Bulls coach Pote Human faces his worst nightmare with first-choice hooker Schalk Brits in doubt for the team’s crucial Super Rugby opener against the Stormers in Pretoria on Saturday.
The Pretoria side’s new Springbok recruit picked up a calf strain in their final warm-up match against the Sharks over the weekend.
The Bulls coaching staff is believed to be concerned over Brits’ availability in a position that has already been depleted by injuries. Bulls’ team doctor, Herman Rossouw, confirmed Brits had a niggle and they would make a final call on his availability over the next few days.
Human has spoken about suffering from sleepless nights over the threat of injuries to key positions in the build-up to the start of the campaign.
The team has been hard hit by injuries in the hooker department with back-ups Edgar Marutlulle and Jaco Visagie listed among the long-term wounded.
Rossouw said Marutlulle and Visagie would be on the sidelines for between three and four weeks which did little to remedy the current crisis.
Marutlulle was recovering from an Achilles tendon injury while Visage underwent an operation to his ankle on his return from a loan spell at Gloucester.
The Bulls’ wing stocks also took a knock with Duncan Matthews expected to miss up to eight weeks of rugby following an ankle injury.
Human would have to call on the services of prodigy Johan Grobbelaar and Corniel Els should Brits fail a fitness test later in the week.
Meanwhile, Springbok prop Trevor Nyakane said he was champing at the bit to get onto the field and test himself in one of the big derbies of South African rugby.
"If you are not motivated or not ready for a derby like the Bulls and Stormers, then you shouldn’t be here,” Nyakane said. “There is no need for motivation, you know what you need to do come Saturday.”
Nyakane said he believed the addition of scrum coach Daan Human would add an extra dimension to the set-piece.
“He is a very good coach, we’ve seen what he has done with the Cheetahs when it comes to the set piece,” Nyakane said. “He has brought in different things we weren’t used to because we haven’t worked with him for a long time but we are getting the hang of how he wants us to do things.”