If the Glasgow Warriors feel a bit relieved they won’t be facing quite the same threat in the key decision making positions in the DHL Stormers backline in Friday night’s Vodacom United Rugby Championship quarterfinal it would be hard to blame them.
When Damian Willemse was ruled out of the Scotstoun game by the red card he picked up playing against Cardiff in the final league game the consoling thought from the Stormers perspective was that they’d still have a world class duo working together in the key No 10/No 12 decision making axis in the form of Manie Libbok and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu.
The latter of course boasts plenty of experience at inside centre and until this season it was where he had played most of his rugby for the Stormers. And Libbok is a world class attacking flyhalf, much like Feinberg-Mngomezulu is. Having to defend against that pair and predict what they would do would have been a daunting prospect for Glasgow.
Instead they are up against a midfield made up of the steady and dependable but less dynamic attacker (at least in comparison with Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Willemse) in Dan du Plessis and a player in Suleiman Hartzenberg who Dobson himself doesn’t seem completely sure is ready to play centre in a game of this magnitude.
COACH EXPLAINS ODD CALL
Indeed, given that Hartzenberg’s last appearance at outside centre was a patchy performance in the last game the Stormers lost (against Ulster), it does appear odd that if Dobson believes in his ability to play the position he didn’t give him time in the saddle in the much easier home games at DHL Stadium against Connacht, Benetton, the Dragons or Cardiff.
But while the selection appears an odd one despite the explanations, Dobson doesn’t do anything without reason and the midfield, like the 10/12 configuration, is something he says he thought long and hard about.
“We looked at the opposition, we looked at how we want to defend and we looked at the surface,” said the Stormers coach.
“The way Suleiman played two weeks ago, admittedly on the wing, was excellent. And it’s not really a stepping kind of surface (which counted against Wandisile Simelane). You need someone who can work back. We’ve got some tweaks to our defence where we think Suleiman will be really useful. Some plans around the aerial game. So it’s a horses for courses selection.
“But in terms of do I think he’s got enough games there under the belt? Probably not ideally but you can’t account for injuries and suspensions. We think this is the best team we can put out.”
𝗦𝘂𝗹𝗲𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘇𝗲𝗻𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗴: 50 up and 2 down (tries, that is). Vodacom Man of the Match. King of the celebrations.
— vodacomrugby (@VodacomRugga) May 23, 2025
𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖 𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙛𝙩. 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙬.@Vodacom #URC | DHL @THESTORMERS pic.twitter.com/5DuvHz9Vi9
BENCHING MANIE WAS ABOUT RETAINING RHYTHM
The suspension of course was Willemse, which changed the dynamic considerably, but then Feinberg-Mngomezulu is very much a Willemse clone as an inside centre, with similar attributes, and Libbok was excellent in his return from injury against Cardiff. So why not play them together?
“That did take a lot of talking through, and discussion around what we think we need for this game,” said Dobson.
“We did consider playing Manie and Sacha together. Sacha and Damian are so alike, so there was a very strong argument for starting them both. But then we had to consider other things, and in the end we had to consider that this would be less disruptive to the team. Sacha has been doing well at flyhalf and we have had a nice rhythm to our game.
“We still have Sacha and Manie, with Manie on the bench. Manie can come on later in the game and then Sacha can go where he is needed,” he added.
The Stormers have locked in their play-makers for the #VURC quarter-final against Glasgow tomorrow night 💫 pic.twitter.com/LSUKbnHPhM
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) May 29, 2025
STRONG BENCH COULD SWING IT FOR VISITORS
The bench, where Dobson has gone for a six/two ‘bomb squad’ split between forwards and backs is one area where the Stormers look significantly stronger than a Glasgow team ravaged by injuries to key players and it could just prove a match winner against a host team renowned for its fitness and the tempo it brings to the game.
The front row reserves Joseph Dweba, Vernon Matongo and Sazi Sandi have all been in good form in recent weeks while JD Schickerling is a big digit and outstanding player as one of two second row reserves alongside Connor Evans, while Libbok’s ability to also play fullback coupled with Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s utility value means the 6/2 split is not that risky.
“This season the 6/2 split has probably worked more than it has failed,” said Dobson.
“The idea is that if it is a tight game in the last quarter we have two Springboks on the bench in the backs (Herschel Jantjies is the scrumhalf reserve). We’ve got Manie who can cover both 10 and 15 and Sacha who can pretty much cover the whole backline.
“The 4G surface does require a lot of running. So the pack is more likely to tire. If we didn’t have that multi-skilled cover with the Suleimans and the Sachas and Manies I would agree that the 5.3 would be a less risky option.”
Our team for the @Vodacom #URC quarter-final at Scotstoun in Glasgow.
— DHL Stormers (@THESTORMERS) May 29, 2025
📢 Full team announcement https://t.co/CJSyRNjgrb#GLAvSTO #iamastormer pic.twitter.com/AR0yayz92o