There’s plenty of irony in the fact that the DHL Stormers’ injury crisis at loosehead coincides with Steven Kitshoff’s return to Cape Town, this time and for the first time ever for him as a member of the opposition team.
The question of whether the Stormers could survive without the flame haired Springbok veteran, who led the Stormers to their first international trophy when they won the inaugural Vodacom United Rugby Championship two seasons ago, appeared to be being answered positively. Certainly from a scrum perspective, which is an area where the Stormers have continued to excel in Kitshoff's absence.
But now there is a long list of players, including Sti Sithole and Lizo Gqoboko, plus Kwenzo Blose, Leon Lyons and Ali Vermaak, out injured and suddenly you would forgive Stormers coach John Dobson if he wished that this week his former skipper was playing for his team rather than in the colours of the visiting Irish province, Ulster.
There again, Dobson is an adventurous human possessed with an inquisitive nature, so he's probably quite happy with the intrigue and excitement that is developing around having Kitshoff in opposition this week.
While Kitshoff did spend three years at Bordeaux from 2015 to 2017, when he was playing for the French club they were in a different competition to the South African teams so he didn’t have to play against the franchise he first represented straight out of school in 2011. So Saturday’s visit by Kitshoff’s new team will be a first for the decorated Bok prop.
A first in the sense that not only will he be playing against the Stormers for the first time, he will also be pitted against his long standing Bok and erstwhile Stormers and Western Province teammate Frans Malherbe in a match situation for the first time.
14 YEARS OF RIVALRY ON THE PRACTICE FIELD
Not that it will be the first time they scrum against each other. That’s been happening on the training field on and off for the best part of a decade and a half.
“They’ve scrummed against each other twice a week for the last 14 years,” said Stormers assistant coach Labeeb Levy as he looked ahead to the personal battle fans at DHL Stadium and on television might be witness to.
We say ‘might’ because that Malherbe starts isn’t a complete given. The Bok tighthead made his return from injury in the 43-21 win over Edinburgh a few days ago, and played as a member of the starting team. But Stormers head coach John Dobson does have options when it comes to the No 3 jersey - he could just as easily start with Neethling Fouche and finish with Malherbe.
Kitshoff is an important player to Ulster, as he is to every team he plays for, so he does tend to go deep into every game he plays. So it would be a surprise if the pair didn’t clash, in which case how it turns out between two players who know each other so well is going to be intriguing.
STORMERS EXCITED
Certainly Kitshoff’s return as a member of the opposition seems to be creating extra interest in this game as much for the Stormers players themselves as it might the Stormers fans.
“I think it’s going to be interesting, because they know each other so well. They are big mates. He’s a very good scrummager, but so is Frans. We are looking forward to it. It’s actually exciting for us to see Kitsie back at home,” said Levy. “He has been here since his school days, skipping the age-group rugby to go straight to playing for the Stormers. He is a legend of Cape Town and a household name.
“We will welcome him, but when the referee blows the whistle, it will be a different story. But we are really happy to welcome him back and I’m sure there will be some tales to tell after the game.”
Stormers skipper Salmaan Moerat, Kitshoff’s effective replacement as team leader, is in accord with his team’s assistant coach.
“It’s important that we go back to the drawing board on Monday. Ulster are a quality side, Kitsie is coming home, which will be special. So we are really looking forward to that,” said the lock after the win over Edinburgh.
The Edinburgh game was Moerat’s first at DHL Stadium this season as he was out for a long time after being injured in the opening URC game against the Emirates Lions in Johannesburg last October.
“It was fantastic to be back home, hopefully we can get some consistency now over the next few weeks and fill the stadium for the big games coming up,” said Moerat.
The big games he’d be referring to are the Ulster game and the massive one that follows, the Investec Champions Cup round of 16 clash with LaRochelle the week after the Stormers play Uster. The Stormers will want to add an extra game after that by beating the European champions and clinching a home quarterfinal but even if they don’t get that far the home URC games that follow against the Ospreys and Leinster are both big matches.
Meanwhile Ulster are sweating over flyhalf Billy Burns, who had to leave the field early in the game against the Hollywoodbets Sharks in Durban because of a shoulder injury. Burns has undergone scans and will await the result of that before he establishing what his chances will be of facing the Stormers.