Fleck: Stormers' best game of the year
SUPER RUGBY REACTION: Stormers head coach Robbie Fleck believes his side’s 9-24 defeat to the Blues was their ‘best game of the year’.
The result is the Stormers’ 12th consecutive defeat on New Zealand soil. The side’s last win in New Zealand was in April 2013, against the Hurricanes, while their last victory in Auckland was back in May 2011.
Aside from their dismal record against Kiwi oppositions, what’s more alarming was the side’s inability to score a try during Saturday’s defeat. The Stormers concluded the match with 64 percent possession but could only come up with three successful Jean-Luc Du Plessis penalties for their work.
“I don’t think the score-line reflects the effort that we put in,” Fleck told reporters after the loss, adding: “At one stage we were dominating the territory and the possession it’s just that one or two errors from our side let us down at crucial times.
“However, this was certainly the best game we’ve played this year. I’m very happy with our rhythm on attack, the last effort just let us down at the end,”
Attacking Stats:
Even with the Blues down to 14 men for the final 12 minutes when Tanielu Tale’a was sent off for taking out Dillyn Leyds in the air, the Stormers were unable to break the Blues’ defence.
Instead, the South Africans side’s errors allowed Rieko Ioane to score a bonus-point third try for the Blues.
The team certainly showed great intent on attack and created loads of opportunities as they opted to run the ball instead of utilizing the Springbok-laden pack of forwards. The side racked up 163 carries compared to Blues’ 93 – an area which certainly pleases the mentor.
“The pleasing aspect for us was we came with more ball-in-hand approach, we added some width to our game, and we started to shift points of attack, obviously with that comes some errors.
“Nonetheless, I think if we can brush up on that and become a more complete side instead of just a forward dominated side,”
The Stormers travel to Australia next to face the Reds at the Suncorp Stadium in Round eight followed a clash against the in-form Rebels on April 12.
By Leezil Hendricks
@Leezil07
@rugby365com
