Stormers one step closer to being 'the best team in SA'...again
REACTION: The Stormers are well on their way to another South African Shield title after their 23-19 win over the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.
The United Rugby Championship (URC) Round 14 victory means the Stormers are now second on the overall log with 54 points and 10 points clear of third-placed Ulster.
The Capetonians also strengthened their place at the summit of the South African conference, extending the gap to 13 points ahead of second-place Bulls.
Speaking to reporters after the match, Stormers head coach John Dobson is fully confident that his team will retain the Shield as they target a whitewash against South African sides.
The Stormers host the Sharks in Cape Town on March 4.
“If we get a win over the Sharks we’ve got a clean sweep of the local derbies, which will be brilliant for us,” Dobson told reporters.
“We probably need another win from the last four games to get the SA Shield, which I’m sure we’ll get, and that’s important for us.
“You want to be the best team in South Africa and we’re getting very close to that, given our results. If we can win the Shield two years in a row it’ll be a great feather in the cap for this union and the team.”
#REACTION: @BlueBullsRugby boss Jake White made no excuses following his team’s defeat to @THESTORMERS
🗣️ “I’m not going to nail anybody.” #rugby #news #Sports #rugby @URCOfficial https://t.co/fxGcfkPD4j pic.twitter.com/EKFGGAokKQ— rugby365.com (@rugby365com) February 19, 2023
Dobson admitted the team’s form in Europe is a concerning factor as Leinster and the play-offs loom.
“We won two tough away games [Sharks and Bulls], however, we do need to win in Europe,” the coach said.
“We’ve only won a couple abroad and [ theRound 16 fixture in Ireland against] Leinster is going to be a great experience.
“I think even if we don’t win it, hypothetically should we make a semifinal or final it will give us practice and it is something we want to get better at, especially with those artificial 4G Europe pitches where we struggled with in Glasgow.”
👀 The vision from Herschel to fire this one out to Marcel. #BULvSTO #iamastormer #dhldelivers @Vodacom #URC pic.twitter.com/lNPogCYMqY
— DHL Stormers (@THESTORMERS) February 18, 2023
Defining moment
Saturday’s North-South derby was a classic, and the Stormers were under pressure in the first 20 minutes of the game. They conceded penalties and found themselves trailing 3-12.
However, they showed true grit and scored two tries, while Manie Libbok added 13 points including a 73rd-minute drop goal.
On defence, the side was just as resilient, being forced to withstand a late surge by a Bulls side, who had two try-scoring opportunities.
But the Stormers stood solid, with lock Ruben van Heerden making the final steal on the ground and kicking the ball out play for their fifth consecutive win over the Bulls.
“We knew with their [the Bulls’] level of motivation and desperations it was going to be tough,” Dobson admitted.
“We didn’t have any possession or territory for most of the half and conceded too many penalties.
“They won the contestable really well and I thought [Bulls captain] Ruan Notje was outstanding.
“But the way we stayed in the fight, got into the lead at half-time and how we started the second half was magic. And then of course the character showed in the end.
“This is was this team is about, what happened in those last 10 minutes, I’m so proud.”
When asked what turned the game around Dobson said: “We did everything that we shouldn’t have done [in the first quarter] – we gave away a couple of penalties, Seabelo [Senatla] took the guy in the air, and then we went offside, which was two unforced penalties.
“At 12-3 down, we had a scrum down in the right-hand corner, and Brok [Harris] got us a penalty. But we were under the pump there.
“It wasn’t a tactical thing that turned it around. We were losing the contestable battle and we tidy it up a little.”
