The Stormers face a stiff first test against Irish giants Leinster in their URC season opener in Cape Town on Friday night.
Stormers hooker Andre-Hugo Venter says that they will be looking to combat the high tempo rugby of United Rugby Championship (URC) defending champions Leinster, with a physical performance, when the two teams collide in their season opener in Cape Town on Friday.
The Stormers will be hoping to get their season off to a strong start, but face a massive challenge against the Irish giants, although it is arguably a pretty even playing field, as neither side is at full strength, missing a number of their international stars.
The hosts are known for their expansive play, but Venter admitted that they would be aiming to up the physicality against a well-drilled Leinster side that are themselves an expansive team, backed by a powerful defence.
High tempo
“Cape Town isn’t very hot yet, so I think they will try to pump up the tempo of the game. But we have our own plans for the game and we will try our best to implement them,” explained Venter.
“We are going to try our best to put in a massive physical performance. We pride ourselves on our work ethic, we will always work for each other. If there’s a scramble ball, or if we have to chase back when somebody makes a mistake, we will do our best to cover each other’s backs.
“That’s one thing we will always see from a Stormers side, we will never stop fighting for each other. And then obviously playing for our fans, those are things you will see from us this weekend.”
Although they have been handed a very tricky start to the season against Leinster, Venter believes it couldn’t be a better challenge for the team, against a side that has grown even more formidable since the arrival of former Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber.
“We couldn’t have asked for better. I think it’s (one of) the first start for us in the URC at home, so what better way than to start off against the previous season’s champions. It is really going to be a massive game and I hope that the fans show up,” said Venter.
“They are a world class side. They won the URC last season and we all know their track record in the European (Champions) Cup.
“They’re a formidable side, we all know coach Jacques well, and the incredible defensive impact he has on teams. So it’s going to be a tough challenge for us this weekend, but we are really looking forward to it.”
Proper pre-season
Most of the Stormers URC squad received a solid break after the season ended in June, with only a few players being involved in the Currie Cup, and towards the end of the competition, and Venter believes that will benefit them going into the current campaign.
“This is the first time that we have had a good break with a proper pre-season. A lot of the guys did not feature much in the Currie Cup, so we got a little bit of off time,” said Venter.
“The guys that had to sort out (injury) niggles with surgeries did their own thing and came back with a proper pre-season. So I think everybody is itching to go and is fired up.
“Everyone is very excited and really looking forward to the season. We had a camp last week in George. It was a good break away with the group, getting connections going with each other and having chats we normally wouldn’t have at home, because everyone leaves after training.
“So everybody is really looking forward to this weekend. We know it is going to be a massive challenge, but I think it’s going to be awesome.”
