Tim Whitehead
Centre Tim Whitehead has become the 1st player to walk out on the EP Kings after the union’s failure to compensate players.
The 10-day deadline for paying the players’ October salaries expired at midnight on Tuesday without any action from the Kings’ management.
This means that from a legal perspective, the players can cancel existing contracts with the Eastern Province Rugby Union and take up matters elsewhere.
Whitehead on Thursday confirmed that he has decided to leave the Kings.
Steven Sykes
The Eastern Province Kings’ injury list just keeps on growing as a further 6 players have been added to the ‘already injured’ list.
Knee injuries seems to be common among the EP Kings players – 5 players have already undergone surgery and will be out for a number of weeks – and lock Steven Sykes has now added his name to that list.
Aidon Davis (6 months), Gary van Aswegen (2 weeks), George Whitehead (2 months), Cameron Lindsay (9 months) and Luke Watson (pre-season) have all already had knee surgery and a call on Sykes’ availability for the final Round clash with DHL Western Province will be decided later in the week.
Other than Sykes, there are a further 5 players who emerged with injuries following their 27 / 48 defeat at the hands of the Vodacom Blue Bulls.
Martin Ferreira (dead leg), Tom Botha (elbow), Dwayne Kelly (hamstring strain), Tim Whitehead (AC joint) and Luther Obi (ankle sprain) will all be treated and monitored during the week.
Following their narrow 15 / 13 Currie Cup loss to the Steval Pumas in Port Elizabeth at the weekend, the EP Kings have a few more injury concerns.
Centre Tim Whitehead suffered concussion in the game against the Pumas and his availability for this weekend’s home game against the Sharks is in doubt.
He was cleared of symptoms, but will follow a gradual return to play protocol until Thursday. If he comes through that, then he will be cleared to face his former team.
Flyhalf George Whitehead picked up a knee injury and saw a specialist on Monday to determine the severity of the injury.
Flank Jacques Engelbrecht has a left hip pointer injury and is likely to be sidelined for the next 2 weeks, while prop Basil Short has recovered from a foot injury, but a spider bite has kept him sidelined this week.
Luke Watson
Eastern Province Kings captain Luke Watson has been ruled out of action for at least four weeks with concussion.
Watson, who has played little rugby in the last year due to injuries, suffered a head knock in the 25th minute of the Kings’ 30-25 loss to the Blue Bulls in Pretoria last Saturday.
Having recovered from a foot injury to lead the EP Kings in their opening Currie Cup match against WP, Watson also missed their second outing against the Golden Lions with flu.
The EP Kings have confirmed three new signings ahead of their preparations for the Currie Cup Premier Division.
EP Kings CEO, Charl Crous confirmed that Michael van Vuuren, Tim Whitehead and Hansie Graaff will all be joining the Kings over the coming months, along with Izak van der Westhuizen whose signing has already been announced.
The Sharks are in a good place, both mentally and physically, as well as on the Vodacom Super Rugby log following their bonus point win over the Rebels and the confidence they would have gained from their execution of the basics on Saturday.
The Sharks are again being hampered by numerous injury setbacks before the Super Rugby season officially kicks off, no less than seven stars out for anything between 4 weeks and 8 weeks.
The Sharks scored 11 tries on their way to beating the Leopards 71-8 in a Super Rugby warm up match at Woodburn Stadium in Pietermaritzburg on Friday.
The Sharks ooutscored the Leopards by 11 tries to one but the victory may have come at a cost as captain Keegan Daniel injured his knee while Tim Whitehead has a suspected broken arm.
In this Article we look at the contenders for CENTRES at the Sharks 2013 Super Rugby group.
The Sharks for the first time in a long time have a solid midfield, and to top it they have more than one option, the secret though is going to be which combination would suit the team’s dynamics the best.
I would like to try and explain the two centre position as many seem to get confused between the two, for example,“ What kind of player would you want at inside centre or outside centre” contrary to many beliefs in my opinion the center combination should be 2 players with different skill sets.
The Sharks landed in Sidney, Australia with some good news and some bad news, good news being the addition of Patrick Lambie and Paul Jordaan who will both be ready for selection. This was great news for the Sharks as both players are very important to the Sharks cause, but there was bad news to follow. Continue reading
In breaking news, Tim Whitehead has not traveled with the Sharks to New Zealand due to injury.
Sharks centre Tim Whitehead may have to wait until next year before feeling what it is like to play against his former Stormers teammates at Vodacom Super Rugby level.
The 7th and Article in the set discussing the Sharks Super Rugby players for 2012.
In this Article we look at the contenders for CENTRES in the Sharks 2012 Super Rugby group, and what their worth will be in Super Rugby terms.
Western Province centre Tim Whitehead – who missed their Currie Cup campaign with a knee injury – has signed a deal with the Sharks.
Western Province and the Stormers franchise might be dealt a cruel blow as one of their current superstars is said to have signed with French Club Bayonne. Continue reading