Stormers face scrap for survival
14 May 2012
JON CARDINELLI says the injury situation can only worsen for the Stormers in the next three weeks and fans should brace themselves for at least one loss.
Coach Allister Coetzee’s worst fear was realised on Saturday when No 8 Nizaam Carr hobbled off the field. The log may not reflect the fact, but Carr’s knee injury has plunged the Cape franchise even deeper into crisis.
The Stormers will be without Schalk Burger and Nick Koster until the end of June, and may have to make do without Duane Vermeulen for the rest of their campaign. It was hoped that they could survive this four-game stretch without conceding further injuries, and that Jebb Sinclair would play a supporting role to the incumbent loose trio of Siya Kolisi, Rynhardt Elstadt and Carr.
But with Carr joining a lengthy list of casualties, Sinclair will be thrust into the starting line-up. It means that Coetzee will also have to promote a loose forward from the Western Province Vodacom Cup team, as apparently there are no other experienced players available.
When asked whether he would seek further help from abroad, a despondent Coetzee replied, ‘Who? Do you have any names for me?’
It was a statement that explained the recruitment of Sinclair. The Stormers had failed to acquire the services of Springbok flank Francois Louw and presumably failed to acquire other high-profile players with unbreakable club commitments.
Outside of Sinclair, a Canadian who plays his club rugby for London Irish, there aren’t many players with a gap at this point of the season.
Saracens enjoy a good relationship with the Stormers, and it was suggested after their recent exit from the Premiership semi-finals that some of those players may be available. Saracens hooker Schalk Brits did after all play loose forward for the Cape side when they were similarly afflicted last year.
But Coetzee’s response didn’t inspire any confidence of a Saracens forward flying to the Stormers’ aid. It is likely that the Stormers will have to make do with what they have until Burger and Koster return at the end of next month.
It’s a massive blow, and you’d have to say they’d do well to stay in contention for a home semi-final. They may have lost only one game to date, but because they haven’t scored four-try bonus points their position in the top six is far from secure.
They need to keep winning to stay in contention for that crucial home play-off. It’s going to be a tough ask with a depleted pack, even more so considering the demands of looming forward-oriented contests against the Waratahs, Sharks and Bulls.
It will be nothing short of amazing if they manage to win their next three matches, two of which are away from home. It will be incredible if they can come through these inevitably brutal physical clashes without losing more players to injury.
They will also hope that the Highlanders and Chiefs do them a favour by beating the Bulls and thus preventing the Pretoria side from extending its lead at the top of the South African conference.
Two defeats for the Bulls will allow the Cape team to stay in touch despite their own (and here I say probable given their depleted stocks) losses in the next three rounds.
The Stormers have a slightly easier run-in to the play-offs than the Bulls with matches against the Lions (home), Rebels (home) and Cheetahs (away) scheduled for after the June Tests. The Bulls will host the Cheetahs and Lions, but face a difficult trip to Durban.
The Stormers will be boosted by the returns of Burger and Koster for those matches, but they won’t want to leave themselves with too much to do in terms of securing a home semi-final. They need to survive the next three matches without conceding further injuries, and they also need to pick up some crucial log points.
A win against an inconsistent Waratahs side this weekend is non-negotiable, as away victories in Durban and Pretoria for a depleted Stormers side seem far less likely.
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475 Comments
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14 May 2012, 10:46 am
@Transformation(Transformation)-143: I guess that makes sense. But maybe they looking beyond that, as he has two Currie Cup wins and a couple of other semi final and finals. But i understand that Currie Cup and Super Rugby are two completely different competitions. So my guess is, they have held on to Plum up to now due to his success in the Currie Cup. But you are right, maybe his Super Rugby expectations have not been met. But like i said. The Sharks are still in the running this season, and you never know, maybe by some miracle the Sharks can reach the Final. It will certainly be a massive surprise and in some way a great comeback from behind as they have been floating around the bottom half of the log for most of the season.
14 May 2012, 10:50 am
@Couchcoach(GI POT)-144: Im glad you agree, there are so many still wanting Steyn to be there, just because he has a reliable boot. Talking about wingers. Mvovo is a no brainer if he is left out of the starting line up, there is something wrong. But ya. Lambie is on fire and one of the form flyhalfs, not just in SA but in the whole super rugby comp.
