Schalk back with Boks
17 Sep 2006
Schalk Burger will join the contracted Springboks at their training camp in Johannesburg on Sunday.
The Bok flanker, who had a neck fusion operation in June, has been given the green light to start training again. He is also allowed to go back to gym.
“It’s unbelievable,” Burger told Rapport rugby writer Rudolph Lake. “I got the best possible news this week. My neck operation was a complete success and the vertebra is nearly 95% regrown. I can start training again and gym – I can do everything except contact training.”
Burger said he’d begun to work on his fitness as soon as he received the good news from his doctor.
“I almost had a heartattack I was so unfit!” he said. “But it was great to be doing something again.”
92 Comments
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17 Sep 2006, 12:32 pm
Spies was actually the second fastest guy in the bok’s tri-nations squad behind Habana.
17 Sep 2006, 12:33 pm
O, en ‘n botteltjie blou…..
17 Sep 2006, 12:40 pm
#41 skim
Thats is why Andries Pretorius (tswanius) hasn’t been given a bok contract.Its his size and Jake doesn’t like small okes , Impish Jake most probably looked like an easy mark to be bullied at school. do i really want to go there about Jake Whites inferiority complex about “size”…nah let his wife deal with that!
17 Sep 2006, 12:44 pm
Pik Steal
Ou Skim ken sy mates en gewigte. Ek wonder waar kry hy al daai inligting so vinnig. Moet se, dis handig.
17 Sep 2006, 12:45 pm
Skim
Wickus is ook n goeie opsie.
17 Sep 2006, 12:52 pm
Pieterman, ek dink hy bel die ouens en vra hulle sommer self. Schalk hoe lank is jy? Dan meet hy hom. Juan, hoe swaar is jy? Dan weeg hy hom ens. Kyk mooi, hy het nie Schalk en Juan se spoed oor 100m gegee nie, hulle kon nie antwoord nie want hulle hardloop nog.
17 Sep 2006, 12:57 pm
56# Ja wraggies Pik!!
17 Sep 2006, 14:05 pm
Spot maar.
Ek sal julle nog een dag wys.
Ek gaan ‘n wereldberoemde rocker word.
17 Sep 2006, 14:57 pm
Good news. let’s hope the rest of Schalk’s recovery goes well too.
17 Sep 2006, 16:21 pm
And boy don’t we need him. Luke Watson is a capable replacement but that asshat of a coach will never select him.
Good to see Schalk back though, he does enough work for 5 players, and there is no one like him in World Rugby!
Hopefully he can get back to his best.
17 Sep 2006, 16:31 pm
There’s no one like him in Dros either, that’s for sure.
17 Sep 2006, 17:44 pm
Schalk is not back….
He is a contracted Bok and is paid to be there. He will be at the Bok camp to continue with rehab, jog, be in gym, but in effect keep in touch with the Bok setup.
Do you think he is there to do contact? I doubt if he will even feature much in the S14.
Sometimes you wonder about these guys who don’t know when to retire. Why put your body on the line over and over again?
17 Sep 2006, 19:01 pm
Very best wishes for a speedy recovery Schalk, but please don’t rush into any contact work this season.
It will be very interesting to see how the Bok management treats this new outlook on Burger. In all probability, in their ondecent haste to get him back, they will bring him on too soon.
The SARU should insist that he not be included in any team for at least the duration of 2006….but probably in their usual ballup of everything important, they will make a complete hash of things,
Patrick.
17 Sep 2006, 19:28 pm
Schalk is not allowed to play because the remaining 5% of his vertabra (95% of his vertabra recovered) is still held as a deposit by the wpru so that he can’t join the sharks. Its a contact thing.
17 Sep 2006, 20:39 pm
at full potential, joe van niekerk, or pierre spies?
17 Sep 2006, 21:11 pm
I saw today that the great Peter Winterbottom (the rich man’s Neil Back) utterly dismissed Burger as a class open side. Echoing my own views he described Burger as being clueless in deciding when to hit and when to hold back from a ruck or maul.
Its about intelligence and coaching. Burger has none of the former and been exposed to inadequate help on the latter.
17 Sep 2006, 21:11 pm
klippies #30
Rugby is no bodybuilding competition.
17 Sep 2006, 21:29 pm
Thank you Lord. Thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you.
17 Sep 2006, 23:28 pm
i say enter nick koster… the 17 year old wonder boy from the WP, who plays eighthman.
Koster (age 17):
speed: 100m in 11.0 seconds
height: 193cm
weight: 97kg
17 Sep 2006, 23:29 pm
in about 2 years, koster will be roughly…
height: 198cm
weight: 110kg
speed: 100m in 10.5 seconds
scary isn’t it…
17 Sep 2006, 23:53 pm
Hope he is not rushed into this camp they have, more worried about his neck than his comeback, good luck to him.
17 Sep 2006, 23:58 pm
Schalk has to be wise here. He is young and energetic but he has to be careful. Who knows the next knock could be his last. I say , if he has to play S14 then play the home games, close to his own team of doctors and he can be better monitored here.
