Etzebeth's Super rugby injury jinx strikes again

Stormers and Springbok lock Eben Etzebeth is set to miss the first three rounds of Super rugby after sustaining a chest injury in a warm-up match against the Cheetahs on Friday last week.

To compound matters, fellow second-rower Manuel Carizza will miss the first two rounds with a shoulder injury, which he sustained in the same match.

The Stormers are suddenly very thin at lock with only Ruan Botha, who himself has just returned from a long-term injury, Jean Kleyn and Jurie van Vuuren available.

Gerbrandt Grobler remains unavailable for unexplained "personal reasons", meaning that coach Allister Coetzee might be forced to draft one of the loose forwards in as lock cover in the short term.

Etzebeth's absence is a big blow especially with an opening match against the Bulls at Loftus to start the campaign.

This is the third consecutive season that Etzebeth will miss the start, and his physicality and presence in crucial early season games could be telling. The Bulls are always a daunting prospect at Loftus and losing a player of Etzebeth's skill, presence and raw power will be hard to overcome.

In 2013 Etzebeth missed the opening six rounds due to an ankle injury and last year he missed the entire competition due to a foot injury.

Carizza also endured bad luck last year when he was ruled out of the bulk of the campaign with a wrist injury.

Coetzee said that he might use the abrasive Michael Rhodes at No4 lock again. The blindside flank has filled the role in the past - most recently in last year's Currie Cup - but he does prefer operating in the back row.

Another option would be to use current openside flank Rynhardt Elstadt at lock in the short term. It is a position he has played in the past but whether he or Rhodes move into the second row will depend on the fitness of flanks Nizaam Carr and Siya Kolisi.

Neither has played in the pre-season and both have been ruled out of this weekend's final warm-up game against Boland.