The term “slow poison” is often overused in rugby, but was the perfect description as the Stormers scored a workmanlike bonus-point 36-5 win over Zebre Parma in their Vodacom United Rugby Championship match on Saturday night.
After their disappointing loss last week to Ospreys, the Stormers bounced back with a four-try win that saw their wingers flourish in a game that was an arm wrestle from start to finish and those who operate in the wide channels were eventually able to down the game Italian side.
Considering this is the same Zebre side that beat Munster only a week ago, the Stormers defence was solid while their attack took a while to get going, but still, they had enough in the tank to come away with all five points on offer from the outing.
Incredibly the Stormers came five minutes taking Zebre to their first outing in the URC where they weren’t able to score, only to watch Simone Gesi score a late individual try to ensure the home crowd had something to cheer about.
But to be honest there wasn’t much, and while the scoreline may look like Zebre were competitive, it was the Stormers who dominated from start to finish, both in the setpieces and in broken play, and could have won the game by more.
While Zebre were doing their best impressions of a side holding on in the game, the Stormers forwards were exceptional - especially Keke Morabe and Ruben van Heerden, who both put in shifts that were easy to see.
The backline though, was the key to victory, and winger Leolin Zas’ brace came through working off the ball and adding pace at the right moment, giving coach John Dosbon a lot to smile about.
But it was a hard graft. Anyone who thinks that the scoreline suggests the Italians were an easy pushover will be mistaken. The Stormers had to work for their win, and while Zebre’s attack was almost non-existent, their defence held out the Stormers too many times.
The Stormers, to their credit, approached the game as a test match and decided to build an innings, with the impressive Jurie Mathee opening the first half hour with three unanswered penalties to give them a 9-0 lead in the first half.
The telling moment was to come on the stroke of halftime though, as both sides were probably thinking of the break more than anything. The Stormers attack drew just enough defenders to allow Zas to break through and score after the hooter, giving the visitors a significant advantage on the scoreboard at the halftime break.
The try was a masterstroke of sleight of hand. Morabe made it as if he had the ball and broke infield, allowing Paul de Wet to ghost through the gap he left as defenders followed him and once through, the halfback was able to send Zas over for a massive score.
The Stormers extended their lead when Warrick Gelant drew a defender and put Suleiman Hartzenberg over for the team’s second try.
From here it looked as if there was only going to be one result, and that belief deepened as Zas crossed again in the 72nd minute.
The talk now was if Zebre would be held scoreless, but Gesi killed that off with a brilliant individual try where he beat two defenders to give Zebre their only happiness for the night.
With the clock ticking down, it was Angelo Davids to join the wingers club with a try before the hooter, and a satisfactory outing for the Stormers, who will face defending champions Glasgow Warriors next weekend.
Scorers
Zebre Parma - try: Simone Gesi
DHL Stormers - tries: Leolin Zas (2), Suleiman Hartzenberg, Angelo Davids. Conversions: Jurie Mathee, Damian Willemse. Penalties: Mathee (4)