'Hang in there': Munster urge RG Snyman to stay strong despite latest setback
Munster lock RG Snyman suffered an injury last August playing against Leinster
RG Snyman has been urged to hang in there with the backing of his Munster team-mates in order to get through his latest injury setback.
The South African World Cup winner suffered a setback in his rehabilitation from a serious knee injury as he neared a return to Munster colours after more than eight months on the sidelines having suffered a ruptured ACL just seven minutes into his debut last August.
Snyman, 26, had entered the last block of his rehabilitation only for an unrelated knee issue to arise and the Springbok lock will undergo a “minor procedure”, the province said on Tuesday, delaying his return to training for a number of weeks.
Defence coach and fellow South African JP Ferreira said Snyman was devastated by the setback.
“It is tough on him and he knows it is tough on him as well. I have spoken to him, he is hanging in there to the best that he can,” Ferreira said.
“I think a guy like (Springbok fly-half) Handre Pollard who came back last weekend from a similar injury hasn't made it any easier on him because I know they are good mates. That probably got to him now as well.
“But look, he has got to go through it, he has to hang in there, (we) rather do it this way than getting out on the pitch and playing another seven or nine minutes and getting injured again.
“He just has to hang in there, we are all behind him.” Munster team-mate Dave Kilcoyne had suffered a long-term injury at almost the same moment of last season’s restart game against Leinster on August 22 and shared some of his own recovery time with Snyman in the rehab room.
“It's gutting for RG,” the Ireland prop said. “He has worked incredibly hard to get to where he is. This is a setback for him but he is a resilient character.
"Even seeing him around the place, he will be all right. The lads rally around him and lift the mood because I am sure he is going to be down for a few days.
“I haven't seen him too much, I think he's up in Santry today. But as you can imagine, it's gutting for any player, coming back from injury and you get these setbacks.
“In the grand scheme of things, he has been out for so long, but this is a minor setback for him.
“He will target this as a window to get more strength and conditioning into him. He was targeting these last few games obviously, but he is just going to have to change his window of when he gets back.”
Head coach Johann van Graan was hoping to have Snyman available during the current PRO14 Rainbow Cup campaign, which continues on Friday night with a home clash against Ulster at Thomond Park. Munster have one remaining fixture on the schedule following that, another derby, this time against Connacht in Limerick the following weekend with three more rounds and a potential final still to be confirmed.
Ferreira was unsure when the lock would be available for selection.
“I am not too sure. He's got his operation in the week and then the medics will obviously assess him and we will take it from there.
“He was training and rehabilitating, he has done a couple of things with me defensively and then also some agility stuff.
“That's where we are at with him now. It's not great news, but he has got a strong will and a strong mind, so it's just something that has come along in his path. Hopefully he can get rid of it as soon as possible.”
Ulster also issued their squad update on Tuesday following last Friday’s Challenge Cup semi-final loss at Leicester Tigers, during which scrum-half John Cooney and wing Robert Baloucoune suffered concussions. Both players are following the Graduated Return to Play Protocols and have joined Jack McGrath (hip), Luke Marshall (knee), Cormac Izuchukwu (knee), Stewart Moore (hip), and David O’Connor (shoulder) on the injured list.
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