Springbok flyhalf Andre Pretorius is confident he will be fit to play in the Lions’ crucial Bankfin Currie Cup rugby match against the Natal Sharks at Ellis Park on September 14.
The dynamic little flyhalf and ace goal-kicker has been undergoing intensive treatment on his right knee, but will return to full training with the Lions on Monday and says he’ll be ready to play if required to by coach Frans Ludeke reports Internet site, SuperSport Zone.
Pretorius has undergone minor surgical repairs to both knees and says his latest spate of visits to the Rosebank Centre for Sports Medicine for treatment by biokineticist Jannie Klingbiel was the result of overworking his body in what for him has been a momentous season.
”It was wear and tear,” said Pretorius, ”my body giving me a message that it was time to take a rest.”
Since replacing Louis Koen as the Cats’ first-choice flyhalf against the Waratahs during the Super 12 in New Zealand on March 16, Pretorius did not have a single break until being forced to withdraw from the Springbok team that played, and beat, the Wallabies in the Tri-Nations at Ellis Park on August 17.
What’s more, Pretorius played the full duration of the eight Super 12 games, one Springbok trial and seven test matches in which he featured.
As the goal-kicker in both the Cats and the Boks Pretorius would often spend more than two hours a session honing his skills until he was stopped by the pain in his knee.
But he’s not complaining. ”That’s what I wanted to do. I didn’t want to be on the bench and I didn’t want to be subbed. I just wanted to play and in the end, I suppose, something had to give.
The reward though has been the best year of my life.”
Indeed. From a highly talented youngster with designs on the Springbok side Pretorius, in less than a full season, has gone from a raw rookie to a seasoned international who has already contributed 79 points while playing in the green-and-gold jersey.
”I am able to run quite freely and I am determined to be part of the rest of the Currie Cup and to go on what will be my first tour to the northern hemisphere at the end of the year,” he said on Friday. – Sapa