Cheetahs flanker Heinrich Brüssow will miss the first few weeks of Super 15 Rugby and is only expected back in March this year.

Brüssow had two operations to repair torn knee ligaments and missed the second half of the rugby calendar.

His first operation was unsuccessful which meant that he had a follow up operation in August which has delayed his comeback.

He was expected back from the start of the season but his backline coach Hawies Fourie only expects Brüssow to start in the fourth round.

If Fourie’s predictions are correct Brüssow will miss the Cheetahs clash against the Sharks in the opening round and will only be fit for the Lions match in Bloemfontein almost a month later.

“The guys look good and I’m positive about the year,” Brüssow said on the Cheetahs website.

“We have a couple of good players and young guys who want to play together. There is a lot of competition. It makes it more fun because there is more pressure on the guys.

“Everyone knows we always do well in the Currie Cup series and do well against our own teams.”

“I don’t know why we struggle to win against overseas teams. We have enough self-confidence.”

Springbok wing Jongi Nokwe will miss the start of the season and could miss the entire season if he does not recover from from surgery to his knee.

The Cheetahs have re-signed wing Phillip Burger after he spent some time in France playing for French club Perpignan and he will provide cover for Nokwe.