Bok superstar ruled out of World Cup
NEWS: The Springboks suffered a hammer blow with the news that one of their key players has been ruled out of the World Cup.
Malcolm Marx will play no further part in the tournament after suffering a long-term knee injury.
The 29-year-old, who was not included in Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber’s matchday squad to face Romania in Bordeaux on Sunday, went down at training on Wednesday after having his knee caught in contact.
@rugby365com has reliably learned that Marx tore his anterior cruciate ligament.
Marx started in the Boks’ 18-3 victory over Scotland in Marseille last weekend.
He played an integral role in that performance, especially winning a few turnovers at the breakdown.
“With the Springboks having the luxury of an enlarged 33-man squad in France for the international showpiece, and sufficient cover at hooker within the squad, he will not be replaced in the squad at this stage,” said a statement from the Springboks.
Meanwhile, Nienaber added: “First and foremost, we are extremely disappointed for Malcolm, and we wish him all the best in his recovery.
“He’s been working very hard to be in the best form possible for the tournament, and it’s tragic that his campaign has ended this way. As a team we will remain in contact with him, as we do with all injured players such as Lukhanyo (Am), Handre (Pollard) and Lood (de Jager), and support him as much as we can through the recovery process.
“We have enough cover at hooker with Bongi (Mbonambi) and Deon (Fourie) in the squad, while Marco (van Staden) has also been training there and has been named on all our team sheets so far as a hooker option.
“We’ll assess our needs for the rest of the tournament and confirm who we are calling up as an additional player later this week.”
After Wednesday’s team announcement, Nienaber also confirmed that Eben Etzebeth’s recovery plan was upgraded to 10 to 14 days, which means he is in doubt for the crucial Ireland Test next week.
The Springboks will depart for Bordeaux on Thursday where they will continue their preparations for Sunday’s round two encounter against Romania at Stade de Bordeaux.
