Stormers sweat over Duane
THE Stormers’ final roundrobin match against the Sharks was always going to be a bit of a sideshow ahead of Saturday’s Super Rugby playoff against the Brumbies.
The result wasn’t of any consequence after the Waratahs managed to beat the Reds to clinch second place on the overall standings. In fact, it was a bit of a nothing game, except for the nice send-off three of the Sharks’ departing stalwarts, brothers Jannie and Bismarck du Plessis and Willem Alberts, got after the match.
Other than that, nobody is going to remember the Sharks beating the Stormers 34-12, or that the quality of the rugby on show was absolutely appalling.
Yes, the Stormers’ “second stringers” wanted to cause a stir in Durban, and this match meant a lot to them. But, while they were getting ready for the trip to Kings Park, the “big guns” were already preparing for the playoffs after clinching the South African Conference with a week to spare.
The “A-Team” were already getting themselves ready to face either the Brumbies or the Chiefs in front of their adoring supporters.
As it turns out, it will be the team from the Australian capital who will rock up at Newlands for the biggest Super Rugby match at this grand old stadium since the Stormers lost in the semi-finals against the Sharks in 2012.
The Stormers went into that match without the influential Duane Vermeulen, and the big No 8’s presence was sorely missed on that sunny afternoon.
Vermeulen has struggled with a neck injury over the last 10 days, and while the initial prognosis by the neurosurgeon was good, there is still a possibility that the Springbok loose forward could miss Saturday’s match.
Coach Allister Coetzee revealed after the Sharks match that Vermeulen will seek a second and maybe even a third opinion before a call will be made. They are hoping for some clarity today.
“It’s always better to get a second and a third opinion. I last saw him on Thursday and he has probably seen those guys. We will touch base on Monday again,” Coetzee said.
Hooker Scarra Ntubeni, who is struggling with a calf injury, will also be assessed this week after hobbling off against the Cheetahs three weekends ago.
The initial prognosis was that he would be out of action for about 10 days. So if everything went according to plan he should be ready to take the field against the Brumbies.
But Coetzee is happy that they have sufficient depth to deal with these two injuries, as Vermeulen and Ntubeni are the only concerns at the moment.
The Stormers are certainly in a much better place, as far their personnel is concerned, to cope with the absence of their captain, because in 2012, hooker Deon Fourie was forced to play at the back of scrum.
Nizaam Carr, who led the Stormers on Saturday, should comfortably slot in at No 8 if Vermeulen doesn’t make it, while Michael Willemse is more than capable to assist Bongi Mbonambi at hooker if Ntubeni doesn’t either.
“We will be selecting our best possible side. Not a hooker playing at No 8. We will have players ready,” Coetzee said.
“Over the last couple of years we started off with a bang, and then in the business end we were hit by injuries. This year we rotated players and built capacity. Now we are in the playoffs and we can select out best players.
“A player like Mike Willemse showed, with the doubt surrounding Scarra Ntubeni’s fitness, that he can play at this level. He scrummed well and his lineout work was also commendable.”
Coetzeeis very happy that he could rest his players for what is sure to be a very physical and high-paced encounter against the Brumbies, who these days place a lot of emphasis on set- piece domination following Jake White’s stint in Canberra.
The Stormers beat the Brumbies 25-24 last month at Newlands. The Cape side dominated the Australians at scrum time, but the Australians were by far the better team on the day, and were the width of the upright away from recording a famous victory.
“They are a good team. We will have to prepare well, and make sure that our maul defence is good for that match,” Coetzee said.
“It was very important to rest this guys. We have done it before in Currie Cup. Although it’s a shorter competition, it’s continuous and you have to create your own sort of break to get the players more energetic, as well as giving them a mental and a physical break.
“Players like Damian de Allende, Dillyn Leyds, Cheslin Kolbe have played in every match and have been involved in every training session. It was a much-needed break for them. I don’t think it (the defeat against the Sharks) will influence our continuity, but the break was a great opportunity for the players to re-focus.”