Cape Town - The Stormers have been struck by a number of withdrawals for their two-match Super Rugby tour to Australia, which will see Schalk Burger take over as captain.
Regular captain Juan de Jongh was expected to miss out due to his involvement with the Springbok Sevens team for the Rio Olympics, along with fullback Cheslin Kolbe.
But now co-captain Frans Malherbe has been ruled out with a neck injury sustained on Springbok duty during the three-Test series against Ireland that will keep him sidelined for two to three weeks.
That has forced coach Robbie Fleck to turn to veteran loose forward Burger, who himself is returning to action from a foot/ankle injury that saw him sit out of the Ireland Tests.
But while Burger has all the experience to take over as skipper, there is a dilemma at fullback due to Kolbe’s absence. Fleck has left out Robert du Preez, who returned from his long-term knee injury earlier this month for Western Province and could’ve come in at No 15. He was the first-choice flyhalf at the beginning of the season, but has played at fullback before and has the ideal skill-set for the position.
But it seems as if Fleck will opt for Jaco Taute in the last line of defence for Saturday’s tour opener against the Rebels in Melbourne (11.45am kickoff). Taute also came back from a number of injuries a few weeks ago and has operated at inside centre for WP in the Currie Cup qualifying round.
What makes the omission of Du Preez even more puzzling is the selection of journeyman Scott van Breda as the third flyhalf in the 27-man touring squad. Van Breda can also cover fullback, but Du Preez has proven his fitness for WP over the last few weeks and could become a future star for the Stormers at No 10 or 15. Van Breda’s main strength is his goal-kicking, but he doesn’t offer much else and his selection means that there are three flyhalves in the group - Jean-Luc du Plessis, Brandon Thomson and Van Breda.
WP fullback Grant Hermanus is a youngster in his first season of top-flight rugby, but was also ignored by Fleck despite playing all season long in the Currie Cup.
On the positive front, Fleck welcomed back lock Jean Kleyn and tighthead Wilco Louw from injury, while all the other Boks apart from Malherbe who played against Ireland will make the trip to Australia - Bongi Mbonambi, Eben Etzebeth, Pieter-Steph du Toit and Siya Kolisi - as well as squad members Sikhumbuzo Notshe, Scarra Ntubeni and Nic Groom.
Another new Test cap is utility back Huw Jones, who made his debut for Scotland against Japan at the weekend.
The Stormers leave Cape Town on Tuesday only and will hope that their Boks don’t have too much of a hangover from the dramatic 19-13 win over Ireland in Port Elizabeth at the weekend.
The Cape side must win their last three league matches - against the Rebels and Force away, and Southern Kings at home - to ensure top spot in Africa Conference 1 ahead of the Bulls and a home quarter-final at Newlands.
“With our international players only joining us this week, we have had to travel later than we usually would, but the benefit of that is that we are travelling together as a united group,” Fleck said in a statement on Monday.
“We have to gain some momentum in this final phase of the competition to keep our destiny in our own hands. Having a tour this late in the season was always going to be a challenge, but traditionally we are good tourists and a big part of that success has been our ability to get tight as a group and to make the most of our time away.
“We are looking at this tour as a great opportunity to pull together, tick a lot of boxes both on and off the pitch and build the momentum we are looking for.”
Stormers Touring Squad
Schalk Burger (captain), Nizaam Carr, Damian de Allende, Daniel du Plessis, Jean-Luc du Plessis, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Eben Etzebeth, Rynhardt Elstadt, Nic Groom, Huw Jones, Oli Kebble, Jean Kleyn, Vincent Koch, Siya Kolisi, Wilco Louw, Bongi Mbonambi, Sikhumbuzo Notshe, Scarra Ntubeni, JD Schickerling, Louis Schreuder, JP Smith, Jaco Taute, Brandon Thomson, Scott van Breda, Kobus van Wyk, Alistair Vermaak, Leolin Zas.