Ruan Pienaar

Springbok scrumhalf Ruan Pienaar will miss the rest of the Rugby Championship after suffering a knee ligament injury in the 14-10 defeat to the All Blacks in Wellington.

Pienaar was carried from the field in the 36th minute after a swinging leg from team-mate Duane Vermeulen connected with his leg.

Team doctor Craig Roberts confirmed the 80-Test veteran is likely to face several months on the sidelines.

Sport24

With Fourie du Preez currently out with an ankle injury, the Springboks’ depleted scrumhalf stocks will be tested in the coming weeks.

Bulls No 9 Francois Hougaard replaced Pienaar in Wellington, but looked off the pace having not played much rugby in recent months. His kicking game from the base of the ruck in particular left a lot to be desired.

The Sharks’ Cobus Reinach is also on tour with the Boks, but to date hasn’t featured at all.

In a quirk of fate, Rory Kockott, overlooked by Bok coach Heyneke Meyer to date, has been called up into France’s squad in preparation for their end of year Tests.

Standout loose forward Francois Louw’s participation in the remainder of the 2014 Rugby Championship is in doubt after irritating a nerve in his arm.

Louw was forced to leave the field in the Boks 14-10 defeat against the All Blacks in Wellington on Saturday, and was replaced by Warren Whiteley.

Louw is expected to have scans after returning to South Africa before a call is made regarding his continued involvement in the tournament.

The Boks have remaining Rugby Championship matches against the Wallabies at Newlands in Cape Town on Saturday, 27 September and finish their campaign against the table-topping All Blacks at Ellis Park in Johannesburg on Saturday, 4 October.