DEWALD Potgieter is set to see a “specialist” as Worcester Warriors look to discover the extent of the damage to his knee.

The 30-year-old forward sustained the injury in the second half of Warriors’ 55-21 victory over Hartpury earlier this month.

Potgieter was then seen shaking his head as he went into the changing room with ice strapped to his left knee.

Warriors have been hit by a series of injuries ahead of the new season which starts on Friday, September 1 and there are fears Potgieter could face a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

But head coach Carl Hogg insisted he wanted to seek further medical advice to find out how long Potgieter would be out for.

“Dewald has got a knee injury and we are just getting it seen by one or two specialists to make sure we are really clear with his diagnosis and then the plan going forward,” Hogg said.

Since arriving at Sixways in February 2016, Potgieter has been hampered by injuries as he damaged his shoulder in only his fourth game in blue and gold.

After missing the rest of the campaign, the South African then suffered a further blow ahead of the 2016/17 season as he was forced to go under the knife again to repair a tendon tear in his left thigh, ruling him out for three months.

Potgieter is on an injury list which includes back rowers David Denton (ankle), Marco Mama (knee), Dewald Potgieter (knee) and Carl Kirwan (shoulder), props Nick Schonert (finger), Ethan Waller (shoulder), Simon Kerrod (groin) and Gareth Milasinovich (hamstring), scrum-half Luke Baldwin (bicep), hooker Niall Annett (hamstring), centre Max Stelling (ankle), full-back Chris Pennell (calf) and versatile back Ryan Mills (hip and shoulder).

The Sixways side have yet to confirm why lock Will Spencer, number eight Alafoti Fa’osiliva and scrum-half Michael Dowsett did not play against Hartpury or in their 24-15 defeat at Birmingham Moseley last weekend.

Despite having so many knocks, Hogg remained in positive mood as he prepares his side for their final friendly against Munster on Thursday (7.30pm).

“It’s not (a major concern),” Hogg said.

“Sometimes you get bumps and dinks early on.

“We are very fortunate that the likes of David Denton and Nick Schonert should be back in a short period of time.

“Ethan Waller will be back within the next couple of weeks as well so there are some real positive signs.

“There are one or two long-term injuries, but that’s part and parcel of the game.”