World Cup winner RG Snyman targeting March return, say Munster

The towering lock is finally ready to put the horror run of injuries that have kept him sidelined for more than two years behind him, should everything go according to plan.

Snyman, who was a key member of the Boks' World Cup-winning squad in 2019, has managed just four games for Munster over a 24-month period after he suffered an initial cruciate knee injury in August 2020.

A freak fire pit incident the next year kept him out for even longer, and to make matters worse, Snyman re-ruptured his ACL in October of 2021, in just his second match back in action.

A setback in his rehabilitation late last year extended his time away from the game, but according to the latest update from his Irish club, Snyman finally looks set to make his return next month.

In a squad update on Monday, Munster confirmed Snyman "is increasing his training load with a view to making his return in March".

The 6ft 9ins forward was also seen actively involved in training drills in a video shared on Munster's social media channels.

Speaking last month, Munster teammate Jean Kleyn praised Snyman's positivity and resilience in dealing with his nightmare injury scenario.

"I actually can't commend the man more," Kleyn said. "He's had two years from hell in terms of not just his injuries, but family bereavements, being away from home as well during all of this.

"I think it speaks volumes of his character that he's still coming in every day, big smile on his face, always involved. He has been sitting in on meetings for the last two years and still trying to add even though he knows he's six or eight months out - obviously that's six to eight months ago.

"There's not a single fella that's not excited to have him as part of the team and back in training, back on the pitch. He's a fella that slotted in incredibly well from the start, he's an incredibly likeable guy.

"His resilience is insane. I've never met a fella who has gone through more and maintained a more positive mindset. It's astonishing. I'd say if I was in the same position, I would just have thrown the towel in.

"Nothing seems to be able to keep him down for too long. He's a phenomenal guy. We're all very much looking forward to seeing him on the pitch again. He was involved during the warm-up and a bit of skills today and you can just see that the man is just an athlete. He's a 6' 9", 135-kilo athlete, which is scary. So we're all looking forward to seeing him involved again. He's going to be a massive benefit to the team."