Split with Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Manie Libbok and Deon Fourie.
It is all hands on deck for John Dobson’s Stormers against the Lions this Saturday as the Cape side looks to rescue their season after a very slow start.
Veteran Deon Fourie is one of the headline returnees for the clash in what will be his first game since April and he leads the Capetonians from the side of the scrum. This is a massive boost from a leadership standpoint and a breakdown standpoint for the Stormers.
Another veteran returning is the anchor of a tighthead Frans Malherbe who has been sorely missed by Dobson’s men while Ben-Jason Dixon is another high-profile returnee in his standard blindside role. The selection around the returning Boks are fairly standard and second-row Salmaan Moerat brings up 50 caps for the side at DHL Stadium.
Devasting playmakers
Dobson is clearly desperate for the Stormers to right the ship and has opted for an electric 10-12 playmaking axis with Bok duo Manie Libbok and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu who will no doubt be eager to link up with another creator in Warrick Gelant.
The Stormers have only won two from six in the league this campaign which has seen the side absolutely ravaged with injuries to key stars. Finally Dobson has the ingredients to put together a lineup a lot closer to full strength and the director of rugby knows a big one is required against a growing Lions outfit.
“We welcome back some real quality into our team this week and there has been a sense of focused determination within the group.
“These festive derbies are big occasions and we will need to step up against a very competitive Emirates Lions team.
“This will be just our second match at DHL Stadium this season and we know that it will require a big performance to get the result that we need,” he said.
Lineup
Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Suleiman Hartzenberg, 13 Ruhan Nel, 12 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Manie Libbok, 9 Herschel Jantjies, 8 Marcel Theunissen, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Deon Fourie (c), 5 JD Schickerling, 4 Salmaan Moerat, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Ali Vermaak
Replacements: 16 JJ Kotze, 17 Brok Harris, 18 Neethling Fouché, 19 Adré Smith, 20 Willie Engelbrecht, 21 Paul de Villiers, 22 Paul de Wet, 23 Jean-Luc du Plessis
Venue: Cape Town Stadium
Kick-off: 15:45 local
Referee: Christopher Allison (South Africa)
Assistant referees: AJ Jacobs (South Africa), Stephan Geldenhuys (South Africa)
TMO: Marius van der Westhuizen (South Africa)
