Schalk back with Boks
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.”
September 17th, 2006 at 10:45 am
hope schalkie can pull through!!!
September 17th, 2006 at 10:47 am
YEAH!!!
And we were forced to build some great backup in Spies so the worldcup is looking good again,
With Smith, Burger, Joe and Bakkies all back in the bok lineup at the WC (provided there are no more injuries)
September 17th, 2006 at 10:48 am
he will – he has natural talent
September 17th, 2006 at 10:48 am
HALLELUJA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Incredible Schalck is BACK!!
September 17th, 2006 at 10:49 am
1.98m
105kg
Wild mal in die kop
Natural fetcher
Line-out option
September 17th, 2006 at 10:49 am
Wonder what Schalk thinks of Luke?
September 17th, 2006 at 10:49 am
Good news. Him and Spies will play well together.
September 17th, 2006 at 10:50 am
Imagine:
6.Schalk
7.Juan
8.Spies
September 17th, 2006 at 10:50 am
u are talking striker – now it only can go beter – schalk ; bakkies ; joe ; smith ; jdv ; and spies that got good experience – oh man its going 2 b good
September 17th, 2006 at 10:57 am
yeah Skim, hardcore. and then with a bit of competition maybe big joe will lift his game too.
September 17th, 2006 at 10:58 am
Skim,
Rumour is that he doesn’t like the idea of Luke being the captain, and doesn’t particularly want to play under him.
September 17th, 2006 at 11:01 am
schalk’s 193cm and 108kg’s actually. lets not get carried away, i think he should only be allowed to play 6 matches in the S14 next year… at most. in a dream situation, this would be the starting 22 for the WC
1 J. Engels
2 J. Smit (lets face it, he WILL start)
3 CJ. vd Linde
4 B. Botha
5 V. Matfield
6 S. Burger
7 J. Smith
8 P. Spies
9 R. Pienaar
10 A. Pretorious
11 B. Habana (on FORM)
12 J. d Villiers
13 J. Fourie
14 JP. Pieterson
15 B. Fortuin (in wet weather) / G. Aplon (in dry weather)
16 O. du Randt
17 C. Ralapelle
18 J. Muller
19 L. Watson
20 F. du Preez
21 B. James
22 B. Fortuin / G. Aplon
Unlucky Wynand Olivier… his a quality player. I’ll also watch the progress of Philip Burger and Marius Delport, because they’re quality players. Kabama Floors might also be my reserve flank, because he adds another dimension to the attack. If Floors comes in, then Schalk Britz must come in as well. Imagine the flair in this team?? I’ve said many times before, until Aplon’s size is exposed, surely he’s good enough. judge a player by his performances, not his stats.
September 17th, 2006 at 11:05 am
i dont no how chilli boy is close to the bok setup without having played a game in months.
September 17th, 2006 at 11:06 am
ziyaad, i would start with os (hopefully guthro is ready then too) but i also rate engels. also, i would have BJ in place of CJ.
my biggest worry are the back 3. okay, habana is there but the other wing? also, i am a JP Pietersen supporter but maybe the oke is too young. only 20 ffs and fullback is a stressful position.
fullbacks get better with age, i even remember that andre joubert was slated by many okes when he first became a bok, but after some time we all know what happened.
September 17th, 2006 at 11:12 am
i would also not have bevan close to the setup, if you want a similar player i would go for roets, and rossouw on the bench instead of muller, otherwise good team.
September 17th, 2006 at 11:14 am
Don’t rush schalla back for the sake of the world cup.
September 17th, 2006 at 11:14 am
Great news.
Get well soon Schalla!
6. Schalk
7. Spies
8. Juan (even teich’s thinks Juan will a brilliant
September 17th, 2006 at 11:15 am
poor watsons star is fading fast!
September 17th, 2006 at 11:19 am
remember the world cup is still half the currie cup, the end of the season tour, a full s14 and tri nations away. thats plenty of time to gain experience. ya sorry bj botha replaces cj vd linde. bevin’s only weakness may be his pace. he also add to the ‘quota’ we need on the field. fortuin is probably the most reliable fullback we have, and is extremely powerful on the run. Aplon, on the other hand, is flawless. except when he stands on a scale he weighs 10kg less than Percy. im so keen to see him play s14. remember this is priliminary. 14 months ago we didnt even know about guys like aplon, pieterson, bj botha (nt really), pierre spies, so new guys may yet come through
September 17th, 2006 at 11:22 am
Best Of Luck to you big fella!
September 17th, 2006 at 11:24 am
yeah ziyaad, as exciting as aplon is i will reserve judgement until he has played at a higher standard that cc. the thing is, if russel cant get into the bok team what chance does aplon have?
i cant believe that **** doesnt play russel. ffs, **** wasnt the biggest in his day was he, surely he of all people should know that there is more to it than size.
September 17th, 2006 at 11:27 am
we need 5 quota players i think. come to think about it, if JW is coach watson wont be there. so Kabama Floors can come in, with Danie Rossouw the reserve lock, because he double up as a flank. new team:
1 O. Du Randt
2 J. Smit
3 BJ. Botha
4 B. Botha
5 V. Matfield
6 S. Burger
7 J. Smith
8 P. Spies
9 R. Pienaar
10 A. Pretorious
11 B. Habana
12 J. d Villiers
13 J. Fourie
14 JP. Pieterson (played sa u21 there)
15 G. Aplon
16 J. Engels
17 Chilliboy
18 D. Rossouw
19 K. Floors
20 F. du Preez
21 B. James
22 B. Fortuin (or Brent Russell) since the quota has been satisfied)
another to watch is Hilton Lobberts. he is young and will only improve over the next 12 months. the ndungane twins need speed training too.
