Some comforting words for Stormers fans
SPOTLIGHT: Stormers assistant coach Dawie Snyman believes his players have put the disappointment of losing to Griquas last week firmly behind them and are up for the challenge when they face the British and Irish Lions on Saturday.
In the guise of Western Province in the Currie Cup, the Capetonians suffered a demoralising 28-30 defeat to Griquas at Cape Town Stadium last Wednesday and many fans are predicting they will get destroyed by B&I Lions.
The Sharks have been thrashed twice (7-54 and 31-71) in three days, while Joburg’s Lions went down 14-54 in the tour opener.
“A week in rugby is quite a long time,” said Snyman.
“If you go look at that performance against Griquas we were our own enemies.
“Conceding 17 penalties, you are never going to create rhythm or get an opportunity to put a team like Griquas under pressure.
“It is something we worked hard on and we made sure we knew what went wrong in that game, so that we don’t repeat that.
“The British and Irish Lions are a different opposition. It’s international players and there are no weaknesses on the park.
Snyman added: “You can’t allow them breathing space. If you make one small mistake or if you make one error, they will definitely punish you.
“We need to be sharper in all aspects. They showed against the Sharks that if you concede turnovers they are dangerous.
“They don’t play one style of rugby. They can go through the middle; they can find space behind you with kicks.
“They are a well-rounded team with a lot of options.”
Stormers wing Edwill van der Merwe says the team have been preparing well for Saturday’s encounter.
“We know the game is going to be tough on Saturday, but we are up for the challenge.
“On Griquas, it was a frustrating game, but we have worked hard this week and we are looking to put our best foot forward on Saturday,” said Van der Merwe.
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