Bok blow for Bulls ahead of Champions Cup opener
INJURY UPDATE: The Bulls will be without at least two players, including a Springbok, for their Champions Cup opener against defending champions Bordeaux at Loftus Versfeld.
Bulls head coach Johan Ackermann confirmed that David Kriel will be available after suffering an eye injury in the 19th minute in their 33-43 defeat to the Lions, but they will be without the services of Jan Serfontein and Juann Else.
Serfontein went off with a knee injury at half-time and was replaced by Junior Springbok Cheswill Jooste, who made a solid impression.
Replacement hooker Juann Else played merely 12 minutes off the bench before suffering a concussion and failing his head injury assessment [HIA].
There isn’t clarity on the severity of Else’s concussion, but according to World Rugby’s guidelines, a player diagnosed with a head injury is required to have a minimum 12-day stand-down period before resuming a return to play.
Ackermann said that the timeline for the above-mentioned injured players is yet unknown at this stage.
“David [Kriel], we believe, will be fine. He suffered a minor eye injury, but it doesn’t seem too serious.
“Jan [Serfontein] is definitely out. He suffered an MCL [knee] injury. We don’t know how long he’ll be out for.
“Juann’s [Else] time on the sideline depends on the outcome of his concussion test.
“Obviously, he failed his HIA. That’s why he didn’t return to the field, but more tests are being done, and we’ll have to wait and see what the outcome is on that.”
