Stormers looking for answers
TEAM ANNOUNCEMENT: Stormers coach Robbie Fleck will hope to find some answers when they step up their preparations for the 2019 Super Rugby season on Saturday.
A 27-man Stormers playing group will take on a Combined Club XV and hosts False Bay in each half of their first warm-up game.
The Combined Club XV will be made up of top local non-University club talent and will give club players a chance to push for selection in the Western Province team for the domestic Challenge Cup.
There will also be a 17-man Stormers conditioning group, including 12 Springboks, which will train at False Bay.
The coach said that having put in some hard work on the training pitch, his players are keen to get things going against some top club players.
“After a rewarding pre-season, we will be able to gauge where we are in our first warm-up game,” Fleck said.
“It is great to involve local club players in our Super Rugby preparations; we are lucky to have quality club talent at our disposal like this.
“Our pre-season has been focused on connecting with the community and engaging with our fans by training at different venues around the Western Cape.
“We want to be a team of the people and so it will be great to spend some more time with our supporters.
“It is important to take this first step and get some gametime under our belts. It should be a valuable learning experience for us and we will also use the opportunity to do some conditioning with the rest of our training squad,” he said.
Stormers playing group: Juarno Augustus, Craig Barry, Kwenzo Blose, Jaco Coetzee, Dan du Plessis, JJ Engelbrecht, Neethling Fouche, Herschel Jantjies, Daniel Jooste, Dan Kriel, Michael Kumbirai, Nico Leonard, Dillyn Leyds, SP Marais, Salmaan Moerat, Scarra Ntubeni, Justin Phillips, Marno Redelinghuys, Seabelo Senatla, Joshua Stander, Edwill van der Merwe, Kobus van Dyk, Ernst van Rhyn, Chris van Zyl, Ali Vermaak, Cobus Wiese, Nama Xaba.
Stormers conditioning group: Damian de Allende, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Jean-Luc du Plessis, Eben Etzebeth, Corne Fourie, Steven Kitshoff, Siya Kolisi, Wilco Louw, Frans Malherbe, Bongi Mbonambi, Ruhan Nel, Sikhumbuzo Notshe, Sergeal Petersen, JD Schickerling, Chad Solomon, Jano Vermaak, Damian Willemse.
Date: Saturday, January 26
Venue: Phillip Herbstein grounds, Constantia
Kick-off: 11.30 (09.30 GMT)
Referee: Divan Uys
