is on tour with the Boks, has filled the No 6 role regularly for the Stormers and could be asked to do the job against England this weekend, given the latest blow.

But Coetzee might look to unleash Du Preez in a slightly different role for his test debut or he might surprise by calling up Cassiem, who left a huge impression during his two weeks with the Boks leading up to last week’s Barbarians game.

In other bad news, veteran wing Bryan Habana is struggling with a knee injury and has less than 50% chance of making the match. Habana was not at training yesterday, while several others sat out.