As it stands, Johan Goosen, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Jordan Hendrikse are all out of action due to injuries that continue to rack up during an almost never-ending season for some of South Africa’s top players.

Goosen left the field in the 27th minute of the Champions Cup pool match against Stade Francais, which the Bulls won 48-7 to qualify for the second-tier Challenge Cup playoffs, and it’s expected that he will be sidelined for an extended period.

“I just asked the doctor [how serious the injury is] and he said at the moment it is very difficult [to tell] because it is swollen,” Bulls coach Jake White said at the post-match press conference.

“So he will go for a scan on Monday and see, but he’s got knees like crystal – he has had lots and lots of knee injuries.

“I am hoping that it is something like a meniscus or cartilage as opposed to a ligament, but I can’t speculate now until he has the scan.

“He will definitely be out for a couple of weeks, there is no doubt in my mind about that.”

It’s unlikely that Goosen would have come into the reckoning for the Springboks this year, but if he had remained injury free and in good form, the 32-year-old would have hoped to make a play for a return to the national side.

Meanwhile, in terms of looking at other Springbok playmakers who are on the sidelines, Hendrikse should at least be back soon for the Sharks after recovering from a head injury.

It’s not as good news for Feinberg-Mngomezulu, who missed the Springboks’ end-of-year tour due to a knee injury, and has since seen his comeback performances consistently disrupted at the Stormers.

After first making a comeback from injury, the 22-year-old had to be prematurely replaced in a URC game due to concussion before, limping off the field in the 28th minute of a home clash against the Lions after a big tackle.

Most recently, he injured his shoulder straight from the kick-off in another URC match against the Sharks at Cape Town Stadium, and that collarbone issue has required another surgical procedure.

The Stormers have yet to give an exact timeline on how long he will remains on the sidelines, but it’s expected to be for at least another four weeks, raising real concerns about being so injury prone.

Earlier this season, Feinberg-Mngomezulu was given some tough love from Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus when he expressed disappointment that he had ‘hidden’ his knee injury due to a desire to keep playing against the All Blacks.

After his latest injury, it was also clear that he soldiered on when perhaps it was not wise to do so.

“We took him to the edge,” Stormers coach John Dobson admitted after that game. “When he first went down, I thought: ‘We made a calamitous error as coaches’. We went six-two [a forwards-heavy bench] and he went down.

“It is his clavicle [collarbone] that went out. We offered him to come off, but he said he wanted to keep trying.

“I am not sure if it was helpful for the team, but we should have pulled the trigger [taking him off] a little earlier. He was trying to push through to half-time.

“Three games in a row we have lost him within minutes and it is tough on him.”

Springboks’ 2025 Test schedule:

5 July: vs Italy, Venue TBC
12 July: vs Italy, TBC
19 July: vs Georgia, TBC
16 August: vs Australia, TBC
23 August: vs Australia, TBC
6 September: vs New Zealand, Auckland
13 September: vs New Zealand, Wellington
27 September: vs Argentina, TBC
4 October: vs Argentina, London
1 November: vs Wales, Cardiff
8 November: vs France, Paris
15 November: vs Italy, TBC
22 November: vs Ireland, Dublin

HOW MANY GAMES DO YOU THINK WILL BE WON?

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Src: TheSouthAfrican.com - https://rugga.co.za/stormers/another-springbok-flyhalf-suffers-a-worrying-injury/