My Stormers 2025 and onwards...

Where are the Stormers? Champions a few seasons ago, but dropping off the top of the table the last 2 seasons. ATM we are a mid table team.

Well we're 7th on the log after 14 matches, but will probably drop to 9 on the table when this round is concluded...that's not too bad really after our horrendous start to the season.. We finish the season with a run of 4 home matches against teams lower in the rankings than ourselves...Connacht, Benetton, Dragons and Cardiff...My gut tells me we would probably end in about 6th place, which would pair us in the quarters with 3rd on the log...currently the Bools, but it's a close affair between them, Snarks and Glasgow. I can see the Stormers beating any of those three at their home grounds during a normal league match, but it won't be easy in a quarter, never mind a semi...and if you get through that, you have to travel to Dublin for the probable final...there is just no way.

Glasgow did something close to that last season, but I don't see it happening this year...things will pretty much conclude along log positions.

Going forward...I really hope WP Rugby can sort out their financials and start building the team. There is so much talent and potential in and around Cape Town, The Stormers should always be top contenders. The basics are there...we should invest in a few younger front rows. Brock, Malherbe and Neethling Fouche are all past there prime and close to retirement...and another young lock or 2 and we should be good..

Cape Town is an fantastic City and the DHL Stadium is situated in a spectacular setting. The Stormers has a big and loyal fan base...we should build towards the same iconic status Newlands and WP had during most of the 80's...we can do it, it's within our grasp.

More later...

Bob, what would you like to see wrt the branding? I would like the blue and white hoops being more in line with the old school WP jerseys...and it would be nice if the can somehow make room for the red disa somewhere on the jersey...

Their are two problems with the Stormers - one was aand is still maladministration and the other a very ppor ciaching set-up, Combined thise two are part of the sickness called the Stormers.

The Stormers can only improve idf they did what teh Bulls did - sell 74,5% of their sharholding s to Rupert and Montseepe that kept the funding for recruitment of top and promissing players available. They have smalls cal relationship with a rather weaker financiers nd still keep recruitinmg elderly hasbeens for contracting/ Unless the et up is changed and they get better coaching there is zero chance of improvement of the team.

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I think the guys here called it when they said that the Stompies struggle with the line between playing attacking rugby and playing reckless rugby.

For me, Galant personifies the Stormers misgivings. You can't always try to do something fantastic and smart. Sometimes you just have to take the hit and secure the ball. The way that the Stompies lose swathes of ground through getting isolated and/or trying mental stuff, it's unnecessary.

Stormers games are well attended, there is zero need for them to be in financial or any other strife.

Willemse looks like he moight boi goin na Leinster. That would be a massive loss. For me, Willemse is the one in the Stormers backline with the sharpest nose for that line between attacking play over madness.

The Sharks can create scrum penalties, the Bools can create scrum penalties…..the Stormers can’t and even when they do Libbok is likely to miss. Therein lies the biggest difference between the teams.

Sasha is the preferred 10 for the Stormers...Libbok hasn't played in ages.

I thought he was injured

Lol ou Manie. I actually feel sorry for him. Imagine building a rep as an unreliable kicker, and then Sacha turns up and just does everything better thank you...including kicking.

I've listened to Manie talk a few times and he really does sound like a pro. Doesn't drink, doesn't party, trains his backside off and takes it all as seriously as one can.

Must suck to know one is doing all you can and it's still not enough.

Willemse is contracted at the Stormers till 2027. I hope they keep him here. We need him.

He's going to Leinster, Draad. I have a feeling there is truth to the rumours.

Whatever contract he has with Stormers, they'll just buy it out if they want Willemse that badly.

I'd buy him and Sacha in a heartbeat if I could.

Ek haat tjekboek rugby.

Wilemse is a protegee of Rupert and he knows on whcih side his bread is bittered. He is on contract until 2027 amd that is where he will stay, Breach of contract will ifluence his future as a Springbok drastically and that is where it will end. Leinster has a chance of getting him - but after he next WC. If he played for th e S prin gboks in tht series hew ill be one of a rare species in rugby - a third golff mdal in the WC and that will be worth a lot more than Leinmser will offer for him now, .

Looks like we're gonna end up 5th on the log, so we'll play 5th...so it should be the Sharks in Durban...Bools will probably take 2nd..

To win the URC, Stormers will probably have to beat Sharks, Bulls and the Leinster...impossible odds...should pur R100 on it...not.

As to the situation - so much of he comments on this site h the paper it is written on. Much of rugby is best played by thinking players and that is where the difference b etween for instance Sacha and Libbok is, Sacha reads he situation instantly and decide on strategy instantly - it is just an example of why he is a natural at 10, Libbok was taught about playing at 10 and is not a natural thinking player and in executing not really effective, For instance with Sacha kicking the opposing team is put under pressure - with Libbok that is very rarely the case.

