De Jongh out for season so Carr will lead WP

WESTERN Province captain Juan de Jongh’s Currie Cup campaign is over. His replacement, Nizaam Carr knows what it takes to win at Loftus Versfeld, and the athletic No 8 will draw on that experience when he leads the defending champions out against the Blue Bulls on Saturday (7.10pm).

“I remember my first time playing at Loftus,” Carr told reporters at Newlands Stadium yesterday. “Walking towards the cloakroom, everything was blue; the floor was blue; when you came out you saw the seats were blue; people had on their jerseys – they were blue – so when you look up into the stands all you see is blue.

“Your mindset has to be spot on. You have to believe you’re going to beat them and you must have that desire; your will must be greater than the opposition. If you go there with even a small amount of doubt, you won’t win at Loftus.”

The challenge of shutting doubt out of the mind at the start of a match-week that cul- minates with a trip to the Bullring became even more difficult for Carr and his teammates yesterday when De Jongh was effectively ruled out for the remainder of the competition with an injury suffered during Saturday’s 9-3 result against the Cheetahs.

“It’s a grade-two to gradethree tear of Juan’s (knee ligaments) and he’s gone for eight to 10 weeks,” said John Dobson.

Though the WP coach is flush with centre options, De Jongh is a 14-Test Springbok and a two-time Currie Cup champion. On a more practical level, the midfielder is known for herding the WP attack away from the touchlines and his defence is superb.

“It’s a huge blow,” added Dobson. “We’ll miss his defence, how he was straightening us up on attack and his leadership. I was looking forward to him causing the Bok selectors some headaches because I think he’s still got a lot to offer nationally, but it’s going to be next season now.”

Johnny Kotze is set to take over at No 12 in what will be his Currie Cup starting debut.