Bok star Gerhard Steenekamp on the comeback trail but Bulls won't rush his return

By SABC Sport
13th May 2025

Bulls boss Jake White has confirmed they are taking a cautious approach as Springbok prop Gerhard Steenekamp continues his recovery from complications following a knee injury.

Steenekamp enjoyed a breakout year in 2024, with a series of impressive performances for the Bulls leading to his Springbok debut and a series of strong performances in green and gold.

The 28-year-old hasn't featured for the Pretoria outfit since early March when he suffered a knee injury that led to some unfortunate complications following a minor procedure.

"It sounds like a cliche - it is a work in progress," White said when asked about the timeline for Steenekamp's return.

"He is back in training and he is working hard. It is now a question of how long it will take for him to be spot-on and ready to play.

"He went for a cleanout on his knee and unfortunately there were complications. One of the wounds got a bit infected, and the infection got worse and worse.

"They then had to clean the wound and over time, because it was a knee injury, you can't rush it."

White admitted that there were concerns with rushing Steenekamp back with the URC playoffs on the horizon.

"You can't just bring him back and give him 20 or 30 minutes off the bench, because it could possibly be a knockout game where we will be playing against an international front row," White added.

"As soon as he is ready and as soon as he is confident, then we can make a call."

Fortunately for the Bulls, another Springbok - Jan-Hendrik Wessels - has proved to be a more than able replacement - with his performance in their recent victory at Glasgow in particular pleasing the coach.

"I've said it many times that I rate him highly and maybe that was the game that he needed to realise that he can jump up to the next level. He was Os du Randt-like.

"I don't say that lightly because Os to me is probably the best loosehead prop South Africa has ever had and probably one of the best the world has ever seen."

With only one league fixture against the struggling Dragons at Loftus to come, the Bulls have likely sewn up second place on the URC log, ensuring home quarter and semi-finals, should they get that far.