Ruan Pienaar is a doubt for the Springboks © Getty Images

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Players/Officials: Ruan Pienaar

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A shoulder injury has cast a cloud over Ruan Pienaar's farewell to South African rugby.

The Sharks utility injured his AC joint after coming on as a replacement in their Currie Cup win over the Cheetahs last weekend, ruling him out of action for three to six weeks according to reports.

Pienaar will join Magners League side Ulster on September 1 and while he has been granted permission to play, if selected, in the Springboks' final Tri-Nations game against Australia in Bloemfontein on September 4, his participation in their historic showdown with the All Blacks in Soweto on August 21 is in doubt.

The Springboks currently lie bottom of the table after losing their opening three fixtures, with Pienaar having been recalled to the starting line-up at scrum-half for their most recent reversal to Australia in Brisbane.

Sharks coach John Plumtree admitted to a number of injury doubts following their Cheetahs win, which left them second in the table, behind Western Province.

"Steve Meyer might have a ligament problem, Louis Ludik hyper-extended his knee and Ruan Pienaar looks to have popped his AC joint, we'll assess them further," he said. "But it doesn't look good for him, or possibly Steve."