Three rounds remain but Stormers are already Shield champs

The Vodacom Bulls’ shock defeat to the Emirates Lions coupled with the result of the earlier Vodacom United Rugby Championship match played on local soil on Saturday has seen the DHL Stormers clinch the South African Shield for the second successive year.

By beating the Cell C Sharks 29-23 at DHL Stadium, the Stormers lifted themselves to 59 log points after 15 games. And the Lions beating the Bulls 29-25 at Loftus later in the evening meant that the Bulls end the latest phase of the competition ahead of a three week break with 43 points.

With 16 points separating the teams that means the Stormers are the local champions again as the Bulls can only get a maximum of 15 from their remaining three games.

High five for keeping the @Vodacom #URC SA Shield in Cape Town for another year. #iamastormer #dhldelivers pic.twitter.com/o1EqSO2uhJ

— DHL Stormers (@THESTORMERS) March 4, 2023

“It is a great feeling to have won the Shield because without wanting to be arrogant, it does mean we are the best South African team and that is an achievement,” said Stormers coach John Dobson.

The Stormers coach has reason to feel proud of his team’s efforts this season as Shield was decided in the final round of league play in the 2021/2022 season, while this season they have clinched it with a full three rounds to play.

Not only did the Stormers win over the Sharks, who came back strongly from a big deficit to nearly steal it at the end in front of a big Cape Town crowd, mean they have at least one trophy securely locked away in their cabinet for another year, it also ensured them of something that Dobson feels will be difficult to repeat in a hurry - a clean sweep of derby matches against fellow South African teams.

The Stormers beat the Sharks, the Bulls and the Lions home and away during league play, meaning they won all six of their derby matches.

Indeed, they have won 11 derbies on a trot since they lost their first ever URC derby to the Lions back in 2021.

“I think in the years to come we might realise what an achievement it is to win all your derby games, I really don’t think it is something that is going to happen often given the tight competition and competitiveness and rivalry between South African teams,” said Dobson at the post-match press conference.

While the Shield remains safely behind lock and key at the Stormers’ home ground of DHL Stadium, where the Cape side’s sequence of wins since their last home loss to the Lions in December 2021 now extends to 21, the league part of the season is not done and dusted for Dobson’s team.

RESULTS HELPED STORMERS BUT HURT SA AMBITIONS

There is still the small matter of wanting to repeat last year’s feat of finishing second, which would mean they have home ground in a semifinal should they get there.

The Stormers extended their lead over third-placed Ulster with their five log points picked up for winning and scoring four tries against the Sharks, with the gap at 10 at the time of writing.

However, Ulster still had a tricky away fixture against Cardiff to play later on Saturday night and could conceivably shrink the deficit back to five points.

“The way I look at it we have to win two of our remaining three games, with perhaps a bonus point or two thrown in somewhere, in order to finish second,” said Dobson.

The Stormers’ next game is a potentially appetising away clash with Leinster at the RDS Arena in Dublin on 25 March.

Dobson indicated he will probably go full strength to Leinster, meaning with his Springboks back from their rest, in a quest to both honour the integrity of the competition - it is a top two clash - and try for a possible win.

It is understood that Leinster will be resting their international players as the game will be played just one week after the end of the Six Nations.

Saturday’s results helped the Stormers but hurt the South African ambitions of getting two teams into the top four. The Bulls are now well behind the top four, as are the Sharks, but the Lions, with their win, are starting to make a top eight finish look realistic, albeit still only an outside chance.

They are currently 11th, two points behind eighth-placed Connacht, who are still to play this weekend.

The Bulls’ next game is against Ulster away, while the Sharks will travel to Wales to play the Scarlets.

All the South African teams finish off the league phase of the URC with two home games in April.

SA SHIELD POSITION WITH ALL TEAMS HAVING PLAYED 15 GAMES

DHL Stormers 59

Vodacom Bulls 43

Cell C Sharks 41

Emirates Lions 33