Salmaan Moerat takes back the captaincy reins from Deon Fourie in what can be described as an interesting and exciting DHL Stormers team for Saturday’s Investec Champions Cup clash with the Sale Sharks in Cape Town.
Stormers forwards coach said that Moerat being appointed as leader after Fourie led the Stormers in their two Vodacom United Rugby Championship derby wins over the Emirates Lions and Hollywoodbets Sharks over the festive season because the Springbok lock is the appointed regular captain.
“We have always seen Salmaan as our club captain. Seeing he was coming back from injury in the other games we wanted him to focus on his playing but he now has a chance to focus on the captaincy again,” said Hlungwani.
“Salmaan is our captain but we are happy to share it around and take some of the load off him when it is good to do that. He can also learn a bit from Deon, who has a lot of experience as a leader. The last game (against the Sharks) won’t be the last time you see Deon leading the team.”
Our team for the Investec Champions Cup clash with Sale Sharks at DHL Stadium on Saturday.
— DHL Stormers (@THESTORMERS) January 10, 2025
📢 Team announcement https://t.co/TNvluOwguY
🎟️ Tickets https://t.co/Ib50awbUK9#STOvSAL #iamastormer #SummerSeries pic.twitter.com/IxV452q2z9
However, the composition of the team is arguably more interesting than the choice of captain, particularly given that Hlungwani is right - Moerat is the regular captain.
With the Stormers needing to win to retain an interest in the Champions Cup, some of the selections might surprise, with the exciting young Jonathan Roche, the Ikey-Tigers star centre from the last Varsity Cup season, getting his first start in the Stormers jersey.
That means that Jean-Luc du Plessis, who was good in replacing Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu at inside centre when the Springbok was injured during both games, continue s to play off the bench.
And with Ruhan Nel having experienced a slight niggle, head coach John Dobson has also opted for Wandesile Simelane as Roche’s midfield partner.
“Ruhan does have a bit of a niggle and we felt this would be a good time to bring in Wandesile who has not played a lot recently and can do with the game time,” said Hlungwani.
Also among the players getting a much needed playing opportunity is scrumhalf Stefan Ungerer, who starts ahead of Paul de Wet in the absence of the injured Herschelle Jantjies.
The Stormers will also be pleased to see their English player, Ben Loader, back in the mix on the left wing after returning from his own lengthy injury layoff, while another returnee after a fairly lengthy absence is Sti Sithole at loosehead prop, with Ali Vermaak playing this game off the bench.
“Sti has done really well for us when he has played and we wanted to bring him back earlier but we decided to give Ali another run last week,” said forwards coach Hlungwani.
JJ Kotze comes in as starting hooker for Andre-Hugo Venter, with Joseph Dweba giving an extra week to recover from the slight hamstring twinge that kept him out of the game against the Sharks just before New Year.
Ben-Jason Dixon is being rested so Dave Ewers will wear the No 7 jersey, while JD Schickerling continues as the No 5 lock even though this was supposed to be a game where Ruben van Heerden would be back in the starting line-up.
Half-century up for JD at DHL Stadium on Saturday.#STOvSHA #iamastormer #JohnDave pic.twitter.com/7OhE9ke75p
— DHL Stormers (@THESTORMERS) January 10, 2025
“JD is playing his 50th game for the Stormers and our policy is to let players celebrating landmarks start rather than play off the bench if that is possible. So Ruben will be on the bench again this week,” Hlungwani explained.
Also on the bench is Evan Roos, the Springbok No 8 who has returned after missing the first part of the season following shoulder surgery, and Hlungwani said he has looked really good in training and is ready to make an impact against a Sale Sharks pack that features a few South Africans well known to the Stormers in the form of the two Du Preez twins, Dan and Jean-Luc, as well as former Stormers stalwart Ernst van Rhyn.
“I have sneaked a peak at the Sale team that has just been announced and it confirms that we can expect a really big physical challenge,” said Hlungwani.
DHL Stormers team: Warrick Gelant, Suleiman Hartzenberg, Wandisile Simelane, Jonathan Roche, Ben Loader, Manie Libbok, Stefan Ungerer, Marcel Theunissen, Dave Ewers, Deon Fourie, JD Schickerling, Salmaan Moerat (captain), Frans Malherbe, JJ Kotze, Sti Sithole.
Replacements: Andre-Hugo Venter, Ali Vermaak, Neethling Fouche, Ruben van Heerden, Evan Roos, Paul de Villiers, Paul de Wet, Jean-Luc du Plessis.