Springboks: What does Jaden Hendrikse’s injury mean for the Rugby World Cup?
Springboks scrum-half Jaden Hendrikse left the field injured during the Sharks’ round-of-16 demolition of Munster last weekend.
It was a worrying sign for the Boks management staff seeing one of their front-line scrum-halves clutching at his shoulder whilst being helped off the field.
The star underwent surgery for the injury this week and posted an update with his thumbs up after the procedure. It is expected he will be out for at least two and a half months.
https://twitter.com/SharksRugby/status/1643227021097549826?s=20
Does this mean Hendrikse will miss the World Cup?
The short answer is no. The long answer could be yes bearing in mind the Boks will likely take only three scrum-halves.
Two and half months means the Shark should be fit to play around the middle of June which is before the World Cup.
That means the star is out for the rest of the club season with the United Rugby Championship final on May 27 with Grant Williams expected to close out the remaining fixtures for the Durban side.
The difficulty with that is there is elevated risk in using the Rugby Championship and warm-up minutes on a player recovering from an injury when there is a hoard of stars waiting in line.
Door open?
The process the Boks like to follow is to use players that are aligned with structures and have been entrenched in the set-up.
Hendrikse was the preferred starter for the first part of the 2022 season before Faf de Klerk took over as the first choice, particularly in November. It would seem at face value that two are at the top of the pecking order, but there are two World Cup winners in Herschel Jantjies and Cobus Reinach patiently waiting, whilst Williams is an interesting prospect.
One could assume that De Klerk is the incumbent at this stage given all his recent starts and his defensive nous within the system the Boks use.
Reinach was injured for a great period of the 2022 season and is playing consistently for Montpellier again. The star is rapid and a try scorer but maybe does not have the same kind of flair as Hendrikse. Nevertheless, he is an experienced campaigner who could see a door now open.
Stormers star Jantjies has not had his best season, with Paul de Wet being preferred in Cape Town earlier on. However, he has recovered some form, but it is difficult to say he is putting enough pressure to dislodge Hendrikse in the pecking order.
Williams is the most inexperienced of them all but has a unique trait in that he is brilliant at speeding up the game. Whether it’s quick service from the base of rushing teams with quick taps. This could work in his favour, and with his teammate out for a while he will get an extended run for the Sharks. Anything is possible.
Verdict
Hendrikse’s injury does cut things fine, but his growth during 2022 could go a long way in helping the Bok management decide to prioritise him and his recovery. That is, of course, if none of the other stars finds a purple patch.
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