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.
