The Chiefs struggling season took another turn towards the negative after their loss to the Stormers with the news that shoulder injuries to Mike Delany and Richard Kahui have put them in doubt.
The Chiefs lost to the Stormers on the weekend which has them sitting in 10th place.
Although they still stand a mathematical chance of reaching successive play offs, the fifth defeat in nine rounds all but ended last season's finalists hopes.
After the Cheetahs they face the eight placed Hurricanes in Wellington. Then the fifth placed Waratahs in Hamilton and the seventh Blues in Auckland with all three opponents still in the semifinals mix at this stage.
Kahui and Delany are facing a battle to be fit for this Friday's clash with the Cheetahs in which the Chiefs can gain some respectability for their campaign which started off with enormous positivity but lost it's way when they returned to New Zealand.
The duo will be assessed through the week.
All Blacks wing Sitiveni Sivivatu (shoulder), prop James McGougan (back), lock Kevin O'Neill (Achilles) and prop Sona Taumalolo (shoulder) are others who are trying to regain fitness for the final stages of the tournament.
The Chiefs had already lost All Blacks Mils Muliaina and Aled de Malmanche for the season with broken thumbs.
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