VIDEO: Dobbo's revealing chat about key Boks' futures
SPOTLIGHT: Stormers Director of Rugby John Dobson has shed some light on player movements and injuries ahead of Round 18 of the United Rugby Championship.
The Capetonians will host Cardiff in Cape Town on Friday, and certain players such as Evan Roos and Warrick Gelant have been wrapped in cotton wool ahead of the play-offs.
One of the big names missing from the team sheet is Frans Malherbe, who is still struggling with a back injury.
Dobson confirmed that the Bok prop won’t be returning to the playing field anytime soon, and he will also miss the Springboks’ latest alignment camp in Cape Town next week.
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“I don’t think he will play for us for the rest [of the season],” Dobson told reporters with a quarterfinal and a potential semifinal and Final in mind.
“Hopefully, we’ve got four more games.
“With Frans, it’s just about how it [injury] settles down, so there’s no big call right now.”
Meanwhile, there are still question marks around Wandisile Simelane’s playing future in Cape Town.
Earlier this year, reports suggested that he is a wanted man in Europe, and now Dobson has conceded that he might lose the 27-year-old.
“That’s the one that is still a bit uncertain.
“It’s a pity because he has done well. It was a cut-and-dry thing a while ago, but now it’s a little bit of a grey area.
“I suspect he is going to go overseas.”
Dobson provided more certainty on Springbok hooker Sciarra Ntubeni, who has signed a one-year contract extension with the Stormers.
“We felt that with Jospeh [Dweba] going, we got two really good young hookers in JJ [Kotze] and Andre-Hugo [Venter] and we felt that Boepa [Lukhanyo Vokozela] is going to be special and we just need to get him on the field,” Dobson said.
“We also got Keagan Blanckenberg, who has come from UCT.
“So, we just felt that if two of them [Kotze and Venter] were injured, there is a guy [Ntubeni] who can scrum in a Champions Cup Final.
“He has been looking after himself, and he is a great team man.”
Experienced loose forward Dave Ewers, who will start against Cardiff, will be heading back to the United Kingdom.
The former Exeter Chiefs’ stalwart signed a short-term contract with the Stormers last year.
“He [Ewers] is a good professional and a great human being. It’s tough for him, and his family is in Scotland,” Dobson explained.
“He messaged me before the Dragons game, and he said: ‘Those youngsters are going so well, please don’t choose me. I would rather help in training’.
“So, he can’t be away from his family and not be playing, so Dave is going back.
“People might not have seen a lot of him, but he has brought a lot to the group. He will be good tomorrow [Friday] in those conditions.”
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