14 May 2012, 10:54 am
@Sasuke(Sasuke)-149:
indeed…
here’s an intro to quinn from last year… from the wp site…
At the age of just 20, the DHL WP Lock is shaping up to be one of the games new enforcers. Quinn Roux tells us more about himself.
Where are you from originally?
I’m originally from Pretoria, born and bred there. I came down to the Mother City about 3 years ago. I moved down to the WP Institute and started my career from there.
When did you first start playing rugby?
I started playing in primary school (laughs) but that wasn’t serious contact. I then went to Affies, there my rugby career started and the game became serious.
How’s the physicality and aggression in Absa Currie Cup compared to other levels you have played?
It’s a lot higher, the pace is much faster and the level of intensity is greater. There are a lot of us youngsters being given opportunities at the moment. It is clearly a focus at WP. The coaches and senior players are very supportive and always there to offer us help. We all want to grab the opportunities and are hungry to achieve, the standard of play for the Absa Currie Cup isn’t easy and we all know the responsibility that comes with it.
How do you feel everytime you represent WP?
All my life I have been a WP fan, always dreamt of playing for them one day. So when I put on that jersey, I get a rush of excitement and anxiety, I know that this is the team I want to represent, this is the team that I hold dear to my heart.
You have represented WP in u19, u21 and now in Absa Currie Cup – how do you find the coaching structures as you move up?
The coaching structures are great. It is very well organised, and professionally run. I reckon we have one of the best set-up’s in the world. What is great is that at any given time of the day, all the coaches are there to assist you, they are very approachable and they help you with any and every aspect of your game. The communication lines between players and coaches are open, and that is vital. There are tough times, but like I said we have a good set-up at the HPC – that helps.
The Currie Cup team for this year is fairly young, are you guys handling the pressure?
What is important is that we as youngsters, as a group, we feeling great. We all support each other 100% both on and off the field. We have alot of senior guys around us who help us tremendously, to deal with the pressures of the game. Guys like, Tiaan, Conrad, Deon and Dewaldt – they always giving us advice and showing us the ropes, that makes it easy for us, they make us feel welcome. The vibe within our squad at the moment is awesome, we keep growing as a team and whilst I want to do well as a player, what is most important is my contribution that I can offer towards the team and its future, whilst I gain experience from all around me. What’s also awesome to see is that whilst a number of the U21 players are getting experience at senior level, that U21 team continues to achieve. That’s testament to the structures in place Province and the opportunities been granted.
Quinn has represented the following age groups for DHL WP:
Craven week (Northern Transvaal) 2008
WP institute 2009
DHL WP u19 2009 (6)
DHL u21 2010-2011 (17)
DHL WP Vodacom Cup 2011 (9)
DHL WP Absa Currie Cup (1) 2011
14 May 2012, 10:56 am
The Sharks are such slow starters to the S15 but boy when they eventually kick into gear they become a very dangerous team. I see the Sharks taking some serious scalps from this point onwards!!
14 May 2012, 10:56 am
@ufo(ufo)-153:
No wonder we let him go.
His heart just isn’t in the right place.
14 May 2012, 10:56 am
@race of tan(race of tan)-154:
The SA conference will have a tight finish. It is a 3 way race now.
14 May 2012, 10:57 am
@Transformation(Transformation)-125: Oh if ONLY!!!!!! Wellcome Mallet all is forgiven!
14 May 2012, 10:58 am
@ufo(ufo)-123: I have never really rated Schreuder – Groom is way better than Schreuder and is a better 9 as Duvenhage as well. Groom has the right attitude for a 9 as well – not afraid to take on the bigger forwards. I can’t understand that AC would keep Groom in the VC team if he is clearly a better player: maybe Groom had a scrap with coaches…..I am only guessing.@stormersboy(stormersboy)-127: The Stormers can’t play Steenkamp at 8 – I think he is much too slow. Something I don’t like about Steenkamp is that when he is calling the lineouts, once Bekker leaves the field, he hardly ever calls a ball to Etzebeth. Etzebeth is a safe bet, but whenever Steenkamp gets onto the park, his first call is to himself.
