Stormers given vote of confidence
UNCHANGED: FLECK REWARDS TEAM FOR GUTSY DISPLAY
Chiefs forced to switch captains with Cane staying at home.
Stormers coach Robbie Fleck admitted yesterday it gave him great pleasure to reward his charges for their gutsy Super Rugby victory against the Bulls at Newlands last weekend.
Fleck yesterday named an unchanged line-up for the clash against the Chiefs at Newlands tomorrow, a venue where the Stormers haven’t lost in five matches this year.
“It is great to be able to pick the same side, but the challenge is for us to raise our standards even further to meet the next challenge,” said Fleck.
“We are looking forward to playing at Newlands again having put the hard work in during the week.”
While the Stormers have lost all six of their away matches, they will be looking to make it six straight wins at Newlands this season, following victories against the Jaguares, Blues, Reds, Rebels and Bulls.
Captain Siya Kolisi will lead a settled outfit which features 12 players with more than 50 Super Rugby caps in the match day squad.
Meanwhile, Chiefs coach Colin Cooper named fullback Charlie Ngatai as captain after regular skipper and All Black flank Sam Cane had to stay behind with an abdominal strain.
“We took a lot of lessons from the Jaguares defeat, particularly in our attack,” said Cooper.
“We know what to expect from the Stormers, and have been focused this week, the team travelled smoothly and have come here wanting to do really well.”
“Losing Sam Cane is always going to be a loss for any team, but alongside Sam is the leadership group led by Charlie Ngatai,” Cooper said.
“It has given an opportunity for a number of young men to step up and come into this contest in South Africa, which is exciting for them, and for us coaches to watch,” he said.
In the forwards, Cooper has brought back All Blacks in hooker Nathan Harris and lock Brodie Retallick into the starting line-up, moving Tyler Ardron from lock into the No 8 jersey.
In the backline, both Brad Weber and Anton Lienert-Brown will start in their 50th games for the Chiefs.