THE whole of Sixways winced at the horrible crunching sound as Andre Van Niekerk crashed into England wing Ben Cohen at full pelt.

The collision resulted in a dislocated shoulder for the influential hooker, who the supporters of Worcester Warriors have taken to their hearts over the last 18 months.

The big South African is such an important component in Worcester's up-and-at-them gameplan that his loss was always going to hurt their chances of capitalising on a superb start to the season.

But the pain for Van Niekerk that day was exacerbated by the knowledge that his time at Sixways was already in short supply.

His working visa expires at the end of this season and the red tape means Van Niekerk will return to South Africa where he will re-join his former club Golden Lions on an 18-month contract.

And the last thing he wanted was to leave without making a mark in his final season.

"I wanted to play for Worcester for the whole season," he said. "I wanted to leave Worcester after a whole season, knowing they had got the best out of me.

"It's been quite frustrating for me. I just want to get back into the mix and play good rugby, help them stay up and leave on a high note."

The match in which Van Niekerk was injured was a Powergen Cup tie against Northampton Saints on October 1.

Although Worcester lost all three games in that competition, their form in the Premiership had been pretty impressive up until Christmas.

Three straight defeats put an end to that and the front-row star says it is much harder to watch when the team is losing.

"In the beginning it wasn't so frustrating because the team were playing well," he said.

"But now you want to get in there and help the boys fix things up. I'm not the best on the sidelines."

Van Niekerk's rehabilitation has been going well and he is set to make a return to action within the three months that was originally predicted by the surgeon.

His progress has been hampered by a calf-strain but the 29-year-old has been strengthening his upper body and was able to resume line-out practice last week.

Despite the lengthy period out of the side, Van Niekerk is adamant that the rust has not set in.

"Hopefully, I will get a run in one of the European games," he said. "I've played so much professional rugby that I think it's in my blood. It's just a question of sharpening up."

For now, the club's top number two wants to regain his place in the team and give everyone something to remember him by before he leaves England for good.

"I would like to leave on a good footing," he said. "I believe, if I can get on the pitch, I can leave on a good footing. Then the supporters, players, coaches, everybody will feel they have got the best out of me."