Stormers imports: Who are they?
SPOTLIGHT: In part one of our four-part series, we take a look at how many and which foreign players played Super Rugby and/or URC for South African franchises.
With former Exeter Chiefs loose forward Dave Ewers joining the Stormers on a short-term basis – making him the latest foreign signing for the Cape side – we take a look at who preceded him through the years.
Huia Edmonds – The former Australia international hooker joined the Stormers from the Waratahs in 2006 and featured in the 2007 season, racking up three appearances for the Cape side.
He joined the Brumbies in 2008 up until 2011 and made his debut for the Wallabies in 2010.
Sireli Naqelevuki – Naqelevuki first joined Western Province in 2006 before making his Stormers debut in 2008 and played until 2010.
He was part of the Stormers side that had a clean sweep over New Zealand Super Rugby sides in 2010 and ultimately played in the Final – falling short in a 17-25 defeat to the Bulls.
Naqelevuki was a fan favourite in a Stormers jersey but didn’t always have it his way with the Cape crowd when he conceded a penalty in the 2009 Currie Cup semifinal that Morné Steyn slotted to break the local crowds’ hearts at Newlands. It made Naqelevuki public enemy number one after it seemed that the match was safe for Western Province.
Tony Brown – Arguably one of the more famous names on the list, Brown joined the Stormers in 2008 – representing the side on seven occasions.
The former All Black flyhalf had a previous stint in South Africa with the Sharks two years prior and now made his way back to the Republic as attack coach for the Springboks.
Eusebio Guiñazu – The former Argentina prop/hooker made his way to the Cape in 2010, representing the Stormers on seven occasions.
The journeyman represented numerous sides across the globe and even represented the Boland Cavaliers in the Vodacom Cup in 2010.
Jebb Sinclair – The Canadian loose forward joined the Stormers during the 2012 Super Rugby season after the side’s dismal luck with injuries in the loose forward position.
It was the season that saw the introduction of double World Cup-winning captain Siya Kolisi who also formed part of that season’s casualty list
It also saw Deon Fourie moving from hooker to flank due to the injury crisis with Tiaan Liebenberg and the emergence of Scarra Ntubeni providing enough depth in that position.
Sinclair stayed on and helped Western Province end their 11-year-drought in the Currie Cup in a match that many saw Western Province as underdogs with players such as Steven Kitshoff, Ntubeni, Frans Malherbe and Eben Etzebeth having played in the age groups just the year prior.
Sailosi Tagicakibau – After an injury crisis in the outside back department, Tagicakibau joined the Stormers in 2014 and started his Stormers career on the wing, racking up 10 appearances.
His most eye-catching performances came when he was shifted to outside centre in what was a season to forget for the Stormers – finishing 11th on the table.
The Samoan International is one of the few players in the professional era to have played for two international sides – representing Samoa and the Pacific Islanders.
Manuel Carizza – The former Argentina lock represented the Stormers between 2014 and 2015 and made 17 appearances across two seasons.
Carizza also stayed on for the 2014 Currie Cup season and helped Western Province win the trophy for the second time in three years following their 2012 triumph in Durban.
This also marked the last Currie Cup title won at the iconic Newlands Stadium.
Huw Jones – Jones probably has the most interesting and bizarre story of all the players on this list.
Following his schooling, he opted to take a gap year in Cape Town and joined False Bay in 2013 under coach Kevin Musikanth.
In 2014, Musikanth became the head coach of UCT and Jones followed him and played nine times for the university team – which included a dramatic victory away from home against the North West University Pukke (now Eagles) after being 15-33 down with seven minutes of play left. Jones scored the opening try in that match.
He made the Western Province Vodacom Cup and Under-21 side that same year and made his Stormers debut in 2015.
Jones played for the Stormers until 2016 and was still part of the squad in 2017 – but a long-term injury saw him miss the bulk of the season.
He got his fairytale ending when he was named the player of the match later that season when he scored a brace against the Sharks in the 2017 Currie Cup Final before heading to his birthland to join Glasgow Warriors.
Shaun Treeby – The former Highlander joined the Stormers midway through the 2017 season on a four-month deal following injuries in the inside centre position but failed to impress. He only made four appearances in the same amount of months.
Jamie Roberts – Following the departure of Damian de Allende post the 2019 World Cup, the Stormers turned to the experienced Welshman to boost their centre stocks for the 2020 season.
Roberts enjoyed a great run with the Cape side but his stay was cut short due to the global pandemic in 2020 with his last appearance coming against the Sharks in Durban before the season got called off.
Alapati Leiua – Another centre that didn’t fire in Cape Town.
Following the departure of Rikus Pretorius to Japan after a successful URC season, the Stormers turned to the Samoan international but he ended up playing a few games on tour – only wearing a Stormers jersey on four occasions.
He quietly exited the Cape to take up a stint with the Blue Revs in Japan during the 2022/3 URC season.
Ben Loader – The former England U20 and London Irish outside back joined the Stormers for the 2023 season and has thrived in his first season.
Loader became a quick fan favourite and is no stranger to the tryline bagging six tries in his 18 appearances so far.
Honourable Mentions:
Chris Jack – The former All Black lock and Crusader joined Western Province in 2009 and only played one match and scored a try to boot with it as well.
Matt To’omua – The former Wallaby playmaker also joined Western Province in 2009 and represented the famous blue and white hoops on four occasions.