September 17th, 2006 at 11:31 am
yeah, better team, although i still want to see chiliboy actually play a senior game.
interesting that luke is no where…imagine a back three of paulse, russell and aplon, take on the aussie (previous) back three of tuqiri, sailor and latham! that would be interesting.
September 17th, 2006 at 11:31 am
How is it that Schalk with a 95% healed neck even consider joining the Bok training squad?
September 17th, 2006 at 11:37 am
The ‘incredible Hulk’ gotta admit you boys missed him! A damn fine player who is only sorely missed when he does not play a game.
September 17th, 2006 at 11:37 am
He needs 2 bolts in his neck and he will be known as Herman ‘Munster” Burger.
Seriously he is awesome but will have to change his attack strategy at breakdowns/rucks. He just cannot go budgeoning in head first all the time coz he won’t last and the Boks cannot afford to lose him next year. He will need a special forwards coach team to increase or hone his skills in the rucks.
Great to have him back, but i will be nervous for him in his first game!!!!
September 17th, 2006 at 11:38 am
i reckon tuqiri isnt all that on defense. look how tom varndell stood him up in a 1 on 1. we keep coming back to size… ideally we would want 100kg wings who can sprint the 100 in 10seconds. oh, come to think about it, i do know someone who can do that. except his 17 and plays eightman. nick koster of bishops. i promise u, that name will define south african rugby in years to come. coming back to the point of giant wings, do we want Giscard Pieters and Dean Hall then? unfortunately for the time being we wont be able to provide a physically big back 3, but we could have a lighting quick, nimble back 3 that could create something outta nothing
September 17th, 2006 at 11:39 am
23
Sailor was rubbish and will always be rubbish in union. The reason is that he cannot score tries in close quarters, keep the game tight and Sailor goes AWOL. Sailor needs space to score tries!
September 17th, 2006 at 11:41 am
i am not suggesting that the wallaby back three would destroy the three little uns from the boks, but it would be an interesting experiment in size difference. sailor new found his true calling as a battering ram.
September 17th, 2006 at 11:41 am
our boks r not big enough they look skinny next the aussies
September 17th, 2006 at 11:55 am
king scalla back,vonderbaa!
September 17th, 2006 at 11:56 am
(22) ziyaad,good team bro!
September 17th, 2006 at 11:57 am
great news…
I just hope it’s not too soon for Schalk. Jake must not be tempted to take him on the EOYT… let him recover completely before conatct training or playing..
skim…
That’s trio’s the real deal… can’t wait to see them play together…
September 17th, 2006 at 12:04 pm
Moerse goeie nuus, dankie Vader!!!
Maar vat dit stadig Klein Schalk. Jy is nog jonk.
Groot Schalk, hou jou klong in toom asseblief, hy weet nie wat ‘bang’ beteken nie. Praat hom bang, asseblief.
September 17th, 2006 at 12:04 pm
Schalk with 95% regrown vertebra joins camp. Another flank has 100% vertebra, only shorter. The Hulk is back and Joke must be having wet dreams!
September 17th, 2006 at 12:05 pm
skim,good trio boss but will joke buy into that idea? we hope
September 17th, 2006 at 12:06 pm
Schalk is so large one can see his vertebra on Google Earth!
September 17th, 2006 at 12:07 pm
pieterman,i saw schalk jogging in the sreets around the newlands stadium early this week with his chick and the boy has beefed up big style!
strange to think he is still only 22!
look out world……
September 17th, 2006 at 12:07 pm
pik steal,hahaha nice one!
September 17th, 2006 at 12:09 pm
Of course Joky will buy it
Spies = lineout option, moer vinnig, great skill
Juan = Lineout option, moer hard, great skill
Schalk = Schalk
September 17th, 2006 at 12:11 pm
For Jake who is obsessed with speed, size and strenght this is perfect.
You won’t get a faster or bigger back row anywhere on this planet.
September 17th, 2006 at 12:11 pm
Mac
Keep him jogging at Newlands, no need for him to go on tour to Ireland/England this year and bust his neck again.. Let him recover properly.
The boy knows no fear and I am worried about him. Dont’t rush him untill WC time.
September 17th, 2006 at 12:18 pm
Luke must feel like the Rhodes Memorial, in the shade of Table Mountain, when he enters the presence of Schalk.
September 17th, 2006 at 12:19 pm
Spies:
Speed 100m in 10.7s
Height 195cm
Weight 106kg
Juan:
Height 196cm
Weight 104kg
Schalk:
Weight 106kg
Height 193cm
September 17th, 2006 at 12:22 pm
Average height of about 195 cm
together with Victor(200cm, 108kg) and Bakkies(201cm, 118kg) line-outs won’t be aproblem for us in the WC.
September 17th, 2006 at 12:26 pm
44/45# Awesome bru!!!!!!!!!!
September 17th, 2006 at 12:30 pm
Kabamba Floors:
175 cm
88 kg
Luke Watson:
184 cm
98 kg
Jacques Botes:
182cm
98kg
Ernst Joubert:
188cm
100kg
Wickus van Heerden:
196cm
104kg
September 17th, 2006 at 12:31 pm
Pieterman, Skim het ‘n liniaal, ‘n skaal en ‘n stop horlosie in die hande gekry.
September 17th, 2006 at 12:31 pm
The only guy Jake will look at besides the guys that are currently in the squad is Captain courageous mr Wickus Van Heerden.
September 17th, 2006 at 12:31 pm
Only one man will make more money than Schalk and Pierre Spies over the next 5 years…Schalk’s surgeon!
But who cares, he earned it by performing a miracle. It’s only money. Schalkie’s neck is a totally different matter, cannot be replaced.
Good job doc!