Vodacom Bulls wing Travis Ismaiel is set to miss a big chunk of the Vodacom Super Rugby season after struggling to recover from a shoulder injury.

The one-cap Springbok was earlier reported to have fully recovered from surgery to his shoulder and scheduled to be fit for the start of the season.

However, Bulls doctor Herman Rossouw said Ismaiel has not recovered as expected and would undergo a revision of his surgery, which is expected to keep him out for at least three months.

There was further bad news, as hooker Jaco Visagie, who saw a specialist after returning from his loan to Gloucester with an ankle injury, also had to undergo surgery, keeping him on the sidelines for eight weeks.

The injury could result in a starting role for veteran Schalk Brits, with Edgar Marutlulle also injured for the foreseeable future, leaving 21-year-old Johan Grobbelaar as the only other senior hooker in the training squad.

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