Stormers pack must front up against international stars

Stormers prop Neethling Fouche has highlighted the scrum battle as a key component in the United Rugby Championship so far this season.

In their two games to date, the Stormers have faced five front-row players with international experience, while hooker Scarra Ntubeni is the only player in the Stormers team to have played for the Springboks, in one game off the bench.

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“Coming into this new tournament, for us props we knew it was going to be a good test of our abilities,” Fouche said.

“The first week against Benetton we scrummed against an Argentinean international and then against Munster we scrummed against (David) Kilcoyne who is an Irish international.

“So obviously we have to know our technique coming up against these guys. There is nowhere to hide and it is nice to test yourself against them as it gives you confidence going forward, playing against international guys in the Northern Hemisphere.

“I am just glad that we have built on our scrum performance. Having Brok (Harris) back is lekker, and with Scarra in the middle and the back five bringing nice pressure, it is looking up for us.”

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The Stormers will be looking for a full 80-minute performance when they face Edinburgh on Saturday, after they let it slip in the second half against Munster last week.

Key to putting in a more rounded performance will be limiting the amount of penalties and adding some much needed patience to their game.

“Our problem has been our discipline. I feel like the sides here stay very disciplined, they don’t rush it, they just stay patient and for us that has been a learning curve,” Fouche said.

“You have to be patient, you have to be disciplined in how you clean out the rucks and how you present for the scrumhalf.

“But we are quite excited with what we have seen in our game. It has been in bits and pieces but if we can just get in an 80-minute performance we are quite excited to see where we can go.”