Stormers face progress report
The Stormers' quest to find the right balance between attack and defence faces something of a progress report against the Cheetahs at Newlands this weekend.
Since hitting the bottom of the standings this season the Cape side have made an effort to add more of an attacking threat to their gameplan which has been built primarily around their strong defensive system for the last few years.
According to captain Jean de Villiers, their first real attempt to play with a more attacking mindset was their clash with the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein at the end of last month which saw them score three tries but concede five.
Since then they have managed to find more of a balance between the two, scoring nine tries on the way to home victories over play-off contenders the Highlanders and Force and a defeat against the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld.
De Villiers watched the win against the Force from the stands last week and he was impressed with the control and composure his team showed, which he believes shows that they are adapting to their adjusted approach.
"It is part of the process of improving and part of the journey we are on evolving as a team. There are a lot of positive signs in that regard and the control we showed last week was good and I think the attack is improving on a weekly basis and we are getting that balance right now.
"Hopefully we can keep on improving, the last time we played the Cheetahs we attacked well but from a defensive point of view we were poor.
"That was basically the start of the improvement of this team from an attacking point of view, and we lacked from a defensive point of view but I think our balance is much better now.
"Hopefully this week we can get the balance right, we know the challenge the Cheetahs will be for our defence so we need to be good in both areas," he said.
Coach Allister Coetzee warned that the Cheetahs have far more variety to their attack than the Force do, and added that they are keen to show how far they have come since their defeat in Bloemfontein a month ago.
"It is a completely different challenge this week, the Force attack very close and off nine whereas the Cheetahs do ask questions wide-wide as well.
"They are one of the teams that have got a good balance in the way they play, it is not just power, they bring a wide game, a passing game and also a kicking game so we will have to be much better than we were up there.
"We have learned lessons from that game and we have had a proper look at the way we defended there. They are quite a challenging team for us but we have prepared well for that and hopefully we can execute our plan better this time," he said.
Having managed the breakdown well against a Force team that is abrasive on the ground, the Stormers face a slightly different challenge from a Cheetahs side that thrives on turnover possession.
"The breakdown will be a different thing altogether, it starts in the air this weekend before it goes to the ground. They are a team that will hold you up in the air so that is a different challenge for us but I think we are prepared in that regard too.
"[Heinrich] Brussow is definitely very effective, and not just him but a few other players in the side who also contest hard. Our reaction to clean last week was good against the Force who are a side who go hard on the ground and it should be even better this week," Coetzee explained.
If their last game against the Cheetahs was the first step on their journey to play a more balanced game, the Stormers now have a chance to show that they are more sturdy on their feet and comfortable with their new approach.
Although they have not won away from home this season, they have also lost just one game at Newlands and they will be determined to show that they are a different prospect to the team the Cheetahs faced a month ago.
By Michael de Vries
