DHL Stormers coach John Dobson has given some indication of his thinking for his team’s opening game in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship with the selection of the side that will take on the HollywoodBets Sharks at Outeniqua Park in George on Friday evening.
However, while prop Neethling Fouche will lead what looks like a shadow first choice team against the Durbanites, the make-up of the other Stormers team that will play a follow up to last week’s 10-try victory against the South Western Districts Eagles in the afternoon gives an indication of the depth available to the Cape franchise in the new season.
Depth is of course crucial at this time when the South African franchises are heading into their second foray into the twin commitments of the URC and the Heineken Champions Cup, which will see a particularly tough start for the Stormers in December.
Neethling Fouche will captain a DHL Stormers XV in our final pre-season match against the Hollywoodbets Sharks in George on Friday.
— DHL Stormers (@THESTORMERS) October 5, 2023
📢 Full team announcement https://t.co/dIUAredDez#iamastormer #dhldelivers @SunbetSA pic.twitter.com/lIeEp4ogwF
The side led by Fouche, who is leading to allow the newly appointed regular captain replacement for Steven Kitshoff, lock Salmaan Moerat, more time to get back to full sharpness following a nine month lay-off due to injury, has a familiar look to it, with a few additions.Â
WELCOME RETURN FOR GELANT
For instance, Warrick Gelant, such a star in the inaugural URC season when the Stormers went all the way by winning the competition, is back at fullback after returning from a season in France, while Ben Loader, who reportedly did well last week against the Eagles, is in at wing.
Loader, also a fullback, has been recruited by the Stormers after he impressed for London Irish against them in the Champions Cup last season and much is expected of him.
Leolin Zas and Angelo Davids, both of whom have done well for the Stormers on the wing in the past, will be playing in the Eagles game, with Courtnall Skosan, the former Emirates Lions Springbok, on the opposite wing to Loader.
Jurie Mathee, impressive for Western Province towards the end of the last Currie Cup season and also a star last week, will pair up with Paul de Wet at halfback.
Bok 2019 World Cup-winning scrumhalf Herschel Jantjies leads the side that plays the Eagles, with Jean-Luc du Plessis, who captained WP well in the Currie Cup last season, as his halfback partner.
The Stormers don’t of course have the use of their Springboks in this game, they will only be back later in November, so Dobson will be eager to see how both Mathee and Du Plessis go in the absence of Bok No10 Manie Libbok.
There is no sign at this stage of Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, which may be an indication he is struggling with an early season niggle.
Herschel Jantjies will lead a DHL Stormers XV against SWD Eagles in the first match of a pre-season double-header at Outeniqua Park.
— DHL Stormers (@THESTORMERS) October 5, 2023
📢 Full team announcement https://t.co/dIUAredDez#iamastormer #dhldelivers @SunbetSA pic.twitter.com/ayzqw7gFuv
LOTS OF LOOSE-FORWARD DEPTH
The Stormers back row for the Sharks game is sans Deon Fourie, who may have an important role to play in the Bok challenge for World Cup glory over the next three weeks, but has a powerful look to it with Evan Roos and Hacjivah Dayimani playing their first warmup games of the pre-season and joined by Willie Engelbrecht.
On the subject of looseforwards, perhaps the best news for Stormers supporters is the appearance of Nama Xaba’s name in the second team that will play the Eagles.
Xaba was in great form before he was injured last year and his presence will make it easier for the Stormers to make a like for like replacement for Fourie’s specialist openside ball scavenging when the veteran Bok is not available.
Ben-Jason Dixon is at blindside flank in Jantjies’s team but could just as easily be the No7 the Stormers use when they require a tighter game and Dobson may have made a mistake in leaving him out of the starting team for last year’s URC final against Munster.
Hendre Stassen, the two metre tall newcomer, is apparently equally at home at blindside flank as he is at lock, so the Stormers have options there too.
On Friday Stassen will be playing lock in the early game and then acting as back-up in the later game.
With Kitshoff now departed for Ulster and Frans Malherbe with the Boks, the Stormers have only one member of the starting front row from last year’s final, hooker Joseph Dweba, who many feel should be in France with the Boks, playing in Friday night’s game.
Adre Smith, impressive in his first full season for the Stormers in the first year of the URC but absent for most of the 2022/2023 term because of injury, is back in the mix as lock partner for former Sharks and Exeter Chiefs lock Ruben van Heerden.
Marvin Orie has joined Kitshoff in the departure terminal and will play for a French club next season, but Moerat will shortly be back to bolster the second row resources and Dobson would not have lured Stassen to the Cape if he did not have high expectations of the former national age-group star.
DHL Stormers XV v SWD Eagles, Friday 15.30 at Outeniqua Park:
Clayton Blommetjies, Angelo Davids, Chris Hollis, Juan de Jongh, Leolin Zas, Jean-Luc du Plessis, Herschel Jantjies (captain), Marcel Theunissen, Ben-Jason Dixon, Nama Xaba, Gary Porter, Hendre Stassen, Lee-Marvin Mazibuko, Andre-Hugo Venter, Lizo Gqoboko.
Replacements:Â JJ Kotze, Sti Sithole, Leon Lyons, Dylan Sjoblom, Keenan Opperman, Jarrod Taylor, Tom Bursey, Brendan Venter, Bingo Ivanesevic.Â
DHL Stormers XV v HollywoodBets Sharks, Friday 18.00 at Outeniqua Park:
 Warrick Gelant, Courtnall Skosan, Ruhan Nel, Dan du Plessis, Ben Loader, Jurie Mathee, Paul de Wet, Evan Roos, Hacjivah Dayimani, Willie Engelbrecht, Ruben van Heerden, Adre Smith, Neethling Fouche (captain), Joseph Dweba, Kwenzo Blose.
Replacements: Scarra Ntubeni, Ali Vermaak, Lee-Marvin Mazibuko, Hendre Stassen, Jarrod Taylor, Marcel Theunissen, Stefan Ungerer, Monbomo Zwelendaba, Clayton Blommetjies.