Kolisi recovery on track as Boks prepare for Rugby Champs

“Siya is on track with his rehabilitation, and he’s hitting all his targets,” said Nienaber.

Erasmus added: “Our target at this stage is to have Siya ready to play one or two warm-up games before the World Cup.”

However, Nienaber said it was important for the squad to focus on the first task at hand in a season which features a condensed Castle Lager Rugby Championship, three World Cup warm-up games and the tournament itself.

“The World Cup is obviously the big one for us this year, but our focus is on our first Test against Australia,” said Nienaber.

“We have a plan for the Castle Lager Rugby Championship and then we have World Cup warm-up matches against Argentina, Wales and New Zealand before we move into the World Cup.”

With Kolisi set to miss the southern hemisphere showpiece, Erasmus said just to name a few players, there were a number of potential interim captains in the squad for the other Tests. These include Steven Kitshoff (prop), Eben Etzebeth (lock), Duane Vermeulen, Pieter-Steph du Toit (both loose forwards), Damian de Allende and Lukhanyo Am (both centres).

Erasmus, however, revealed that there was a concern at flyhalf in the training squad following a delay in Handre Pollard’s recovery from a leg injury, while Damian Willemse took a knock to the knee.

“Handre has a calf (injury) again and it could take a longer for him to be back than we had hoped,” said Erasmus.

“He’ll definitely be fine for the World Cup, but we’ll have to monitor his progress to determine exactly when he will be able to play. This means that out of three flyhalves, Manie (Libbok) is the only fit one.”

Erasmus added that Elton Jantjies was an option as flyhalf cover depending on the speed of Pollard and Willemse’s recovery.

“A guy like Elton is playing good rugby at the moment, and we’ll consider him,” said Erasmus. “For now, our team doctor will keep a close eye on the other flyhalves and their recovery.”