Stormers rope in their Boks
The Stormers wasted no time in drafting their Springboks back into pre-season training.
Injured centre Jean de Villiers and Japan-based loose forward Schalk Burger are the only Boks that will not travel with the team to Hermanus this week.
A 39-man Stormers squad will depart for Hermanus on Tuesday, for a four-day training camp ahead of the 2015 Super Rugby competition.
Siyabonga Ntubeni, Eben Etzebeth, Duane Vermeulen, Nizaam Carr and Damian de Allende – all of whom toured with the Springboks at the end of last year – will all undertake the trip to Hermanus.
Capped Boks Siya Kolisi, Juan de Jongh and Jaco Taute – who did not make the Bok cut in November – will also be part of the pre-season camp.
The Bok skipper, De Villiers, is on the long-term injury list – following the horrendous knee injury he suffered during South Africa's 6-12 loss to Wales in the last match of their November tour.
He is in a race to be fit in time for the World Cup, after the 33-year-old underwent surgery in December.
Burger, however, will be back and will join up with the Stormers squad at the conclusion of his commitments in Japan next month.
Prop Frans Malherbe (ankle) and locks Jean Kleyn (AC Joint) and Ruan Botha (ankle) are the only players not training flat-out at the moment.
However, all three are on track with their rehabilitation from injuries suffered last year.
Props Wilco Louw and Frans van Wyk, both of whom are still eligible for the Western Province Under-21 team, are amongst the new faces in the squad, joining flyhalf Robert du Preez, centres Johnny Kotze and Huw Jones and fullback EW Viljoen as the other newbies in the selection mix.
Du Preez, Kotze, Jones and Viljoen are all graduates of the WP Under-21 set-up from 2014, along with hooker Michael Willemse, lock Jurie van Vuuren and loose forward Sikhumbuzo Notshe, all of whom had a brief taste of Super Rugby action in 2014.
Stormers coach Allister Coetzee revealed that the coaching panel reported for duty last Tuesday.
"The players came back on [the] Wednesday – all hungry and determined to put their best foot forward from the start," Coetzee said in a statement.
"We have a young squad, as you can see with seven players graduating from the Under-21 team and going straight into the Stormers squad and [props] Wilco Louw [a new signing] and Frans van Wyk [from the Under-19 team] both still being Under-21.
"You could sense even more energy at training and I look forward to seeing the players take it up a notch in Hermanus and then as we build up towards our three pre-season friendlies."
The Stormers will head to Hermanus for the fifth year in a row, ahead of their three pre-season friendlies between January 24 and February 7 – against SWD, the Cheetahs and the Boland Cavaliers, respectively.
Those exact dates, kick-off times and venues will be confirmed later this week.
The Stormers will open their 2015 Super Rugby campaign against the Bulls in Pretoria on Saturday, February 14.
Their first home game is against the Blues, at Newlands, on Saturday, February 21.
Stormers squad: Ruan Botha, Manuel Carizza, Nizaam Carr, Demetri Catrakilis, Kurt Coleman, Damian de Allende, Juan de Jongh, Robert du Preez, Ryno Eksteen, Eben Etzebeth, Rynhardt Elstadt, Gerbrandt Grobler, Nic Groom, Huw Jones, Oliver Kebble, Steven Kitshoff, Jean Kleyn, Vincent Koch, Cheslin Kolbe, Siya Kolisi, Johnny Kotze, Dillyn Leyds, Wilco Louw, Frans Malherbe, Godlen Masimla, Bongi Mbonambi, Sikhumbuzo Notshe, Siyabonga Ntubeni, Neil Rautenbach, Michael Rhodes, Louis Schreuder, Jaco Taute, Jurie van Vuuren, Frans van Wyk, Kobus van Wyk, Alistair Vermaak, Duane Vermeulen, EW Viljoen, Michael Willemse.
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