WP will face the Leopards, Boland and possibly the Lions without ironman Schalk Burger.

The departure of Chris Jack and the injuries to Fondse and Van Zyl, has come at an unfortunate time in view of other teams being bolstered by their returning Boks. The tight five that have shocked a few arch enemies and their supporters who vocally love to hate  anything south of the Hex River valley, may find it more difficult to impose themselves to the same extent that they muted the noise levels of Loftus and ABSA stadium earlier this season.

The medical news on Burger is that his ribs are still severely swollen and tender after his injury in the 67th minute of SA’s Tri Nations win against NZ last Saturday.

To make matters worse for the resurgent WP outfit, the injuries to Willem de Waal, Fondse and Newman have been confirmed as long term, which means they will not play any further part this season.  Andries Bekker is still on the mend and will also miss Friday’s excursion to Potchefstroom.

The substantial vacuum left by Jean de Villiers will also be felt, but fortunately Juan de Jong has shown huge potential in midfield, and his pairing with Frikkie Welsh looked sharp and attacked with pace against the Cheetahs last weekend.

Ricky January will be rested this weekend. Allister Coetzee did not elaborate on what the cause of his fatigue was. It is doubtful whether his current form can justify displacement of the incumbent Dewaldt Duvenhage.

De Kock Steenkamp will fill the void left by Chris Jack in the engine room, and Tiaan Liebenberg will join Hilton Lobberts on the bench.

“We wanted to keep that continuity going,” Coetzee said at the media conference on Tuesday.

“Making a lot of changes at this stage can be disruptive. We are definitely looking to consolidate”

This where the rubber hits the road, and where the walk should be walked, and the talk be left to those who mask their fear by making snide comments about the shadows as they walk down a dark alley.

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