Wednesday, 6th June 2007 at 8:25 pm

Scenes from a pool I: Does Ross Skeate cut his own hair?

One of the young stars of the this year’s Super 14, Stormers lock Ross Skeate missed out on the Springbok squad, but found a little compensation by way of a spot in the Emergency Emerging Springboks squad that’s currently in Romania playing in the IRB Nations Cup. Skeate starred in the opening 61-7 win over the hosts in Bucharest, but it’s the lock forward’s latest look that won him even more attention.

Skeate has already shown a certain flair for facial hair, a rich collection of beards, goatees, sideburns and Merv Hughes moustaches gracing the Stormers’ season. But the hair has remained fairly constant, a ruffled tangle of curls playing wingman to the ever-changing creative stubble of one of the country’s most talented line-out forwards.

Until now, that is. Feverpitcher’s Bucharest bureau suggests that the Mohican is definitely big in former communist East Europe, and Skeate - debonair feel for cutting edge trends as keen as ever - has evidently picked up on it. And so it’s ‘Prison Break’ meets Wild West drama in the South African squad for the giant lock - and after giving it some thought, Rossco, we reckon it works for you. Rack up those Romanian phone numbers…