Dobbo explains Pead's selection over more experienced scrumhalves
INTERVIEW: Stormers Director of Rugby John Dobson revealed why he selected Haashim Pead as the reserve scrumhalf over the more experienced Stefan Ungerer and Andre Warner for their Round Three Vodacom United Rugby Championship clash against the Sharks.
Pead will make his Stormers debut off the bench merely three weeks after joining the side from the Lions as one of two backline replacements alongside Wandisile Simelane for the coastal derby at DHL Stadium on Saturday.
The Stormers used the experienced duo of Andre Warner and Stefan Ungerer alongside Ezekiel Ngobeni, who made his debut against Connacht during their two-match European tour of Ireland and Scotland.
All three players will be missing out on this upcoming clash, with Springbok Cobus Reinach named as the starting No.9.
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Dobson explained his reasons for backing Pead to make an impact off the bench despite his limited time in the Stormers system.
“We didn’t want Hash [Haashim Pead] to have the same experience [he had with the Lions], and we went through a lot of trouble [to sign him].
“Look, he’s a Junior World Player of the Year; the premier scrumhalf, I think, is a guy called [Antoine] Dupont who previously held that title [as a No.9].
“The fact that he [Pead] was so determined to come to us; we want him to have an extremely positive experience.
“He’s a high quality player – we didn’t fly him to Edinburgh because we felt that firstly it would be unfair on the guys who had been training consistently and secondly, the tour group had a certain life on its own.
“But we didn’t want to wait another week [to give him an opportunity]; we didn’t want to make him wait any longer to make his Stormers debut.”
Continues below…
Dobson shows his hand ⚡🦈
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Dobson paid a big compliment to Pead and outlined his long-term plans for the playmaker.
“We know he’s a special talent and we want him to be as happy at the Stormers and thrive whilst getting as much game time as possible.
“That’s why he came down; he’s part of us – with all respect to Stef [Stefan Ungerer] and Andre Warner, but Haashim Pead is the future.
“The quicker we get him onto the field and develop him, the better.”
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