Johannesburg - Stormers flank and hooker Deon Fourie says the young players in the squad coming through the ranks will help improve the performance of the Cape outfit in the Super Rugby competition.
The Stormers lie second from bottom on the log with just one win from their opening five games.
On Tuesday, rookie Super Rugby players Tazz Fuzani and Sikhumbuzo Notshe arrived in Brisbane as replacements for injured players, having joined fellow young guns Jurie van Vuuren and Stephan Coetzee before them.
Van Vuuren and Notshe are still eligible for the Western Province under-21 team this year, but could find themselves pressed into action in some way in the Stormers' final tour match Ä
against the Reds in Brisbane on Saturday.
“It's never great to lose players to injury, but when you see the youngsters arrive with a spring in their step it keeps you feeling positive,” said Fourie.
“I remember my first Vodacom Super Rugby tour, having flown over as a replacement myself, and you can see that these guys are determined to make their mark and challenge for a full-time place.
“For us, as the senior guys, we try to help and guide the newer guys as much as possible, but having these new guys in the mix, learning their trade at Super Rugby level, can only be a good thing for WP rugby in the future.”
Fourie looks set to return to the front row, having served the team well in the back row to date this season, but injuries have necessitated yet another enforced - and injury-related - switch to the Stormers pack.
“I haven't played at hooker since last year's 1/8Super Rugby 3/8 tour, but it's not as if I've never played there before,” he said.
“It's all about getting one's rhythm back 1/8as a hooker 3/8 and once you've got that back it's kind of like riding a bicycle - you never forget the finer details.”
Sapa