The Free State Cheetahs received a timely boost with the news that the Strauss cousins, Adriaan and Richardt, could both be fit to face the Blue Bulls in the Currie Cup Final next Saturday.

The Springbok hooker, Adriaan Strauss, has made a remarkable recovery after requiring surgery to a fractured thumb - an injury he suffered when the Cheetahs lost to the Bulls in a league match in Pretoria last month.

Even though Adriaan Strauss still faces a fitness test this week, the screws inserted into the thumb has reduced the expected recovery period from eight to just four weeks.

However, coach Naka Drotské has not yet decided if Strauss will reclaim the captaincy from lock Nico Breedt.

Strauss was handed the captaincy following a host of injuries which ruled players like Juan Smit, Hendro Scholtz and Meyer Bosman out. Strauss took the Cheetahs on a six-match winning streak, before injury ruled him out.

Breedt took over and not only got the Cheetahs into the play-offs, but also won against the Sharks in Durban last Saturday.

Both Strauss and Breedt are inspirational figures in the Cheetahs team.

The other Strauss cousin, also a hooker, Richardt, took a smack in the eye during a high tackle from, Sharks lock Johann Muller last Saturday.

He played on bravely for a while, but later the swelling forced him to leave the field.

Although there is a hairline fracture underneath the right eye, there is no serious structural damage and Strauss will most likely join his cousin in the Final at Loftus Versfeld next Saturday.

Ashley Johnson, who has been groomed as a hooker by the Cheetahs, but moved back to No.8 after a series of loose forward injuries, did an admirable job as a stand-in hooker against the Cheetahs.

Johnson may well be one of the bolters in the Bok team for the year-end tour, where he could feature at No.8 in the mid-week games.

365

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