The Highlanders will have to do without captain Jimmy Cowan
when they play the Bulls in Pretoria this weekend.
Cowan is returning to New Zealand from South Africa after he
dislocated a finger on his right hand in the match against
the Stormers on Sunday morning (NZ time).
He is being replaced by his younger brother, Scott.
Cowan was attempting to place the ball against the post to
score a try early in the second half when he suffered the
injury at Newlands Stadium.
There were fears Cowan had broken his finger but an X-ray
immediately after he left the ground showed he had not broken
the bone.
Highlanders management has obviously decided it is best for
Cowan, with his chances of playing the games against the
Bulls slim at best, to come home and rest the injury.
He should be back to play the Sharks at Carisbrook on March
20.
It was not a great way for Cowan to chalk up his 28th
birthday on the day of the match, failing to score the try as
the Highlanders limped to a 33-0 loss.
Scott Cowan (26), a former Dunedin club player who now plays
for Southland, was called up to the Highlanders last season
when his brother suffered a shoulder injury and got a few
minutes against the Waratahs in Sydney.
Prop Jamie Mackintosh will captain the side against the
Bulls, with Sean Romans to wear the No 9 jersey.
Romans' inclusion may not be the only change in the starting
side, as coach Glenn Moore reacts to the heavy loss to the
Stormers.
Flanker Tim Boys may get a run, while backs Jayden Hayward
and Mathew Berquist may come back into the side.
The Highlanders are staying in Cape Town for the week, before
flying up to Pretoria the day before the game against the
table-topping Bulls.
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