The no 8 is a dilemma – definitely not Lobberts and I am not too sure about Eben – he has just established himself as one of the best 4 locks in SA. To move him to 8 will be a bit of a waste. Having said, I read recently that Hennie Bekker “discovered” him. Hennie had to give a hand at Tygerberg High’s rugby practice – he spotted this huge schoolboy (at grade 10 or 11 at the time) on the B-field playing in the backline. He called him and enquired about his name etc. Hennie invited him to the High Performance Centre but Eben had to promise Hennie to convert to lock, which he did….and the rest is history. So maybe he can fit in at 8 as a temporary measure, in which case Roux can step up to 4.
14 May 2012, 10:58 am
@Tacitus(Deucalion)-155:
hehehe
it’s in exactly the right place…!!
14 May 2012, 10:59 am
@race of tan(race of tan)-154: Agreed. I think and i hope they are peaking at the right time. Ok, they smashed the Force, but come on, the Force aren’t really a great side. But maybe the Sharks needed a game like that to spark their season in to top gear.
14 May 2012, 11:01 am
Tacitus – Problem now is i see the Stormers are beginning to fade again as they did last year. No bonus point, no killer instinct in the backline, although they have the players!
14 May 2012, 11:02 am
The Stormers are very, very luck that Etzebeth hasn’t been cited for that full-nelson throat choke and throw he performed on Adriaan Strauss in the first half.
14 May 2012, 11:03 am
Sharkie10 – Well the Sharks do have the players to mount a last minute charge to the play offs!! Lambie is growing in leaps and bounds, what a solid young player he is!
14 May 2012, 11:03 am
@seamus(seamus)-162: Wasn’t that Elstadt?
14 May 2012, 11:03 am
with eben at 20 and quinn at 21… we have two VERY good locks for the future…
andries is 28… and suffering from a dodgy lower back…
nothing wrong with playing two ‘enforcers’ when andries is unable to play…
14 May 2012, 11:04 am
@seamus(seamus)-162:
You not confusing Etseth with Elstadt?
14 May 2012, 11:04 am
@>^..^< katman(katman)-164:
Snap
14 May 2012, 11:04 am
@seamus(seamus)-162:
@>^..^< katman(katman)-164:
wasn’t that andries strauss too…???
14 May 2012, 11:05 am
@ufo(ufo)-165:
Great young talent coming through.
14 May 2012, 11:05 am
@CharlesM(CharlesM)-158: Must of been discovered at grade 10 because in Grade 12 he was a rampaging force for a very successful Tygerberg High team that year. They claimed a few huge scalps that year.
Must of taken him two years to convert.
14 May 2012, 11:06 am
@ufo(ufo)-168: It was Andries Strauss
14 May 2012, 11:07 am
@ufo(ufo)-168: Yes indeed. This is how dodgy rumours start.
14 May 2012, 11:07 am
@Transformation(Transformation)-146: Transie its all mind games, if you remember Van Zyl said the exact same thing when John Smit was returning to SA. Sources close to the Sharks and to Steyn all say that the young man is indeed Durban bound. Although the need for all this cloack and dagger is confusing
14 May 2012, 11:08 am
@CharlesM(CharlesM)-171:
Was too. I thought he was talking about Andries but just seen he said Adrian.
14 May 2012, 11:09 am
@Sasuke(Sasuke)-170: I know they had a great team that year. Fortunately Eben has the right “background” – being an Etzebeth: good to see he has controlled aggression though. Coenie Oosthuizen tried to get under his skin but Etzebeth kept him in a tight grip without doing anything silly
14 May 2012, 11:11 am
Wat van Luke Watson?
14 May 2012, 11:12 am
Jebb will need to start at 8 this weekend with Don Armand coming onto the bench.
I hope Elstadt does not get suspended for his foul play. Yellow card adequate punishment correct?
14 May 2012, 11:14 am
DG – Not a bad idea at all to bring in Luke Watson. He plays very well at the Stormers!!
14 May 2012, 11:14 am
@CharlesM(CharlesM)-175: Yes his uncles would be so proud…..or maybe not…..they would have wanted him to bliksem a few okes like they did in the past.
14 May 2012, 11:16 am
@race of tan(race of tan)-163: He is and i was really worried when he went down on saterday, i know he was taken off in the second half, and have heard no news on the extent of his injurie, but i am sure Plum took him off for precautionary reasons more than anything else. But he is key to the Sharks success.
