Fleck optimistic after thrashings
Coach adamant Stormers will stick to chosen path
IT is unclear whether the Stormers are on to something‚ or just in denial about their recent form‚ but coach Robbie Fleck and senior player Nizaam Carr feel they are closer to New Zealand teams than recent results indicate. The Stormers lost 57-24 to the Crusaders‚ 57-14 against the Highlanders and 41-22 to the Hurricanes in consecutive weeks on their recent tour. That was after they lost 29-16 at home against the Lions. And they now face the Blues at Newlands tomorrow. Despite leaking 155 points and 24 tries on their slog through New Zealand‚ Fleck is adamant they are not as far off as the scoreboard indicates. Carr was of a similar mind. “In the past four weeks we played against the top four teams in the tournament and three of those matches were away‚ which puts things into some perspective‚” Fleck said. “It was a tough tour‚ but our biggest disappointment was our loss to the Lions at home.
“We are the only team to beat a New Zealand team this year [the Stormers beat the Chiefs 34-26 in round six].
“On tour we turned over possession 15 times inside the opposition’s 22m area and of those‚ six long-distance tries were scored against us. Those are 14-point swings in a game and they were at critical times.
“So there is a mental issue perhaps and we lack concentration at critical times.
“We had 13 new guys on tour and playing in New Zealand for the first time‚ but as long as we learn from it, we will grow.
“I and the other coaches haven’t lost confidence and we aren’t going to veer off the path we have chosen to go down.
“But we have to take the things we learnt on the tour and come back as a better team both technically and tactically.”
Carr was equally optimistic about the three thrashings.
“We didn’t do too well on tour‚ but at times we did put them under pressure‚” he said.
Meanwhile, the injury cloud hanging over the All Blacks in the buildup to the British and Irish Lions tour of New Zealand has lifted somewhat with several frontline players, including centre Sonny Bill Williams, regaining fitness.
Williams has been cleared of concussion symptoms and was named to start for the Blues.
Williams was one of several All Blacks facing injury concerns before Steve Hansen names his squad to play the Lions in the first test next month.
Highlanders flyhalf Lima Sopoaga, who has been out of action for eight weeks with a hamstring injury, has also been cleared for Saturday’s clash with the Western Force in Perth.
Highlanders coach Tony Brown also said that All Blacks fullback Ben Smith, who missed their trip to South Africa and Western Australia with an ankle injury, was expected to be available for their match against the Waratahs on May 27.
Hansen has said he was not overly concerned about the mounting injury toll, but the status of hooker Dane Coles remained an issue.
The 30-year-old was battling knee and calf injuries before being diagnosed with a concussion, which has kept him out for almost two months.
However, both Coles and winger Nehe Milner-Skudder could join their Hurricanes teammates in South Africa next week or against the Force on June 3, coach Chris Boyd said.
All Blacks captain Kieran Read (thumb) and fellow loose forwards Liam Squire (thumb) and Jerome Kaino (knee), however, are still sidelined, with all three not expected back until the Lions arrive in New Zealand for their 10-match tour. – Reuters