Jean must light the fire
GET ready for the Jean and Juan show at Newlands tonight!
The Stormers backs have misfired so far this season, and it is captain Jean de Villiers and his Springbok centre partner Juan de Jongh who will have to turn things around against the Blues tonight.
De Villiers has been critical in the last two weeks following his team’s dismal attacking displays against the Hurricanes and Sharks, and he knows that in order to challenge for a place in the Springbok team later this year, he needs to start producing his best form.
The Bok veteran, who turned 31 at the end of last month, has cut a frustrated figure outside Gary van Aswegen in the first two games. He tried to straighten the line and attack the inside channels as the ball he was getting was too slow to move out wide. On that front, the injury-enforced absence of regular skipper Schalk Burger has also affected the Stormers’ attack, as he often instigated moves by roaming between the flyhalf and inside centre space with wide, long passes, or by providing momentum with charges up the middle.
But with Peter Grant back at No 10, and the fact that scrumhalf Dewaldt Duvenage should be much sharper as he works his way back to full fitness and match-sharpness following his long-term toe problem, there should be much more zip for De Villiers and De Jongh to work with, which will allow them more space to operate in.
Now that Jaque Fourie is playing in Japan, De Jongh finally has the rights to the Stormers’ No 13 jersey. He also had a slow start to the season following a jaw injury sustained in a pre-season game against the Lions, which meant that he had to miss the Hurricanes match in the opening round. He returned to the team against the Sharks, but with the Stormers backline again not running at full tilt, he got a minimal supply of possession to work with.
The 23-year-old from Wellington, though, won’t want to be out of the action for too long, and what better way for him to make his mark than against All Black superstar Ma’a Nonu? Having committed to the Stormers for the next three years this week, De Jongh will be keen to showcase his sidestep tonight.
Blues coach Pat Lam spoke glowingly about Nonu’s contribution in helping rookie pivot Gareth Anscombe in his baptism against the Bulls at Loftus last week, but both men will face a very different challenge at Newlands tonight. Where Morné Steyn isn’t much of a threat with ball-in-hand, Grant certainly is, and the Stormers flyhalf is sure to attack Anscombe’s channel. As a result, Nonu may feel the need to cover his young pivot, and that may give De Villiers and De Jongh the opportunity to strike.
The Stormers pack should definitely win more than enough ball against a Blues unit missing some heavyweights in All Blacks Tony Woodcock, Anthony Boric and Jerome Kaino, so with all that front-foot possession, the Stormers will hope to silence all those local Blues fans under the Danie Craven Stand!