The scrum was lethal and the breakdowns “exceptional”, but Stormers coach Robbie Fleck wants to see better decisions on attack when Super Rugby starts in a fortnight.
The Stormers did the hard graft and played some eye-catching rugby at times in scoring four tries to two in a 29-14 win over the Jaguares at Newlands on Saturday, their last warm-up game before they square off with the Bulls in Super Rugby on February 27 at the same venue.
The Cape side’s forwards got the better of their more illustrious opponents, with the Jaguares outfit boasting a number of Argentina Test stars such as captain and hooker Agustin Creevy, loose forwards Pablo Matera and Juan Manuel Leguizamon and tighthead props Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro and Ramiro Herrera.
But Oli Kebble, Bongi Mbonambi and Vincent Koch dominated the scrums, while Springbok lock Pieter-Steph du Toit was an imposing presence in the lineouts and as a ball-carrier.
One area that didn’t operate as smoothly were the driving mauls, although Fleck put that down to the change in the law where the ball has to be “passed back”, which makes it difficult to set the maul properly.
However, flyhalf Robert du Preez didn’t have his best day, especially with his tactical kicking as he got rid of good attacking possession by utilising the boot too often.
The Stormers looked more dangerous when fullback Dillyn Leyds came in at first receiver, and he created the opening try for wing Leolin Zas with a clever chip over the top of the Jaguares defence.
“We still need to make better decisions, certainly in our kicking game. I think we probably pushed it a little bit. There were some good attacking kicks, where we put them under pressure, but we probably pushed that too much as the game went on,” Fleck said at the post-match press conference on Saturday.
“I felt that we probably should’ve – with the amount of turnovers we created in the first half – dealt better with it. We were a little bit too panicky and got rid of the ball too quickly, probably should’ve kept it a bit more in hand. Some of those little kicks worked for us, but it was a warm-up game and we went in with the mindset of wanting to achieve certain things, and so did they.”
Fleck confirmed that Leyds was an option at No 10, but suggested that he is likely to remain part of the back-three for now, especially with Cheslin Kolbe only returning to training next week after his exploits in sevens rugby, and with the mystery surrounding Cornal Hendricks’ heart problems.
“We need him (Leyds) and Cheslin to be in that playmaking role, to be able to attack on both sides of the ruck. They’ve got to come into that first line and operate. Dillyn is a smart player and I felt that he had a good game. He is just coming back from a groin strain, so he is being managed in terms of his game time,” Fleck said.
“Dillyn is certainly a flyhalf option, and I like him coming into that first-receiver position. We will never throw that idea out of the bucket, and it’s pleasing to see our footballers starting to play a bit.”
Kurt Coleman is the other pivot in the mix and was scheduled to be on the bench for the Jaguares match, but had to withdraw “as a precaution” due to a slight calf strain. He is likely to be fit for the Bulls game, so Fleck will have to make a big call in either sticking with Du Preez or reinstating Coleman.
Fleck told Independent Media that the other injury concerns are Koch, who took a blow to the jaw on Saturday, and openside flank Rynhardt Elstadt, who has a groin strain.
Such an injury seldom heals within two weeks, so it would be a big blow to lose Elstadt’s physicality if he were to be ruled out of the Bulls clash.
@IndyCapeSport
Points-Scorers
Stormers– Tries: Leolin Zas, Dillyn Leyds, Khanyo Ngcukana, JD Schickerling. Conversions: Robert du Preez (1), Brandon Thomson (2). Penalty: Du Preez (1).
Jaguares– Tries: Santiago González Iglesias, Facundo Isa. Conversions: Martin Landajo (1), Santiago González Iglesias (1).