Ruben van Heerden rises high in the lineout for the Stormers against the Bulls. Picture: Carl Fourie/Gallo Images
The Stormers have got the game and players to go all the way in the United Rugby Championship again. Even if they have to go to Dublin to play in the final!
But first, they will have to get past Connacht in the URC semifinals next weekend to have a shot at going back-to-back, after winning their quarterfinal against the Bulls 33-21 in Cape Town on Saturday.
John Dobson’s team though will start as heavy favourites against the Irish side, who shocked Ulster on Friday night.
The Stormers beat the Bulls for the sixth time in the competition and it is now very clear Dobson and his men are, by some distance, South Africa’s premier team.
For the Bulls and Jake White there will have to be some big, tough decisions made in the off season because if they are to match the Stormers any time soon they will need a fresh approach. They have the players, they just don’t have the know-how and game-plan to be competing at this level at this time.
While the Bulls came to light in the second half in Cape Town on Saturday and scored a few tries, they were never in the contest.
As for the Stormers, well, Dobson and his men should feel very pleased with what they produced in front of a very good home crowd. They dominated all departments and showed they have it in them to challenge for the title yet again.
In rugby, it all starts up front and that is where the Stormers’ great strength lies. Even with a few key men missing through injury, they were able to dominate the set-pieces, collisions and breakdowns against a decent Bulls pack.
In Steven Kitshoff, Deon Fourie, Hacjivah Dayimani and Evan Roos they had players on Saturday who were a menace at ruck time, regularly winning ball or penalties for their team. Marvin Orie was huge in the lineouts and Malherbe and Joseph Dweba powered forward at every opportunity.
The Bulls gave away three penalties inside five minutes and were on the back foot for most of the first half when the Stormers laid the foundation for their victory.
White’s men had difficulty breaking down the Stormers defence and they hardly launched any meaningful attack. Their scramble defence was pretty impressive because they were able to thwart a few Stormers attacks, but that’s about all they offered.
The Stormers had a clear plan of how they wanted to play and they executed that plan. The Bulls had nothing.
And then there were and are the Stormers’ backs.
Herschel Jantjies kicked excellently initially and his service to Manie Libbok was top-notch. And if Bok coach Jacques Nienaber wasn’t already excited about Libbok as a potential World Cup starter at 10 he should be now.
Libbok was on Saturday at his very best: he played with authority, direction, and variety in his game and he displayed a confidence that screamed “pick me for the Boks”.
He’s got X-factor, as do all the Stormers backs. Goodness, when Libbok plays like he did on Saturday, there are few flyhalves in the URC who get close to him.
Ruan Nortje, Elrigh Louw and Kurt-Lee Arendse played well for the Bulls.
Onto the semifinals for Dobson and Co and back to the drawing board for White and his Bulls.
Download our app and read this and other great stories on the move. Available for Android and iOS.