As to Willemse there is another isue than what Willemse is offered by Leinster - it is not a real fact only a guess by plum. Willemse and .Sacha are both protegees of Erasmus and thus protegees of Ruport as well, In the end what Rupert in SA rugby says that is what will happen, At this stae there is no change made as to the uture of each - if those two goes anyhere they will go to the Bulls in which Rupert and Mosepe together owns 74,5% of the shares, If any playes like Sacha and Willemse wants to leave their destinaion will be to Pretoria - not anywhere else, The only thing that keeps those two in the Stormers set-up is the fear that White will destroy their potential as backline playes - something White is a specialist in.

We needd to keep our stars and get some of the ones who moved on back...

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We had a good start...and we have a decent draw...and we have Sacha, Danian Willemse, Manie, Roos and a few other Ysters...let's make it count boys.

Huge match coming up vs the Bools in CT tomorrow.

"

Sport

Stormers to bank on pack power, ace playmakers in sold-out Bulls URC derby

UNITED RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP

Leighton Koopman

Stormers flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu is set to return for the north-south derby against the Bulls on Saturday at the DHL Stadium in Cape Town and will be the driving force behind the Cape side’s attack with his bag of tricks.

Image: Stormers Rugby

The unbeaten Stormers are set to roll out their strongest possible side when they host the Bulls at a sold-out DHL Stadium on Saturday (6pm kick-off), in what will be their first United Rugby Championship (URC) north-south derby of the season.

With Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Damian Willemse both set to return after injury layoffs, director of rugby John Dobson suddenly finds himself with the kind of selection headaches coaches love — and that could prove decisive in a fixture that rarely needs extra spice.

Dobson will name his side on Friday, but Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s return at flyhalf feels almost automatic. His combination with Springboks halfback partner Cobus Reinach promises a game at tempo, sharp decision-making and a running threat that will really stress the Bulls’ leaky defence.

Willemse’s reintegration, however, is where things could get a bit tricky. While he is a mainstay at fullback for both club and country, a shift to inside centre — where he has been performing for the Capetonians — could give the Stormers a powerful second distributor and defensive organiser in midfield.

That scenario would see Willemse lining up alongside Wandisile Simelane at outside centre — a mouth-watering prospect for Stormers supporters. Simelane has been electric whenever he’s been given minutes in the URC, consistently beating defenders and punching holes with ball in hand. With Willemse keeping defenders busy on the inside, Simelane could find himself with even more space to exploit when they have the ball in hand.

At the back, maverick Warrick Gelant is likely to reprise his role as chief counter-attacking threat, forming a potential back three with the pace of Dylan Maart and Leolin Zas. Suleiman Hartzenberg’s return from injury adds another layer of intrigue.

While he is pushing hard for a starting berth, his versatility across the backline could make him a valuable impact option off the bench — a potential trump card if the game opens up late.

Up front, the Stormers are expected to stick with a six-two split on the replacement bench, a non-negotiable aspect in a derby that will be decided by physical dominance as much as flair. The starting pack will be tasked with setting the tone early, particularly against a Bulls side boasting one of the most destructive scrums in the competition.

Evan Roos at eighth man, with Paul de Villiers and Ben-Jason Dixon on the flanks, should give the Stormers the mobility and power needed to counter the Bulls’ renowned loose trio. But the real battleground will be the front row. Ntuthuko Mchunu and Neethling Fouché, with André-Hugo Venter between them, look the best-equipped combination to blunt the influence of Wilco Louw and company.

If the Stormers can dominate or hold their own at scrum time, their unbeaten run — and derby bragging rights — should remain intact. If they lose that battle, even at home, the challenge becomes far steeper."

We need to win this, but the Bools is a good team despite their start to the season...they save their best for the Stormers.

Have they got rid of Galant yet hehe.

They really need another good fullback with Willemse. Galant just isn't the guy. He makes one crazy try but causes 50 calamities to do so.

Thus far this year the Stormers played in only 7 URC matches this season. They won all seven amtches played. In only one of the seven matches Sacha and De Villiers only played in only one URC mtach this season - ie againt Benetton. The other six matced Matthee was the flyhalf with the full back was the disgusting Gelant, ,

It s not clear whether Sacha will play in the maytch tomorrow, Matthee was a very effective player ith the Stormers oth er matchwinners being their deadly loosie combination,

I think the Stormers realize they must win the match tomorrow and they are likely to go all -out to assure it happens,

I want to see Willemse at 12. If that means Gelant at 15 so be it.

Playing outside Sascha is the combo that offers so much.

In my opinion, guys like Johnathan Roche, Joshua Boulle and Luke Burger offer the same, if not more, at 12 than Willemse.

