Stormers out to strike a blow for the Springboks
THERE could not have been a juicier scene setter for Saturday's URC final than the weekend's extraordinary events in Dublin, where La
Rochelle and Leinster provided an extravaganza for the ages.
As a precursor, a Toulon team inspired by Cheslin Kolbe at fullback outclassed the Glasgow Warriors 43-19 in the EPCR Challenge Cup on Friday night.
The French invasion ramped up another level the next day when La Rochelle stormed the Leinster barricades to clinch back-to-back Champions Cup titles 27-26.
It was a result most did not predict, and when Leinster blasted out of the blocks to lead 17-0 within 15 minutes, only the diehards from the port city on the west coast of France still believed.
But what then transpired would have given the Stormers food for thought for Saturday's URC final at Cape Town Stadium (6.30pm kickoff).
The French outfit's forwards rolled up their sleeves and, little by little, turned the screw on their Leinster counterparts.
Possession dried up for the boys in blue and they would spend nearly all of the second half tackling for their lives.
The ‘Maritimes' were particularly dominant in the set scrums and the rolling mauls as they squeezed the life out of Leinster.
This is how you beat Irish teams and – Springboks, take note –
Ireland. They do not boast fearsome tight fives, so they can be taken on and dominated in that facet.
When you get that right, all of that fancy phase play drains away like a keg of Guinness on St Patrick's Day.
Munster, like Leinster, can rattle up 20 phases with machine-like precision. They manoeuvre the ball from touchline-to-touchline thanks to their dominance of the breakdown; Irish loose forward play is the best in the world.
A gap in the defence will inevitably come and the ensuing strike is deadly.
Given that the Leinster team were not far off duplicating the Ireland side, the dismantling of their forward pack has psychological ramifications for the approaching World Cup.
La Rochelle have some key French forwards, notably the magnificent Gregory Alldritt, but they do not approximate the French national team in the way Leinster do Ireland, yet they had power to burn.
Munster, like Leinster, have fine loose forwards and a tidy tight five that is to respected but not feared.
The Stormers can do a La Rochelle and strike a blow for their national team while winning the main prize for the second year in succession.
Ireland and South Africa are pool mates in France, of course. A dominant Stormers effort up front at Cape Town Stadium will not only secure them the URC crown but achieve far more for the Boks than any training camp.
After the events of Dublin, it is a touch amusing that the European season draws to a close in South Africa. Cape Town Stadium will witness the last act.
The Stormers have seen the script. They know what to do.*