Bulls stand-in captain Handré Pollard is the latest casualty to their injury list after sustaining a back injury in his side’s 43-34 win over the Jaguares at Loftus on Saturday.

Team doctor Herman Rossouw confirmed that the 24-year-old will be monitored throughout the week before a final call on his availability for the match against the Lions will be made.

‘Handré Pollard picked up an issue with his back. We’ll keep a close eye on his progress during the week.’

Rossouw also revealed that lock Jason Jenkins missed the match against the Jaguares due to a calf contusion.

In other injury news, regular captain Burger Odendaal and wing Travis Ismaiel are recovering from their ailments and are set for a slow return to training with an assessment on their fitness to be made later in the week.

Prop Trevor Nyakane is still nursing a rib injury – which also ruled him out of the Boks’ Test series against England – and will not be considered for this weekend’s clash at Ellis Park.

Photo: Gordon Arons/Gallo Images