Manie the ‘magician’ is Stormers’ danger man, say Glasgow Warriors

Stormers flyhalf Manie Libbok has been singled out as the Cape-based team’s main man and key operator by the Glasgow Warriors ahead of their United Rugby Championship quarter-final match in Scotland on Saturday.

Libbok has been a standout player for the Stormers in the last three seasons of the URC and he also played a key role for the Springboks in their World Cup triumph in France last year.

‘Manie Libbok one of best 10s’

The No 10 playmaker was this week called “a magician” by the Warriors coaching team and they have made it clear they will look to target the Stormers flyhalf in Saturday’s big last-eight game at Scotstoun.

“The Stormers are an extremely physical team but they’ve also got massive X-factor and one of the best 10s in the business in Manie Libbok,” Glasgow attack coach Nigel Carolan said on Monday, according to The Scotsman.

“I think if you can quieten him and get him off his game they don’t function as well and it’s going to be important we make sure there’s plenty heat on him at Scotstoun, on both sides of the ball.

“He’s a magician and if you can take some of that flair and magic away you can make them ordinary enough.”

‘Focus on us’

Carolan though acknowledged the Stormers, who won the title in the first season of the URC and were runners up last season, are not a one-man team.

“It’s not all about him. We’re trying to focus on the things that work well for us and not necessarily just going after one guy.

“You can lose your focus if you focus too much on the opposition and less on what you do, so we’ve got to focus on the things that have got us to the knockout stage and make sure we bring an excellent version of them.”

The winner of the match, which kicks off at 8.35pm on Saturday, will take on the winner of the quarter-final between defending champions Munster and Ospreys, who play on Friday night, with kick off at 8.35pm.