14 May 2012, 11:19 am
Any boffin can answer a Q from another thread?
How many yellows (on&off field) during the season before a suspension is imposed & is there a soccer style clean slate that kicks in (before the play-offs)
14 May 2012, 11:19 am
Meyer also needs to take a good look at Marcel Coetzee, this guy is going to be huge in the near future. He is already quite brilliant.
14 May 2012, 11:20 am
@Sharkie10(Sharkie10)-180: The Tribune confirmed that he was taken off as a precautionary measure and is expected to play this week
14 May 2012, 11:20 am
@Sasuke(Sasuke)-179:
i know you’re joking…
but his family are gonna be very proud of eben for many years to come…
and wp and bok supporters…
definitely got the X factor this young man…
14 May 2012, 11:22 am
@ufo(ufo)-168: the guy was gesuip already by then
14 May 2012, 11:24 am
@Transformation(Transformation)-185:
reckon so…
14 May 2012, 11:26 am
@viewer(viewer)-181: Should be 3 or 4 but i have no idea.
14 May 2012, 11:27 am
@ufo(ufo)-184: I have told this a long time ago on this site: way back his late uncle Skattie and his buddies used to stand at Newlands (close to the bar etc.). Coming out of the bar they often tried to pck a fight. Once this happened: Skattie asked a guy “What are you looking at”; Reply: “No, I am not looking at you”; Skattie – “so you are ignoring me..”. You just could not win (or beat him / them)
14 May 2012, 11:28 am
@CharlesM(CharlesM)-188: pick a fight
14 May 2012, 11:28 am
@viewer(viewer)-181: 2 Citing Commissioner issues an “Off-Field Yellow Card”
Instances where a Citing Commissioner observes a serious act of foul play that is close to but not quite a red card The Off-field yellow card is logged on the player’s disciplinary record in the same manner as an On-Field yellow card.
i don’t think there any “clean slates” for play-offs
14 May 2012, 11:29 am
@ufo(ufo)-184: Definitely. One of the finds of the season.
14 May 2012, 11:32 am
@CharlesM(CharlesM)-188:
yeah… i remember that story…
lots of really good stories about the etzebeths… robzim has quite a few too…
family full of character… definitely wise to be on their good side…
but also explains a lot about eben’s cool temperament…
14 May 2012, 11:33 am
@CharlesM(CharlesM)-188: Scary.
14 May 2012, 11:33 am
Thanks.
It proves the lawmakers have lost us
14 May 2012, 11:33 am
@Tacitus(Deucalion)-83:
“So a final between two teams from the same country? Not sure how that can transpire.”
@Tacitus(Deucalion)-92:
“Serious question – can anyone provide a scenario in which two SA teams could possibly meet in the final?”
The Blues lost against thr Reds in the semi last year, remember? If they’d won that match, they would’ve played against the Crusaders in the final.
So yes, it is possible for two teams from the same country to contest the final.
If, for example, the log stays the way it is right now, it means the Sharks will face the Brumbies away and the Stormers will face the Crusaders at home in the play-off round.
If both the Stormers and the Sharks win their matches, the Stormers will face the Bulls (away) and the Sharks will face the Chiefs (away).
Naturally the Sharks will have to beat the Chiefs for two SA teams to play in the final.
Of course it is very difficult thing to do for a team to win away in the play-off round and the semi-final but it is by no means impossible as was proven by the Crusaders last year.
14 May 2012, 11:38 am
Let’s just get it out there. Well done Stormers. Congrats on the win. Scrappy game, never lived up to expectations but a win is a win…
14 May 2012, 11:40 am
Any Sharks fans…
Why did Lambie go off at half time on Saturday?
Injured?
14 May 2012, 11:43 am
@Cheetahs27(Cheetahs27)-196:
hey bud…
good to hear from you…
your guys played VERY well and very nearly took it… sorry for you they didn’t… but very happy for us to have squeaked it…
good luck going forward… if you guys play like that gonna definitely win some more games…
pity about sias… he was the first player from either team out on the field practicing… really feel for him… but no doubt he’ll be back…
14 May 2012, 11:44 am
@Cheetahs27(Cheetahs27)-196: I felt robbed after the final whistle went. Let’s just hope that the boys can make amends in the return match.
14 May 2012, 11:48 am
I guess any win is better than a season whitewash.
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