Eastern Province Kings:
The captaincy curse has struck the winless Eastern Province Kings again, with another skipper sidelined.
Steven Sykes will join Luke Watson in the sickbay and will not be on duty the against the Sharks in Durban on Saturday, according to the Kings medical team.
Sykes will be missing the upcoming game due to a knee injury that he sustained during the loss to the Free State Cheetahs last Saturday.
Prop Lizo Gqoboka, who will be joining the Springbok training squad this week, has been ruled out for selection against the Sharks this weekend with a shoulder injury.
Also of concern is tighthead prop Tom Botha, who sustained an elbow injury during the Cheetahs match.
While he has not been ruled out for selection, Botha has gone for x-rays and will be re-evaluated on Wednesday.
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Cell C Sharks:
The Sharks will have to do without the services of destructive prop Thomas du Toit for at least another week.
Team doctor Alan Kourie confirmed that Du Toit is still suffering from a toe injury.
He added that the prop, nicknamed Thomas the Tank, and is unlikely to be cleared to face the Eastern Province Kings in a Currie Cup Round Eight match in Durban on Saturday.
Conrad Hoffmann, a late withdrawal from the team that played the Blue Bulls last week, has a buttock muscle strain and a fitness call will be made later in the week.
Similarly lock Stephan Lewies, who has a chronic knee problem, may be ready by the end of the week – should he be passed fit.
Jacques Botes has a sternoclavicular joint sprain, but will also be subjected to a fitness test to ascertain his availability in this game.
Sharks forwards coach Paul Anthony winning at Loftus is big, for anybody, but the secret is to put that behind them and turn our attention to the next challenge.
“All our thinking is now on the EP Kings,” Anthony said.
“They will come here [to Durban] with nothing to lose and we need to focus purely on them.”
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Vodacom Blue Bulls:
Blue Bulls midfielder William Small-Smith has been ruled out of Saturday’s match against the Free State Cheetahs in Bloemfontein.
The midfielder sustained a bone bruise against the Sharks on the weekend and will not be fit to face the Cheetahs, team doctor Org Strauss confirmed.
Ryan Nell is also out injured with an ankle sprain and will only be available next weekend.
Flank Jacques du Plessis will sit out training on Monday due to a quad contusion, but will train Tuesday.
Scrumhalf Lohan Jacobs has been declared fit following a hamstring strain.
The Bulls succumbed to the Sharks on the weekend in a 26-15 defeat at home and will be hoping to bounce back against the Cheetahs who are riding high after defeating the hapless Kings.
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DHL Western Province:
Western Province scrumhalf Nic Groom is once again available for selection ahead of Friday’s Currie Cup clash against the Pumas.
There was good news on the injury front for Western Province today, with no new injuries in the camp.
WP will head to Nelspruit to take on the Pumas at the Mbombela Stadium on Friday and Groom will come into consideration for the match after missing the past two weeks.
Province currently lie in first position on the Currie Cup table, with 29 points from seven games (six victories).
The Pumas are in fourth position on 19 points (four wins from seven games).
More positive news was that hooker Stephan Coetzee (ankle/hip pointer) is making good progress and will undergo a fitness test before the team is announced on Tuesday.
“It’s a big positive to have a clean bill of health. Nic is back for us and Stephan will undergo a fitness test [Tuesday], but it’s nice, in a short week like this one, to have minimal injuries,” coach Allister Coetzee said.