Together with Sacha at 10, or Matthee, our backline will be on fire. Willemse should be our fullback, where he is best suited. A much, much better option than Gelant.

And the Stormers pack is more than capable of forcing scrum penalties. Where is the evidence that they can’t?

We will be even more potent with the arrival of Wilco "The Monster" Louw!!

The team was at alst announced and Sacha is at 10 and Willemse at 12. The loosies are 6 Ackerman, & Dixon and 8 Roos. De Villiers is on the bench. Ackerman has not shown much in thema tches he played for the Sormers.

De Villiers is a far better option than Ackerman...Dobbo must be doing his rotational selections.

Mpower

Th real [problem is next week when the S tormers at home must play Harlequins in the Champions Cup game, I think that De Villiers will play in that match,

After today I don’t have much hope for the Stormers tomorrow...hope they can find a way to win, but this was a shitty weekend for Saffa rugga, despite the Lions pulling it off against the foggy lions.

So both the s harks and Bulls were shit yesterday - th resason being that They played basicall y 10 man and at best 11 man rugby.

So yesterday we saw an amazin g display of shot ru gby aimed a t h e to backlines playing a passing game. Somebody should coach the players properly - attackin g vbacklne play -

1. does not entail making two stdeps with the ball and paassing it to th next player at just about walking pace;
2. does not allow for poor passes and ball skills being on display entailing knock-ons and especailly intercepts being regular feat iures.

What we saw yeserday was a shocking performance of abckline incompetence by the flyhalfs - not surprisin g since the Bulls with White as coach last ear did reasobnably well wiorth forward dominance and total ack of backline play and shot kicking by the flyhalfs and by Le Roux when he joined and shockngly poor passing.and inaccurate and aimess kicking as well.

The result was a combinatio of something reltin g to touch rugby and in general shit backline play. Instead of controlling the game the two flyhalfss secialize in shit attacks and defense, The oly impression I gained was bad coaching of backline players - something lacking totally whi;e Whte was the coach of the Bulls and Pinetree of the Sharks. Foward dominanace was the only allowable method last year and losses were expected in the play-offs,

What I saw yesterday was seriousy defective and aimless backline play with defense not being effective either, In other words it was in both cases Jake-ball rugby deteriorated firther than it was last season with especially poor abckline attacking and dfefensive play.

To be quie frank Pollard was particularly poor at flyhalf and fo every one thing Pollard and Le Roux did for the Bulls - they fucked up royally twice. Up to a point the teo teams did well in the period 2023 to 2025 with foward dominance cobined with idiotic backline play, This season the forward domination went out of the door and backline play remains shit like it wa in the same period, F act is that hus fr this year Pollard was poorr for both the S pringboks and the Bulls - so he obviously will not make the grade by 2027.

So what will hapen in the match todaya gainst Harlequins? I have my doubnts about this match. The Stormers will be without the Trump cards they used this year - namey Sacha and the star loosies in Roos and De Villiers, With does three players not in the team - it would seem to be a frst defeat this season for the Stormers,

On looking at the team again - there are a few positives as well, Theone being Matthee at flyhalf. Matthee layed in 7 of the ten URC matches played this season playing in 7 matches - making him the top flyhaf this year in all URC matches. H himself claime that he rpactice a lot with Sacha and learned frrom that, It may not be as bad a loss of Sacha in the match as the case is at first glance,

Inte case of the S tormers they suffer from center injuries this season - so hey are trying a combination of Matthee and Wilemse to play in teh key flyhalf an d inside center posiions - but that leaves stuid shit like Gelant in the key full back position.

As to the loosies the real situation is apthetic as well. I do not really rate D ixon as a top class 7 = Theunissen was baetter in that position than Dixon - fact is even though the latter is in the Springbok squad I personaly do not rate him as a top class loosie performer, Louw was brilliant n school rugby and in Under 20 rugby series and is one of the real stars in the making - - so judging on the past he may become a key future Sprin gbok loosie, I have seen very littl of him in any form of rugby and his eprformnc today is a frst on frnchise level and I willw atch keenly how this younster perform in hsi first match on franchise level. His stats - 1.9 meters tall and wrighing 107 Kgs make him looking like a blindisde oosie than an openside loosie = but thsi wil be one of te mist interesting players to watch out for today/

Another newbe is Luke Burger on the wing. Have enver seen himplay f anyt eam and his satts are skimpy at best, A totally ne player on franchise level - a gamble at best, That was perhaps why the tam seection for today caused me to ebieve the Sormers amy suffer their fir this year - but they do bearing in mind their record thus far surprise us all again. I do think the match will be more intereting to watch than the shit performances of the Bulls and the Sharks yesterday.