Allister Coetzee had some mixed emotions following the Stormers’ 27-16 win over the Blues at Newlands.
While he was happy to secure their second consecutive win of the campaign, which propelled them to the top of the log, the team didn’t play their best rugby against a Blues side, who played with 14 men for just under three-quarters of the clash.
The Stormers also lost influential flank Rynhardt Elstadt for at least six months after the big bruiser suffered a broken tibia in the second half.
The Stormers couldn’t put the Blues away after the New Zealand outfit lost lock Hayden Triggs in the 24th minute after he punched captain Duane Vermeulen.
It looked promising for the Cape side when wing Dillon Leyds went over for a brilliant individual try just before halftime. But the Stormers didn’t perform in the second half in what is best described as a scrappy match.
Coetzee, though, heaped praise on the Blues for lifting their game when they went a man down.
“A team get galvanised, and they know they are under the pump if they don’t lift their game. Everyone lifts their work-rate and that makes up for that.”
But Coetzee wasn’t happy with his team’s effort at the breakdown. Their line-out was also a bit bi-polar, as a few balls were over-thrown by both hookers on the day.
The Stormers also didn’t know what to do when the Blues stood off their driving maul, and they made a hash of a few great attacking opportunities close to the Blues half.
“There are a few things I wasn’t happy with as far as our game is concerned,” Coetzee said. “It was also our first game (of the season) at Newlands so there were a lot of expectations. There are a lot of things to fix and we’ll have a good look at that.
“The breakdown was a massive issue and they really came at us. Their rush (defence) was big and those are all things we could have handled better. But it’s two wins after two (games) and we’re pleased considering this time last year it was no wins after two games.”
The Stormers line-out is normally a potent weapon, but they did become a bit predictable with their driving maul, which was countered by a Blues team who clearly did their homework after watching the Stormers against the Bulls last week.
“Our execution rate at the line-out was way less than 50percent. They also depowered our mauls (from line-outs), and it was something we did not expect,” said Coetzee.
“However, one must give them credit for the way they defended at maul time and this was a really good Blues side. In the context of the competition we know this was a massive win.”
The Stormers will have to take on the Lions next week at Ellis Park without the services of Elstadt.
However, they will welcome back a Springbok in his place, with either Nizaam Carr or Siya Kolisi replacing him. - The Star