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The 'very successful' surgery was only Nyakane's third injury-related operation, however, this injury could see him miss the rest of the season.
Trevor Nyakane after his surgery. Picture: Instagram
Springbok veteran Trevor Nyakane says he had a “very successful” operation and is now on the road to recovery after rupturing his Achilles tendon a week ago.
Nyakane hobbled off the field after twisting his ankle in the first half of the Sharks’ 29–19 win over the Bulls in their second United Rugby Championship (URC) local derby of the season at Loftus on 15 February.
Though the Sharks have made no mention of Nyakane’s status, the 35-year-old forward shared a post on Instagram explaining the situation and thanking fellow players Ox Nche, Bongi Mbonambi and Fez Mbatha for visiting him and bringing him treats.
“Last week Saturday I [ruptured] my Achilles tendon, [it’s] very painful. I just went under the knife, surgery was very successful, doctors were very positive afterwards. Now it’s the road to recovery and staying positive in this journey,” Nyakane posted, replete with emojis.
“Thank you for all the messages and support from everyone. I really appreciate it. A very special thanks to my brothers who came to visit me [and] brought me food, supplies, took care of me and as always good laughs, which is needed at times like these… @mr_mbonambi @ox_nche @fez_mbatha2 much love brothers. @sharksrugby will be back soon.”
South Africa’s Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis commented on the post, “You got this brother.”
The official Sharks Instagram page commented “wishing you a speedy recovery” with a heart emoji.
WATCH: Sharks star Fassi reflects on positives as he recovers from injury
Nyakane could miss the rest of the season
It was in the week leading up to the match that Nyakane told media his body is still strong and he is “keeping up with the young boys”.
At that point, he had only had two injury-related surgeries. “One was a simple scope and the other was on my thumb. Besides that, obviously you get niggles here and there but I haven’t had injuries that kept me out for very long.
“So far I’m still hoping I will go until I’m 38. Then I will reassess and see if I still feel like I want to continue. The body is doing quite well actually.”
Unfortunately for him, players with similar injuries have been out for months and Nyakane could miss the rest of the season.
He had also been invited to join Rassie Erasmus’ first Springbok alignment camp in March. If he attends he will surely not be able to play and train with his Springbok teammates.
Nyakane has 65 caps for the national team, all at prop. The vast majority of these appearances were from the bench as he featured in the Bok “bomb squad”.
The Sharks have had an endemic injury dilemma this season, with Springboks André Esterhuizen and Aphelele Fassi still out with long-term injuries.
Eben Etzebeth has also not returned since his concussion sustained on 7 December.
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