Stormers’ success due to knowing their identity — Jean de Villiers

The Stormers will be attempting to clinch their second major title in as many seasons when they take on Munster in the United Rugby Championship (URC) Grand Final at the Cape Town Stadium on Saturday evening.

It is a stunning turnaround for the once struggling union, who just a few years ago were in dire straits, with middling performances coupled with financial problems that ended with them going into administration, weighing heavy on one of South Africa’s most successful franchises.

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However, in their first season in the URC they claimed second place on the log and went on to triumph in the inaugural final, beating fierce rivals the Bulls, and after another top season in 2022/23, they ended with a third place finish on the log and have another chance at glory this weekend.

Identity

Former Stormers and Springbok star Jean de Villiers believes that the stunning past few seasons for the franchise is due to them having found their identity.

“I think they have nailed down the way they want to play. Everyone has bought into that and everyone strives to be as good as possible at doing that,” said De Villiers.

“Credit must go to John Dobson and his team for being able to get that right. It’s not something that just happened over night, it took them a couple of seasons to get it right. But I think they really understand the way that they want to play and they execute that really well.

“When the pressure comes on they don’t go into their shell. They stick with what has worked for them.”

Struggles

De Villiers admits that during his time at the union the Stormers’ playing personnel may have been slightly better, with a larger number of Springboks in the squad, but they struggled due to not knowing their identity, which counted against them in the big games.

This was shown during a golden patch for the team from 2010-2012 when they finished as runners-up in Super Rugby, followed by consecutive appearances in the semi-finals, with nothing to show for it.

“If you compare that to my time playing for the Stormers, I think it was a constant struggle as to what is our identity and how do we want to play. Do we want to play an expansive game or do we want to revert back to a more conservative game,” explained De Villiers.

“I don’t think we ever got that right. It was always kind of in between and maybe it was the pressure situations that cost us in those big games. So I really do think that’s what they have gotten right.

“We might have had a fantastic combination of players together in a team, but playing as a team towards one goal and understanding the way you want to play, I don’t think we ever got that spot on.”