'His season is over': Bok star flying home to SA for operation

NEWS: Montpellier head coach Philippe Saint-Andre confirmed that South African World Cup winner Cobus Reinach will not play again this season due to a shoulder injury.

The 32-year-old scrum-half suffered the injury a fortnight ago in the 40-26 Champions Cup last 16 first-leg win over English champions Harlequins.

"Cobus will undergo an operation on his shoulder on Wednesday in South Africa," said Saint-Andre.

"His season is over."

The injury is set to keep him out of action for three to four months, which will rule him out of the Boks' three-Test series against Wales in July.

The 12-times capped Reinach has been a key player this season, scoring seven tries in 14 league matches, and last month extended his contract with Montpellier for two years to 2025.

Reinach joined the French club in 2020 from Northampton and quickly established himself as the starting scrumhalf in Saint-Andre's team ahead of Benoit Paillaugue and Georgian Gela Aprasidze.

Montpellier remain top of the Top 14 despite losing to Bordeaux-Begles on Sunday and face an all French Champions Cup quarterfinal with last season's beaten finalists La Rochelle on May 7.