The Stormers are preparing for wet underfoot conditions in their United Rugby Championship final against the Bulls at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday.
And while assistant coach Dawie Snyman says they won’t tinker too much with their game plan for the decider, the Capetonians know that they will have to be op dit.
Snyman says: “This week is quite wet, but it looks like it’s going to stop on Wednesday [today] and then come back on Saturday again. Fortunately we’ve got an opportunity to train in it this week, so, ja, we’re prepping for slippery and wet conditions on Saturday.”
Known as a team that likes to take the ball wide with their gevaarlike backs Manie Libbok and Warrick Gelant running the show, Snyman says they will have to think carefully about how they are going to create opportunities on Saturday.
He adds of their approach to the match: “I don’t think we will change anything - we’re still a team that’s looking for opportunities and wherever we can find it, we’ll take it. In terms of conditions we’ll have to adjust and be clever and make sure we get our tactics right.”
Flanker Deon Fourie, who started his Stormers career as a hooker more than a decade ago, knows exactly what a wet surface means in terms of set pieces - a battle that will go a long way in determining the outcome of the clash.
Fourie says: “Scrums will get a bit difficult to get your footing down and keep the scrum up. It’s going to be up to the front row and the referee to handle those conditions.
“The field is not the best at the moment for scrums, but hopefully it can keep up just for one more game.”
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He adds of the fight for the ball at the breakdown: “It goes both ways. It’s going to be scrappy, but we’ll see on Saturday. You know Cape Town weather - hopefully on Saturday the sun will be shining.”
5️⃣ DAYS TO GO!
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