Connacht ready to 'rip into' X-factor Stormers
In the ‘land of physicality’, touring teams often come up short.
Connacht face the Stormers, the first of two South African challenges, in a season-defining period of their United Rugby Championship campaign.
And they are ready to ‘rip into’ the Stormers to keep their play-off dream alive.
The Stormers are sitting pretty in second spot with 51 points and 14 wins.
Connacht are in ninth with 39 points and seven wins.
Connacht’s scrum and contact coach Colm Tucker played down the ‘travel challenges’, having used a charter for their trip to France (a 22-45 loss to Montpellier in a Challenge Cup quarterfinal) and then flew out to South Africa on Monday, a trip that lasted the better part of 24 hours.
The Irish province is not at full strength either, with British and Irish centre Bundee Aki is ‘rested’ and missing the tour for the matches against the Stormers (this Saturday) and the Lions (next week).
They will have to rely on experienced players like Paul Boyle, Dave Heffernan, Cian Prendergast, and Seamus Hurley-Langton to provide ‘leadership’ and direction.
“Everyone travelled well, and we are well-prepared for the tough opposition,” Tucker said.
Having faced a gargantuan Montpellier pack last week, ‘recovery’ is the buzzword in Cape Town this week.
“The biggest lesson was that you can’t give a pack like that, that amount of opportunities,” the scrum coach said.
“Discipline is important, and we didn’t mind [retained] possession enough.
“We have to respect the ball a little more.”
*(WATCH as Connacht’s scrum and contact coach Colm Tucker previews his team’s URC Round 15 face-off with the Stormers…..)
Turning to facing the Stormers in Cape Town, a place where the Irish province has never won, Tucker said victory is ‘vital’ in their quest for a top-eight finish.
Although the home side holds the aces, Tucker sees this as an opportunity to add valuable points in the play-off chase, but it will not be easy.
“It is going to be an extremely tough challenge facing them at home,” he said, adding: “They have linespeed [on defence] with the quality of players they have.
“Their scrum is the best in the URC, and their breakdown threats are pretty significant.
“Then you have Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Damian Willemse, the X-factor players. Ruhan Nel is also an outstanding centre as well.
“They have plenty of X-factor and power, as all South African teams do.
“The important aspect for us is to win the game and get the points to keep the pressure on the URC top eight teams.
“There is the physicality – big men, power and X-factor.
“We feel we are in a good place, we just have to get our preparation right this week, and we must ‘rip in’ on Saturday”.
And with the South African outfit just four points behind league leaders Glasgow Warriors, it is unlikely Director of Rugby John Dobson will take this fixture for granted.
Up front, Connacht can expect a real tussle against a formidable Stormers’ pack known for its power at both scrum and maul, and in Evan Roos, they also boast their top try scorer.
This fixture is a huge ask for Connacht against a South African side that has lost only once at this stadium since February 2025, and that was against fellow compatriots the Sharks in January.
To add extra weight to those odds, the Stormers have won their last three championship fixtures against Irish opposition since Ulster prevailed in March 2005.
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