18 Sep 2006, 00:04 am
agree CSI
i pray that he isnt rushed back at his own expense. we can probably expect the sa rugby circus will continue and schalk will be ushered in far sooner than he should be.
ppl are hoping schalk will play at the expense of his ability to walk and have a normal life after rugby. real cool.
i would love to see schalk playing again, maybe even for the boks. the boks arent even half the side with burger. he is one of a kind for sure, but to believe that he is going to be ok to play in super 14 rugby or even tri nations is really putting pressure on this guy, and his neck.
take it easy schalk! PLEASE!!!
18 Sep 2006, 00:14 am
Wisely and slow. They stumble that run fast.
18 Sep 2006, 01:55 am
Schalk
Listen to uncle Jinx, Tomsta and Pieterman, you hear?
If you don’t, we will moer jou! (solank jy net nie terugmoer nie).
No serious, I know are rearing to go, but easy does it.
18 Sep 2006, 06:32 am
I reckon that even thou the bok back 3 are smaller with a bit more improvement and tactics they can overpower any back 3 in the world. Size is something South Africa should rethink. Matt Giateu, imagine if Habana could replicate his play in center, Thou I would hate to touch our center combination, I reckon like our second rowers they will become the best pair in world rugby.
Reference to Lord of the Rings. Even thou they are Hobbits (back 3) they can still defeat bigger opponents
18 Sep 2006, 09:33 am
my backline
9 ruan
10 brent
11 spies
12 JDV
13 fourie
14 pietersen
15 habana
This would be a try scoring machine!!!!!!
18 Sep 2006, 09:36 am
it would also allow for a big athletic and dynamic guy like joe to fit in at 8 as well as give us that much desired size on the wing…we’ll see who tuqiri bullies then
18 Sep 2006, 09:47 am
Hope he doesn’t have a ‘babelas’ after his ‘kuier’ in the Paternoster Hotel on Saterday…
18 Sep 2006, 09:58 am
We all saw this weekend what an impact the Springboks made on the CC.
Just goes to show that the CC is in fact not that strong and that maybe Jakes Boks are the best in their positions.
Arguably though, perhaps players with talent and potential should be given the exposure to get to that level.
but without a doubt Spies, Olivier, Ndungane and Wannenburg made the difference for the Bulls.
If the Bulls had Bakkies,victor Fourie and habana back, could anyone beat them?
for the record, Im not a bulls fan.
18 Sep 2006, 10:00 am
anyone feel free to comment on my backline!:p
18 Sep 2006, 10:45 am
The only loose forward the muppits like to leave out is AJ and that always baffles me.
SAFFAS are always “waxing lyrical” (to quote of one these hackneyed phrases used in rugga commentary)about new talent.
we could not nurture Bob’s,Big Joe’s and Schalk’s talent and now we’ve found a new saviour in Spies. He’s a good player but watch him at 25, if he’ll get there.
there are so many probable combinations for the bok set up at loose forward
A.(the preferred one by muppits but not probable)
6 Schalk
7 Smith
8 Spies
with AJ on the bench.
B. (the seemingly highly unlikely one is)
6. Watson
7. Smith
8. Venter
with Schalk on the bench.
C.(this option is set to take out any loose forward combination available but is not likely in the saffa set up)
6.Schalk
7.Smith
Big Joe on the bench
Saffas must always remember that we are a factory for loose forwards, which is why we can afford to screw up so many every four years and still go to a world cup with a loose trio combo ranked among the top 3 in the world at any given time.
I have not mentioned Danie, Pedrie and Jacque because they are not the best for their respective positions but are more than likely to upset me and make it to the world cup.
With Pierre Spies, i’d like to reserve my observations because the boy is obviously talented but i’ve seen him play in 4 positions in 4 weeks. that shows me talent and adaptability but there is a case in specialisation ala McCaw, Burger and Juan.
Time will tell how this boy will do.
Schalk, returned to early for my liking but if the doctors say he’s good to go, then he is.
18 Sep 2006, 10:53 am
Option C is
6. Schalla
7. Smith
8. Venter
more grunt for your money.
18 Sep 2006, 11:26 am
agree,,,aj is some serious grunter, and all loose trios need a one mother grunter back there to really donner the other okes. collins does that with rodney,,and elsom tries to do it for aussie,,well elsom trying to fill owen finegans boots.
aj should be in starting 22 no questions. too much experience, grafter and leadership. priceless
18 Sep 2006, 11:38 am
Fantastic, going to be the best looseforward combo in the world.
6. Burger
7. Smith/Venter
8. Spies
might as well give us the cup…
18 Sep 2006, 11:58 am
SUPERMAN RETURNS
18 Sep 2006, 12:45 pm
Lick your lips.
Imagine in a few seasons from now, rotating Burger, Watson, Spies, Diak (with some ‘old’ guy around as well)
18 Sep 2006, 13:02 pm
Take it easy, Schalkie (and Jake), there is lots of time
18 Sep 2006, 15:29 pm
RWC is 12 months away, stay healthy
18 Sep 2006, 16:33 pm
Schalk moet nou ook bietjie ophou om op sy naam te ry, dit raak nou tyd om weer bietjie te perform. Hy was die laaste tyd maar kakkerig
18 Sep 2006, 17:27 pm
No 15 # 86
Remember what happenened to Superman…in a wheel chair.
Schalk must in no ways be blinded by the bright lights of fame and adulation. He needs to REALLY know that all is okay.
29 Sep 2006, 02:58 am
the monster is Back…… fresh salut you Burger.
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