Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus has shed light on the seriousness of Ox Nché’s leg injury.
The loosehead prop left the field in the first half of Saturday’s 61-7 win against Japan at Wembley after twisting his ankle and knee at a ruck. He was seen on crutches after the match.
“It’s pretty serious,” said Erasmus. “I don’t think he’ll play the rest of this tour. It happened in a tackle situation – his ankle and knee – so unfortunately he’s out.”
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The Bok coach added that they are likely to call up a replacement.
“We’ve got Gerhard Steenekamp, who played well tonight, and Thomas du Toit back next week. But if another loosehead goes down, we’ll be in trouble, so we’ll probably bring in Asenathi Ntlabakanye. Thomas can swing between tighthead and loosehead for us if needed.”
Ntlabakanye played for the Barbarians against an All Blacks XV in Brentford on Saturday.
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Nché’s injury comes after Jan-Hendrik Wessels was ruled out last week with an eight-week suspension, leaving the world champions thin in the front row as they prepare to face France in Paris on Saturday.
Erasmus warned that the next Test would be a “massive step up”.
“We know what it’s like playing France away – it’s a real pressure cooker,” he said. “Most of the guys have experienced that atmosphere before. We’ll need to be really intelligent and physical this week to be ready.”
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Captain Siya Kolisi echoed those sentiments, saying the squad must prepare for a far tougher challenge than Japan.
“It was special playing in London again and great to see all the South Africans who came out to support us,” he said. “We’re going to need that backing for the next four games – starting with France.”
The Boks will also face Italy, Ireland and Wales this month.
