Stormers suffer huge blow ahead of Champions Cup quarterfinal
TEAM ANNOUNCEMENT: Stormers head coach John Dobson has revealed his team for their Champions Cup quarterfinal against Exeter Chiefs at Sandy Park on Saturday
The Stormers’ backline is unchanged from the combination that started the Round of 16 match against Harlequins last week, while there are just two changes to the forward pack.
In a big blow, star of the match in the 32-28 victory in Cape Town Deon Fourie has been ruled out with a fractured cheekbone, so his place at openside flank is taken by Junior Pokomela.
The only other change sees Marcel Theunissen start at the back of the scrum, with Hacjivah Dayimani set to make an impact from the replacements bench.
Centre Ruhan Nel will play his 50th Stormers match in the quarterfinal.
Dobson said that his team will leave it all out on the field at Sandy Park in a bid to qualify for the Champions Cup semifinal.
“This is a huge knock-out match, so we have to give it a full tilt.
“Exeter have a great record at home, so we know it will take a full effort from all 23 to get the result we need on Saturday,” he said.
Dobson paid tribute to Nel, who is a pivotal player on both defence and attack for his team.
“Ruhan always puts the team first and sets a great example for those around him in the way he approaches the game. We are lucky to have him and hopefully the team can make his 50th a memorable one,” he said.
Stormers: 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Suleiman Hartzenberg, 13 Ruhan Nel, 12 Dan du Plessis, 11 Seabelo Seabelo, 10 Manie Libbok, 9 Herschel Jantjies, 8 Marcel Theunissen, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Junior Pokomela, 5 Marvin Orie, 4 Ernst van Rhyn, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Steven Kitshoff (captain).
Replacements: 16 JJ Kotze, 17 Ali Vermaak, 18 Neethling Fouche, 19 Gary Porter, 20 Willie Engelbrecht, 21 Hacjivah Dayimani, 22 Paul de Wet, 23 Clayton Blommetjies.
Date: Saturday, April 8
Venue: Sandy Park, Exeter
Kick-off: 17.30 (18.30 SA time; 16.30 GMT)
Referee: Mathieu Raynal (France)
Assistanr Referees: Ludovic Cayre (France), Jonathan Gasnier (France)
TMO: Thomas Charabas (France)
