John Dobson overhauls Stormers side ahead of final URC round-robin clash against Cardiff

The Stormers took a calculated risk with their team to face Cardiff on Friday to ensure all their players in contention for the playoffs will have sufficient rugby minutes under their belt when the knockouts take place.

John Dobson, director of rugby, made plenty of changes to his side for the final round-robin United Rugby Championship (URC) duel at the DHL Stadium (7pm kick-off). It will likely also be the Cape side’s final home game.

While Dobson admitted the changes could affect their momentum after some brilliant games in the previous couple of weeks, he added they’ve worked hard over the last week to create synergy within the extended squad.

This, he hopes, will be enough to fuel the side to a victory over a tricky and “desperate” Cardiff, who still harbours ambitions of making the playoffs. The Stormers are in fifth place and two points from the game will seal that position.

But, it could be a long wait until Saturday evening, when Leinster hosts Glasgow, to find out who they will face in the playoffs.

Nevertheless, Dobson wants a squad of 27 players to select from when it comes to the playoffs, and the Cardiff clash will give players on the outskirts the opportunity to play themselves into contention. Flyhalf Manie Libbok will also make his highly anticipated return in the starting team, while 21-year-old winger Suleiman Hartzenberg will play in his 50th Stormers game.

Regulars Evan Roos, Warrick Gelant, Seabelo Senatla, Ruben van Heerden, and Stefan Ungerer were wrapped in cotton wool ahead of the quarter-finals, while flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu is the insurance policy on the bench. The Stormers also included players who might be playing in their final game for the Cape side.

“Losing momentum is a concern,” Dobson said

“There is a risk to this and what we want to do on Friday. I am a little worried about that. Also, the team is in such a good space, and it’s been pretty consistent. But, we must play Manie. You’d like to keep Sacha’s flow going, but if he is injured, Manie would not have played at all.

“And to control his game time after a long-term injury, he must start. He’s not like a loose forward where you are covered with another loose forward. If Sacha goes down in the fifth minute, Manie can’t play 75 minutes, so we would be in trouble.

“But, that is why someone like Salmaan Moerat is playing.”

Starting scrumhalf Herschel Jantjies, replacement Paul de Wet, hooker Joseph Dweba, Dawe Ewers and possibly Wandisile Simelane will depart the franchise at the end of the season, so the Cape side will look to make their final game at home special.

They’ve also arguably enjoyed the best support across the URC, so they would want to end with a bang like how they’ve performed in front of their supporters the last couple of weekends.

Dobson says they expect to come up against a really organised defensive system.

“The way they attack off 10 and their options there, we are quite lucky that our last four opponents all have a quite sophisticated attack. That team that beat us the last time in Cardiff wasn’t this advanced as this one. They probably have the best Welsh scrum.

“They’ve been good the whole season and what they’ve achieved under the circumstances, they deserve all the credit. Clearly, they will put up a helluva fight. We know what we have coming in.”

Stormers: 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Suleiman Hartzenberg, 13 Wandisile Simelane, 12 Dan du Plessis, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Manie Libbok, 9 Herschel Jantjies, 8 Marcel Theunissen, 7 Louw Nel, 6 Dave Ewers, 5 JD Schickerling, 4 Salmaan Moerat (captain), 3 Neethling Fouché, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Sti Sithole. Replacements: 16 Scarra Ntubeni, 17 Vernon Matongo, 18 Sazi Sandi, 19 Connor Evans, 20 Paul de Villiers, 21 Paul de Wet, 22 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 23 Ben Loader.