Johannesburg - The Stormers have received an unexpected boost ahead of their United Rugby Championship semi-final clash against Ulster at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday (kick-off 3pm).
After missing out on the quarter-final against Edinburgh last week due to a bicep injury, the in-form Damian Willemse proved his fitness for the knock-out against the Irish unit.
Against Edinburgh in the quarter-final last weekend Rikus Pretorius - who picked up an injury early in that encounter - started at inside centre, before Sacha Mngomezulu stepped in and produced a solid shift on debut.
Pretorius’ ankle prompted questions over who the Stormers would field at inside centre this week, with Juan de Jongh, Cornel Smit, Tim Swiel and Mngomezulu all mentioned as options by head coach John Dobson earlier this week.
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Willemse is the only change to the side that booked their spot in the semis with a 28-17 win against the Scottish side.
Dobson said that having Willemse back for the semifinal is a huge boost.
“Damian is another phenomenal player and credit must go to him and the medical staff for getting him ready for this game. He is a world-class performer who would make a difference to any team,” he said.
Meanwhile, Seabelo Senatla will play his 50th game for the Stormers when he runs out in the last-four clash.
The former Springbok Sevens superstar made his Stormers debut back in 2014, and while he has missed the first four games of URC season due to injury, he still managed to add his name to the top try-scorers list (third) with nine tries thus far.
Paying tribute to Senatla, Dobson said: “Seabelo is an incredibly gifted athlete who would have reached this milestone long ago if he wasn't also one of the greatest Sevens players of all time. He deserves all the plaudits that come his way, he is a true professional and a big part of our success this season.”
Dobson added that the team want to make the most of what should be a great occasion at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday and hopefully make it 10 consecutive victories in the competition to book their place in the final next week.
“We are so glad that we get to play our semifinal in front of our faithful supporters, it will be a special day and we want to enjoy all of it.
“The team is raring to go out there and play the game we love, the way we love to play it,”he said.
Stormers team: 15 Warrick Gelant 14 Seabelo Senatla 13 Ruhan Nel 12 Damian Willemse 11 Leolin Zas 10 Manie Libbok 9 Herschel Jantjies 8 Evan Roos 7 Hacjivah Dayimani 6 Deon Fourie 5 Marvin Orie 4 Salmaan Moerat 3 Frans Malherbe 2 JJ Kotze 1 Steven Kitshoff (captain).
Replacements: 16 Andre-Hugo Venter 17 Brok Harris 18 Neethling Fouche 19 Adre Smith 20 Ernst van Rhyn 21 Nama Xaba 22 Godlen Masimla 23 Sacha Mngomezulu.
IOL Sport