It seems that the Sharks have paid a dear price for their impressive Super 14 victory of 35 -14 over the Brumbies in Durban over the weekend.  Despite being top of the log now, Springbok winger JP Pietersen have picked up a calf injury.

Pietersen damaged his calf in the bonus-point victory over the Brumbies and is a doubtful starter for the Sharks’ Week Eight encounter with the ever-improving Hurricanes in Durban this coming Saturday.

Sharks coach John Plumtree said that the medical staff will monitor Pietersen this week and he remains “hopeful” that the Bok flyer will recover in time for the encounter with the Hurricanes.

Should Pietersen be ruled out, he will join a Sharks casualty list that also include fellow World Cup winner Ruan Pienaar, burly flank Jean Deysel and lock Allistair Hargreaves.

Pienaar, who injured his knee in the Week Five loss to the Reds, will hopefully return to action in Week 12 – when the Sharks come off their bye to play the Highlanders.

Deysel, who damaged knee ligaments in the opening match of their Australasian tour against the Chiefs in Week Three, is another couple of weeks away from a return.

Hargreaves, who suffered an ankle injury in Week Four against the Blues, is out for the season.

Despite the latest injury setback, Plumtree was a very happy man, following his team’s win at the weekend.

“In the collision area we were very aggressive, very accurate,” he said about the five-tries-to-two win over the Brumbies.

“We slowed their possession down very well with our tackle technique and we attacked the ball hard. We created a couple of opportunities from turnovers that we scored from.

“We also held onto the ball a bit longer, taking it through 12/13 phases and built some real pressure – which was really pleasing to see.”

Source: rugby365.com

Pic: sarugby.com

Tags: jp pietersen, super 14 injuries