Mixed bag for injured Griquas

Griquas, still looking for their first win of the Currie Cup season, received a mixed bag of news on the injury front.

Coach Pote Human confirmed to this website that second row forward Jaco Nepgen will miss his team's Central Unions derby against the Free State Cheetahs with concussion.

"We are also concerned about [stand-in flyhalf] Marnitz Boshoff, who suffered a rib injury," Human said, adding: "We'll make a call on him later in the week."

However, the good news is that utility back Willie le Roux will return after his one-week suspension.

"It also looks like [outside back] Jannie Boshoff [hamstring injury] will be back this coming weekend, which will be a huge boost for us," the Griquas mentor said.

The return of Le Roux, who is likely to start at fullback, and Boshoff, who could feature on the wing or off the bench, will help with the depth.

"We have managed to get a strong squad together this year, players who have worked hard and are very fit," Human told this website.

"If we can avoid injuries to key players we can do very well."

Although his team suffered back-to-back defeats - against the Blue Bulls and Western Province - in the opening rounds, Human feels they are making progress.

"Against the Blue Bulls we were very disappointing, as I really thought we could pull off a win at Loftus [Versfeld]," he said.

"We bounced back and played very well against WP, especially in the first half.

"The guys know that if we can play like that [first half] for 80 minutes, then we can beat any team on the day," Human said.

By Jan de Koning