Springbok captain Jean de Villiers says his recovery from a horror knee injury is “way ahead of schedule” and that he is confident of being able to participate in the World Cup later this year.
The devastating injury, which saw De Villiers suffer severe ligament damage, a knee dislocation and a torn hamstring, occurred in the final Test of last season when the Boks took on Wales in Cardiff.
Initial fears were that it could be a career-ending injury, and yet when De Villiers walked onto stage at a function held at Kearsney College on Wednesday night, he did so with barely a limp.
In fact, De Villiers said he was already “running and jumping” without any problems as he continues his miraculous road to recovery nearly five months after the painful injury.
His comeback trail has actually been documented in a TV production from Shoestring Productions and financial services company Citadel, the first part of which aired on SuperSport last night.
And when speaking to a captivated audience at Kearsney College, De Villiers provided further insights into his injury and ongoing rehabilitation.
“For a lot of people that saw the injury happen, they are surprised to see that I can actually walk. I suppose it’s a miracle in a way, but these days doctors are so good, and they fixed the knee up really well. It’s my sixth knee operation, luckily only the fourth on this (left) leg,” he added with a laugh.
“But really, it’s not something I’d like to go through again… The fact of the matter is that I’m running, I’m jumping, and I’m actually way ahead of schedule, so it’s going really well. Everything is on target and hopefully I can play a part at the World Cup later this year.”
De Villiers also revealed an ironic and fateful anecdote, with the Bok skipper having very nearly missed the match against Wales in order to be at the birth of his son.
“The week prior to the Wales game we were playing Italy, and my wife was heavily pregnant at that stage… So I sat down with (coach) Heyneke Meyer and the coaching staff and said ‘here’s the situation, I’m probably going to have to fly home this week and I’m probably going to miss the Test match’, and they supported me 100 percent.
“But on the Monday, my wife saw the doctor again and he decided that everything was fine and that I could stay to play Wales… Unfortunately I played in the game and got injured.
“I got back home the next Monday, had the operation on the Thursday and my son was born on the Saturday, so everything worked out well. It was quite a hectic couple of months after that. My oldest daughter only turned three a week after that, my middle daughter was 19 months old, then there was a new born boy, and the biggest baby being me on crutches – so my wife did pretty well.”
And although the injury has prevented De Villiers from participating in this season's Super Rugby competition, the 34-year-old is well on his way to recovery, and desperate to earn inclusion in the World Cup squad.
Should De Villiers successfully recover in time, the World Cup is set to be his international swansong, which would be an incredible end to what is currently a 106 Test match career, but one that has been filled with misfortune on the injury front.
Cruel injury blows have particularly curtailed De Villiers’s involvement at previous World Cups, although there is no doubt that he would be the man entrusted to skipper the Boks at this year’s global showpiece if fit.
“The one thing I can guarantee is that there’s a common goal for what we want to achieve,” he commented in discussion about the World Cup. “If you go there and say you just want to make the final or the play-offs then we’ve lost already. You go there to win it, and nothing less is a success.
“Going into the World Cup I think we’ve firstly got a good blend of players with youth and experience. We’ve also got enough skill as players and a good enough game plan that we can play in wet weather, dry weather and against any team. There’s a lot of preparation that needs go into the World Cup, but by the time the team leaves on September 11, we will be ready to play in a World Cup final against any team in the world.”