Sikhumbuzo Notshe won’t be available for the upcoming British & Irish Lions tour after the Sharks confirmed he would be out for a ‘few months’ due to injury.

Notshe left the field at the end of the first half of the loss against the Bulls in Pretoria this past Saturday and appeared in visible pain.

After undergoing scans this week, it was confirmed that the Sharks No 8 had ruptured his patella tendon.

Notshe has already undergone surgery on the injury, but his recovery will take a ‘few months’ according to a statement released by the Sharks.

It means that Notshe is in a race against time to get himself fit to be ready to play in the matches against the British & Irish Lions.

The 27-year-old has been in good form since joining the Sharks from the Stormers in late 2019, helping them into the final of the 2020 Currie Cup.

Notshe made his Springbok debut against Wales in Washington DC in 2018 and earned a total of six caps that year, five of them as a substitute. He has also played three games for the South Africa A side against the English Saxons in 2016.

The Sharks have also confirmed that flank Dylan Richardson is currently recovering from an ankle injury and expected to return in around three weeks, while Boeta Chamberlain (concussion), Emile van Heerden (ankle), Hanru Jacobs (neck) and John-Hubert Meyer (back) are being ‘conservatively managed’ through their respective injuries.

Photo: Anton Geyser/Gallo Images