The Stormers camp will be feeling a bit better about themselves after the courageous display against Leicester Tigers, but they know it’s a must-win situation in Saturday’s Champions Cup showdown with French giants La Rochelle.
It was unfortunate that John Dobson’s second-string outfit were unable to secure a losing bonus point in the 35-26 defeat at Welford Road, and now they have to emerge victorious against the defending champions at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday (3pm kick-off).
But the Stormers could take a number of valuable pointers from the Leicester game, and one of the success stories was young lock Connor Evans’ performance.
The former Junior Springbok, who is still only 21, put himself about against the English champions with a gutsy display.
Even though the line-outs were again iffy from the visitors, Evans tried hard to run that set piece, and got stuck in during broken play with a number of strong carries and vital tackles. “It’s a learning process that we have to go through to get our line-out to the level that we’re sort of used to. It’s something we are working hard on – and we are paying some fees along the way – but I am very confident that the personnel that we have will get better every week,” Stormers forwards coach Rito Hlungwani said.
“It’s that old saying, the URC or Champions Cup is not won in December, so we are taking every single opportunity to improve and learn. “I was really proud, for example, of the composure that Connor Evans presented … the way he played in general play. When we lost a line-out, I felt he didn’t lose his confidence, and what I always say is that if you make a mistake, you mustn’t carry it into the next play. “I was really chuffed to see how composed he remained, and we will continue to work on the rest of his game – he will continue to get better.” The Stormers lineout has battled all season after the departure of No 5 stalwart Marvin Orie to French club Perpignan, while captain Steven Kitshoff has also left for Ulster.
Add to that the knee injury to new skipper Salmaan Moerat – and inconsistent throw-ins from the various hookers – and it paints a picture of the Stormers’ woes in the set piece.
Forwards coach Rito Hlungwani, though, believes that the Capetonians are improving in every game. They will have their work cut out for them against La Rochelle, who boast one of the most feared locks in club rugby in Australian powerhouse Will Skelton, French international Thomas Lavault and former Irish Test second-rower Ultan Dillane.
Evans and the rest of the Stormers squad only arrived back in Cape Town from England on Tuesday evening, so he is likely to play off the bench against La Rochelle. First-choice locks Ruben van Heerden and Adré Smith will hope to secure enough ball against La Rochelle, while loose forwards Hacjivah Dayimani and Evan Roos are also tall and agile enough to be worthy options in the air.
“There has been a lot of improvement, so we are taking it game by game. He (Van Heerden) is coming on nicely, and one thing I always tell the guys is that at URC level, you will be lucky if you are not playing against an international lock,” Hlungwani said.
“It is going to be very tough to catch your line-out ball, so we have to improve our basics. Ruben is working hard at it, and I’ve seen the improvement.
“The pressure will always be there, and we really wanted to win – or at least get a point against Leicester. One thing that’s clear is that all the teams want to win their home games. I thought we competed really well last week, and hopefully with the fresh group of players, we can compete again this weekend.”
IOL Sport