Will NZ skills be enough to spark Stormers?

Stormers coach Robbie Fleck speaks to a group of forwards during training. Photo: Chris Ricco/BackpagePix

Stormers coach Robbie Fleck speaks to a group of forwards during training. Photo: Chris Ricco/BackpagePix

Published Jan 25, 2017

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Cape Town - The “excitement” among Stormers supporters comes around at just about this part of the year. There would normally be a few new signings, talk about embracing a more attacking style of play and having “learned lessons” from the previous season’s failures in Super Rugby.

And so it has played out in 2017, almost on point. But the difference this time around is that none of the new signings are renowned players, who you know will make a difference, while we all know by now that wanting to play a more attacking game and actually doing it has been beyond the Stormers for many years.

Having a New Zealander in Paul Feeney among the coaches is something refreshing. At least there is a new voice among the management, and we would like to think that a Kiwi coach knows all about skills and attack.

Feeney has made all the right noises so far, saying “You can’t just be a robot, you’ve got to think. On attack, you’ve got to play what you see in front of you”. We can only judge the Stormers’ progress in that regard once they start playing, and their first warm-up is against the Cheetahs in Harare on Saturday.

But the lessons head coach Robbie Fleck has mentioned from the 60-21 playoff humiliation against the Chiefs at Newlands last July don’t appear to have been solved. In fact, things look pretty bleak in areas such as physicality and “getting that hard edge back into our game”.

Fleck feels that his team need to “use our physicality a little bit smarter”, while the Stormers have also spent plenty of time on defence. But what about the set-pieces? The scrum has immediately been weakened by the absence of Steven Kitshoff, who is in France. 

None of the candidates at loosehead engender such confidence as Kitshoff – JC Janse van Rensburg, Oli Kebble and Alistair Vermaak are hard workers, but are not destructive scrummagers.

At tighthead, Frans Malherbe is making his way back from a long-term injury, Wilco Louw is still untested at Super Rugby level, and Vincent Koch has gone to Saracens in England.

The situation at hooker is even more alarming. Springbok Bongi Mbonambi is there, but the injured Scarra Ntubeni is set to miss the first half of the season at least, Mike Willemse is at the Southern Kings, and rookie Ramone Samuels has joined from the Lions.

With Rynhardt Elstadt injury prone, the loose trio also lacks a big ball-carrier, with Siya Kolisi, Nizaam Carr and Sikhumbuzo Notshe all similar players. Apart from Eben Etzebeth and Pieter-Steph du Toit, there aren’t any other really physical forwards around.

And as much as they have had skills drilled into them, do the Stormers have the backs to spark the attack? The biggest shortcoming is at scrumhalf. Jano Vermaak is a top-class No 9, but has been injured for most of his time in Cape Town.

We all know that Dewaldt Duvenage is a strong defender and has a good boot, but is limited elsewhere. Godlen Masimla has had countless concussions, and Justin Phillips is the youngster coming through. Just who is going to give direction to the Stormers attack?

There are a number of exciting flyhalf options, with the likes of Robert du Preez, Jean-Luc du Plessis and Kurt Coleman all fit again, but all those players have been inconsistent during their careers and been affected by serious injuries.

The Cape side’s strongest component is their midfield and back-three, especially with Seabelo Senatla moving from the Blitzboks and Dillyn Leyds having recovered from his knee injury. But the Stormers can’t just rely on Feeney’s skills training alone.

The forwards need to be imposing themselves on the opposition and win enough possession, and the halfbacks need to spearhead the attack. With the personnel available, that might not happen…

And the gruelling schedule, in particular the New Zealand tour, hasn’t even been mentioned.

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Independent Media

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