La Rochelle players celebrate scoring a try during their tight Champions Cup win over the Stormers at the Cape Town Stadium on Saturday evening. Picture: Grant Pitcher/Gallo Images
Champions Cup double defending champions La Rochelle broke the Stormers hearts with a stunning fightback to clinch a thrilling 22-21 win in their last 16 classic at the Cape Town Stadium on Saturday evening.
It was heartbreaking for Stormers flyhalf Manie Libbok, who won the pool game between the two sides in December with a successful touchline conversion after the hooter, as he this time watched in agony as his touchline conversion attempt after the hooter to win the game drift wide.
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The Stormers will be very disappointed after they let a 16-0 lead early in the second half slip, but they were negatively impacted by a raft of injuries in the game.
Talismanic flank Deon Fourie went off with a serious looking knee injury, while wing Leolin Zas was also injured both in the first half, followed by loose forward Hacjivah Dayimani and captain Salmaan Moerat being forced off in the second.
In the match it was a strong start from the Stormers as they got on the board early with a third minute penalty to flyhalf Libbok.
In the 21st minute La Rochelle lock Will Skelton was yellow carded for cynical play at a ruck, which allowed Libbok to extend the lead with his second penalty.
Six minutes later the Stormers were in for their first try after a stunning counter attack that started in their own 22m, ended with lock Moerat offloading to scrumhalf Herschel Janties to run in, with Libbok’s extras giving them a 13-0 lead.
La Rochelle flyhalf Antoine Hastoy had a chance to get his side on the board with a 30th minute penalty, but his miss kept his side scoreless as the Stormers took a solid lead into the halftime break.
The second half started with the Stormers extending their lead to 16-0 with a Libbok penalty in the 45th minute, before the visitors came powering back with a dominant final 30-minute showing.
First in the 50th minute La Rochelle got deep into the Stormers 22m, where prop Louis Penverne was driven over the line to score.
Hastoy converted and then added a 54th minute penalty to bring La Rochelle right back into the game with the score 16-10.
The Stormers had been warned a bit earlier for multiple infringements and replacement loose forward Marcel Theunissen was the unlucky player to pick up a yellow card in the 60th minute.
La Rochelle immediately took advantage of the extra man, choosing to tap and go in the Stormers 22m, before captain Gregory Alldritt managed to dive, reach over and dot down, with Hastoy converting to put them into a 17-16 lead after 62 minutes.
The Stormers thought they had struck straight back with a superb switch in play from Libbok seeing inside centre Damian Willemse, who had switched to the wing after the Zas injury, streaking away to score, only for a knock on in the build-up picked up by the TMO to chalk it off.
This allowed La Rochelle to go further ahead in the 68th minute as they setup a lineout in the Stormers 22m and powered a maul over for replacement prop Joe Sclavi to score, giving them a 22-16 lead.
Willemse almost thought he had scored with a stunning break down the line in the 75th minute, but with replacement scrumhalf Paul de Wet in support on his inside, he decided to hold onto the ball and step inside only to be tackled short.
Former Stormers legend Dillyn Leyds received a yellow card as he tried to steal the ball off Willemse on the ground, but was pinged for putting his hand beyond the ball and with it happening on the 5m line the ref had no option but to send him off.
With an extra man for the final five minutes the Stormers spent it in the La Rochelle 22m, as they set up a number of scrums to score from, before Libbok sent a cross kick to wing Suleiman Hartzenberg to go over to score in the final minute leading to the last gasp finish
Stormers: Tries – Herschel Jantjies, Suleiman Hartzenberg; Conversion – Manie Libbok; Penalties: Libbok (3)
La Rochelle: Tries – Louis Penverne, Gregory Alldritt, Joe Sclavi; Conversions – Antoine Hastoy (2); Penalty – Hastoy
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