Cape Town - Springbok No 8 Warren Whiteley has been ruled out of the rest of the Super Rugby season, but should return in time for the Rugby Championship in August.
The Lions announced on Tuesday that Whiteley will be sidelined for around six weeks with an AC joint problem in his right shoulder that he picked up in the second Test against Ireland in Johannesburg.
Whiteley played on in the second half at Ellis Park after replacing the injured Duane Vermeulen in the dramatic 32-26 victory that kept the Boks’ series hopes alive, and scored a superb try as he stepped past two Irish defenders to dot down.
The Lions captain sat out of training for the first part of the build-up week for the third Test in Port Elizabeth, but was outstanding on defence as the Boks ground out a hard-fought 19-13 victory at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in PE.
Bok coach Allister Coetzee said before the game that the AC joint problem wasn’t too serious as many players previously have continued to play, but Whiteley aggravated the problem in Port Elizabeth, with the Lions stating that scans showed a grade three injury.
The 28-year-old loose forward won’t require surgery after consulting a specialist on Tuesday, but his absence will come as a massive blow for the Lions’ Super Rugby hopes. They face the Sharks at Ellis Park on Saturday in a match where victory will most likely secure the Lions’ No 1 status in Africa Conference 2 and a home quarter-final, as they lead the Durban side by seven points with three league games to go.
Springbok debutant Jaco Kriel will take over the captaincy from Whiteley, while one of Warwick Tecklenburg, Cyle Brink, Fabian Booysen and Ruan Ackermann could fill in at No 8.
But Bok boss Coetzee won’t be too despondent as Whiteley should be fit to play in the Rugby Championship opener against Argentina in Nelspruit on August 20. Whether he will start in the No 8 jersey, though, remains to be seen as Coetzee has backed Vermeulen up to now.
The Toulon stalwart should be over the elbow injury that he picked up in the second Irish Test at Ellis Park, which saw him miss the PE Test and was set to keep him off the field for between two and six weeks. Vermeulen returned to his club and attended the French Top 14 final in Barcelona, where Toulon went down to Racing 29-21 at the famous Nou Camp football stadium.
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