As the Stormers XXIII gear up for their clash with the Vodacom Bulls XV at Loftus Versfeld this Saturday, they'll be led by centre Josh Boulle, stepping in as captain for the SA Rugby U23 Cup match. Fresh off a 21-10 victory over the Sharks U23, the squad is making the trek to Pretoria sans any Junior Springboks, setting the stage for a game that will test new strategies and team dynamics.
Joining Boulle in the midfield will be Bruce Sherwood, while Ezekiel Ngobeni takes over the wing position from the injured Suleiman Hartzenberg. Asad Moos and Kyle Smith will be orchestrating plays as the halfback duo. The loose trio sees Keke Morabe flanked by Aden da Costa and a recuperated Divan Fuller. The starting line-up also features a completely revamped tight five; Alex Groves and Adam de Waal lock down the second row, with Mhleli Khuzwayo and Herman Lubbe as props and Vernon Paulo at hooker.
Stormers XXIII coach, Labeeb Levy, is bracing for the challenge the new line-up brings, focusing on synergy amid the shifts.
"With the Junior Springboks unavailable and a few injuries from our first match, we have had to change things up a bit, but we are excited to see how some of the new faces perform,"
Levy explained. He anticipates a tough battle in Pretoria but remains confident following a productive training week.
Levy also reflected on the lessons learned from their previous game, emphasizing the need for improvement.
"It is always a tough encounter up in Pretoria and after a good training week we are ready to give it a full go up there. There were a few important lessons we took out of our first match in Durban, so hopefully we see an improvement in certain standards,"
he added.
The match is scheduled to kick off at 2 PM, setting the stage for what promises to be a fiercely contested encounter.
STORMERS XXIII: 15 JC Mars, 14 Ezekiel Ngobeni, 13 Josh Boulle (c), 12 Bruce Sherwood, 11 Mfundo Ndhlovu, 10 Kyle Smith, 9 Asad Moos, 8 Keke Morabe, 7 Aden da Costa, 6 Divan Fuller, 5 Alex Groves, 4 Adam de Waal, 3 Herman Lubbe, 2 Vernon Paulo, 1 Mhleli Khuzwayo. Bench: 16 Scarra Ntubeni, 17 Matthew Beckett, 18 Hencus van Wyk, 19 CJ Gordon, 20 Aiden Norris, 21 Alutha Wesi, 22 Dominic Malgas, 23 Luke Burger.
2,100 posts
As the Stormers XXIII gear up for their clash with the Vodacom Bulls XV at Loftus Versfeld this Saturday, they'll be led by centre Josh Boulle, stepping in as captain for the SA Rugby U23 Cup match. Fresh off a 21-10 victory over the Sharks U23, the squad is making the trek to Pretoria sans any Junior Springboks, setting the stage for a game that will test new strategies and team dynamics.
Joining Boulle in the midfield will be Bruce Sherwood, while Ezekiel Ngobeni takes over the wing position from the injured Suleiman Hartzenberg. Asad Moos and Kyle Smith will be orchestrating plays as the halfback duo. The loose trio sees Keke Morabe flanked by Aden da Costa and a recuperated Divan Fuller. The starting line-up also features a completely revamped tight five; Alex Groves and Adam de Waal lock down the second row, with Mhleli Khuzwayo and Herman Lubbe as props and Vernon Paulo at hooker.
Stormers XXIII coach, Labeeb Levy, is bracing for the challenge the new line-up brings, focusing on synergy amid the shifts.
"With the Junior Springboks unavailable and a few injuries from our first match, we have had to change things up a bit, but we are excited to see how some of the new faces perform,"
Levy explained. He anticipates a tough battle in Pretoria but remains confident following a productive training week.Levy also reflected on the lessons learned from their previous game, emphasizing the need for improvement.
"It is always a tough encounter up in Pretoria and after a good training week we are ready to give it a full go up there. There were a few important lessons we took out of our first match in Durban, so hopefully we see an improvement in certain standards,"
he added.The match is scheduled to kick off at 2 PM, setting the stage for what promises to be a fiercely contested encounter.
STORMERS XXIII: 15 JC Mars, 14 Ezekiel Ngobeni, 13 Josh Boulle (c), 12 Bruce Sherwood, 11 Mfundo Ndhlovu, 10 Kyle Smith, 9 Asad Moos, 8 Keke Morabe, 7 Aden da Costa, 6 Divan Fuller, 5 Alex Groves, 4 Adam de Waal, 3 Herman Lubbe, 2 Vernon Paulo, 1 Mhleli Khuzwayo. Bench: 16 Scarra Ntubeni, 17 Matthew Beckett, 18 Hencus van Wyk, 19 CJ Gordon, 20 Aiden Norris, 21 Alutha Wesi, 22 Dominic Malgas, 23 Luke Burger.