Sharks coach John Plumtree has confirmed that Pieter-Steph du Toit will not be in contention for the senior side this week, despite making his return from injury for the under 21 side against the Lions.
Du Toit, still just 19, made a surprise impact for the Sharks towards the end of the Super Rugby campaign, but a frustrating penchant for injury raised a concern that his young body may not yet be quite ready for the demands of sustained rugby at that level. The young lock has been out of action since the Super Rugby knock-outs, after picking up an ankle injury that required surgical correction.
With the under 21 side short of genuine options at lock, it makes sense to allow du Toit to regain his fitness and confidence with that side, since the Sharks already have four very good senior locks all in need of game time. Plumtree isn’t expected to deviate from the established second-row combination of Steven Sykes and Anton Bresler when he names the side to face the Bulls this weekend.
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It will be good for him to get some game time in with the under 21’s.
@Letgo (Comment 1) : I agree but would prefer to see either Marais starting with Bresler with Sykes on the bench