Rugby: Northland bring in SA import

South African import Joggie Viljoen will make his debut for Northland in their NPC first division rugby match against Wellington in Whangarei tonight.

Viljoen, 23, a former Springboks and Western Stormers Super 12 player, arrived last weekend to fill the gap left in the Northland squad when first-choice halfback Sam Pinder broke his collarbone against Auckland two weeks ago.

Viljoen has this season played for Stellenbosch University in Cape Town and for Western Province in the Currie Cup competition.

He "just can't wait" to get on to the field tonight.

"I hope I can play a part in helping lift Northland up the points table and I know this is also a great opportunity for me to develop my own game," Viljoen said after training with the side last night.

Viljoen's rugby pedigree is proven. His father, Joggie snr, played six tests for South Africa and played at halfback for Griqualand West against the All Blacks in 1970. Also, his brother Albert is a halfback in the Eastern Province squad.

Viljoen's inclusion, at the expense of Tim Kareko, is one of several changes made to the side who lost 21-57 to Taranaki last Sunday.

Possibly the biggest surprise is the return of second five-eighths Robbie Johnson, not because of form or ability but because he wasn't expected to recover so quickly from his medial knee ligament injury.

Johnson replaces Jason Hita who moves to the right wing after Dan Parkinson was on Wednesday suspended for one match by a New Zealand Rugby Football Union judiciary for making a dangerous tackle against Taranaki.

Jared Going has been preferred to Tony Monaghan at first five-eighths and Tim Henwood has been named in the loose forwards at the expense of Allen Tubbs.

Lock Vula Maimuri, who has made an impact each time he's taken the field this season, has to be rested because of a knee cartilage problem and his place will be taken by Bryce Williams.

* An injury scare for prop Craig Dowd eased last night despite the All Blacks World Cup forward not training with the Auckland NPC rugby team.

Auckland coach Wayne Pivac was on tenterhooks for most of the day after receiving a phone call from team doctor Graham Patterson saying Dowd had hurt his ankle.

"Craig whacked his ankle against something hard, the staircase or something while coming down the stairs at home today," Pivac said.

"He took a bit of skin off his ankle bone and he's got a lump on it but it isn't serious and that is a relief.

"We didn't let him train tonight as a precaution but he's fine, he's walking all right and he will play on Saturday. It is not the ankle injury which has previously bothered him."

Dowd was one of several All Blacks who were released by the national selectors to play a final NPC game ahead of going to the World Cup on September 23. - NZPA