Cape Town – The Stormers may have ended 2022 with a bang by completing an unbeaten home record, but defence coach Norman Laker has warned them to be wary of a “trick or two” from the Glasgow Warriors in Sunday’s United Rugby Championship clash in Scotland.
Having seen the Stormers concede three tries against the Bulls on December 23, Laker was a happier man after his team surrendered just a single touchdown in the 40-8 victory over the Lions at Cape Town Stadium on New Year’s Eve – while scoring six of the best themselves.
But they will face a tougher challenge at Scotstoun Stadium on Sunday (5pm SA time kickoff), as the Warriors are on a five-match winning streak, while the South Africans will also have to deal with the effects of a marathon journey from Cape Town to Glasgow that started on Monday and ended on Wednesday.
“Long flight, no battery! We started our travel on Monday night late, after working the whole Monday. We’ve been working on all three flights, so it’s been going well on the prep and analysis-wise. We are looking forward to the next couple of days in Glasgow,” Laker said.
“We will train on Thursday, as the guys are off (on Wednesday afternoon), and massages with the physios. Friday is another one, Saturday is captain’s.”
The Stormers scored some thrilling tries against the Lions – and even one that was disallowed for a supposed knock-on should have been awarded – but they will be under greater pressure without the ball against a Glasgow outfit coached by former Springbok centre Franco Smith.
The ex-Cheetahs and Italy mentor is known for his positive style of play, and the Warriors ran in four tries in their 32-25 away victory over Scottish rivals Edinburgh last Friday.
Before the three tries scored by the Bulls, the Stormers also gave away two each in the Champions Cup against London Irish and Clermont the previous weeks, so the coaches will hope that the defence will stand firm against Glasgow.
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They boast the likes of former Stormers star Huw Jones, another Scottish international in Kyle Steyn and Argentina speedster Sebastian Cancelliere in a lethal backline who will attack with ball-in-hand.
But the Cape side’s back division, with centres Suleiman Hartzenberg and Dan du Plessis to the fore, will look to shoot up on defence and close down the space.
“Franco is a very good coach – he coached South Africa with Allister (Coetzee) for a year-and-a-half. He will definitely have one or two things up his sleeve. Coaching against him when he was at Free State, he always had a trick or two,” Laker said.
“There are quite a few South Africans in the Glasgow squad as well – Huw Jones has and Oli Kebble played for us – so quite a few familiar faces in their team.
“One thing you can’t take away from Franco is that he had a phenomenal game-plan at the Free State – he had a ball-in-hand philosophy. A few guys who are now with us played under him, like Clayton Blommetjies, Joseph Dweba and Junior Pokomela, and we have been able to tap into that mindset.
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“I think it’s going to be a great game. Last weekend (against the Lions), we had two situations where we got turnover ball inside our 22, and one try was awarded and the other not. So, we pride ourselves on our defence, and also getting turnover ball for the type of players we have. So, it should be a great game – but it depends on the weather!
“The Lions are always a difficult side to play against. They also have a trick or two up their sleeve – as we found out when we got a hiding against them at Cape Town Stadium in December 2021.
“We wanted to improve in every aspect from that performance, as there were a few good moves from the Lions that surprised us that day, and we weren’t good defensively.
“This past weekend was very good, and I was very proud of the guys. What we practised during the week, they carried out 100 percent on the field. Every guy’s intensity and everything we did was really good.
“There are a few things we can work on for this weekend – it’s a different environment and different field.”
The other tricky part for the defending champions will be adjusting quickly enough to the 4G artificial pitch, which has caught out the SA teams previously due to the speed of the surface.
Laker, though, feels that the Stormers are well aware of what to expect.
“Our third game last season’s tour was against Edinburgh on a 4G pitch, and I spoke to Brendan Venter before the game. He said I mustn’t be surprised if we are behind after the first 10 to 15 minutes, as the guys are a bit careful not to fall,” he said.
“The field is quite fast, and we were 15-0 behind after four minutes against Edinburgh, and came back to draw 20-20 in the end. It is much faster and different to what we are used to, but it will be much easier on Sunday as we have played on such a surface before.
“The guys will be much better prepared and won’t get a shock, but it is much faster than a normal field.
“We played against Cardiff on a 4G pitch as well, and it is likely to be the same as this weekend. Cardiff was a special experience – just 15 minutes before the warm-up, it rained so hard that there was a pool of water on the pitch, and when we went on, it was totally gone.”
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