Stormers won't take Brumbies bait
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The last time the Brumbies entered the Newlands arena it was a spiteful encounter and this weekend may be no different.
In Round 13 of Super Rugby when the Brumbies clashed heads with the Stormers, referee Stuart Berry was in control and penalised the Brumbies no less than 19 times.
Stormers coach Allister Coetzee felt that there should have been more yellow cards than the solitary sin-binning – issued against replacement Jordan Smiler.
This time though, Jaco Peyper will be in charge of the grudge match and Coetzee is happy with the appointment made by SANZAR.
"Im comfortable with him [Peyper]," Coetzee said at a Stormers press conference.
"I think Jaco Peyper has been a consistent ref, if you don't change your behaviour he will let you know. He is not scared to make big calls no matter who it is against, that is what makes him one of the top refs."
Last time round, the game was littered with penalties (19 out of the 24 against the Brumbies) and numerous off-the-ball scuffles.
Coetzee accused the Brumbies of deliberately using "niggling" tactics off the ball to lure them into something of a dog fight.
Brumbies' captain Stephen Moore responded by simply saying that they were "standing up for their mates".
Coetzee is not prepared to be lured into another scrappy encounter and is convinced the cheat-tactics will not distract his team.
"We will never get pulled into a dog fight, we will never allow it to distract us and we are not prepared to be drawn in to any off-the-ball stuff."
The Stormers coach understands the intensity of the game, especially now that is the play-off stage, and is ready for a physical battle as long as it is played according to the rules.
"We know they have got line speed, and we know they attack the breakdown – if it is legal and fair then there is no issue," explained Coetzee.
"But if it is not legal and they transgress, no matter how many times they should be penalised."
"There are rules and we need play according to them."
"The niggle is not something we have spoken about, there is always going to be that edge in the game, but we don't want to use it as a reason to disrupt the game."
"It's going to be intense but off the ball stuff is not needed in the game and I'm sure the refs will deal with that."
@rugby365com
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