Bulls captain Lood de Jager is likely to miss the remainder of the Super Rugby season due to a shoulder injury, but could recover in time to be considered for World Cup selection.
De Jager suffered the injury in the Bulls' second-round clash against the Jaguares, and was initially only expected to be out of action for a couple of weeks.
However, the Bulls have since confirmed that De Jager consulted another specialist in Cape Town, and the decision was taken for him to undergo surgery on Tuesday.
It means that the powerful lock will be out of action for at least four months. As a result, there is a slim chance that De Jager could make a return to play in the latter stages of Super Rugby if he recovers well, and especially if the Bulls were to progress to the play-offs.
However, the greater likelihood is that De Jager will set his sights on recovering in time to feature in a shortened Rugby Championship, and to then put himself in contention for Springbok selection for the World Cup.
Although that is relatively good news when one considers that there were initial fears on Monday that his World Cup dream could be over, the Bulls are sure to miss the presence of their designated skipper.
African News Agency