Preview: Stormers v Crusaders
1999 was the last time a Super Rugby semi was won by an away side. Can the Crusaders repeat that feat in Cape Town this Saturday?
You'd have to go back to 1999 to see when the last outfit won an away semi. One was the Crusaders, who play the Stormers at Newlands this Saturday.
An unbelievable statistic in truth that might just give the Cape Town franchise a little extra belief in what has been a strange build-up to this clash.
The Western Cape side were the ones who had earned themselves a two-week break due to their finishing in the top positions at the end of the regular-season, but it is not they who are rested and boosted by returning players. In fact they are minus powerful back-row Duane Vermeulen while the Crusaders welcome back Richie McCaw.
Strange how these things work out as now some voices are swaying towards the week off factor being something of a hindrance. We'll soon know.
Crusaders backs coach Daryl Gibson has already revealed that the travelling New Zealanders are boosted by the knowledge they have already won in Cape Town this season, with a depleted XV no less. For those who don't remember, it was when Israel Dagg, Sean Maitland, Kahn Fotuali'i and Adam Whitelock departed injured.
That game on Saturday, May 7 poked a lot of holes in the Stormers side, who were themselves missing a key player in the shape of playmaker Peter Grant. They now realise though they would not get a better chance to beat these Kiwis. They blew it, plain and simple, but that shouldn't rule them out of repeating their 2010 win this week.
Some may scoff at such a suggestion but stranger things have happened. There is little doubt in our eyes that the Stormers are the number one franchise playing in South Africa at the moment. While the Sharks were good against the Bulls, the Bulls have not been that good all season, which the Crusaders highlighted in their demolition of the Durbanites last week. Therefore the Stormers will run their visitors close, if not crack the Cantabrian code.
How? Well they will need to tick off a handful of tasks at Newlands from the below list to stand a decent chance of making it into back-to-back Super Rugby final appearances.
One: Jean de Villiers must win his personal battle with Sonny Bill Williams. Two: Schalk Burger must do his utmost to keep Dan Carter as quiet as he has been during recent weeks. Three: They must get Gio Aplon into the game as much as possible. Four: Rynhardt Elstadt must match Brad Thorn's physicality.
Difficult of course and negative yes, but that is how the Stormers can win this one. Let's be honest, they are not going to outplay their 'fresh' and star-studded visitors.
Those visitors come into this clash arguably one player shy of their strongest XV. That man is full-back Dagg but even he would have been impressed with the form understudy Tom Marshall has been displaying during recent weeks. Marshall is similar to Dagg in that he is a gliding runner and backs himself for a gap. He again joins forces with Zac Guildford and Sean Maitland, who'll look to pick off any spaces in this stingy Stormers' defensive line.
And what a win it would be for the Kiwis in the aftermath of what has gone on in Christchurch, something Todd Blackadder cannot praise his players for enough.
“We are a beacon of hope for the community and the guys want to do well for the Crusaders supporters when they're going through such hardships,” he said on Thursday.
“To make excuses is not what we're about and I've not heard one excuse from any of our guys, which shows how committed they are to the cause.”
Ones to watch:
For Stormers: Injury may have ruled out the in-form Duane Vermeulen, but his replacement Nick Koster is no slouch. He may not possess the same blockbusting physical dimensions as Vermeulen, but Koster brings raw energy and commitment to the cause in defence as well as attack. Koster may not necessarily follow the blueprint of your average South African eight, but he has been huge when coming on as a replacement and deserves his big break.
For Crusaders: It's hard to pick a key player out of the Crusaders team when there are so many big names. We haven't seen much of him this season, and that's precisely why all eyes will be on the one and only Richard Hugh McCaw. The All Blacks skipper has not played for the Crusaders in over a month because of a foot injury, but his team will be elated to have him back. A superb ability to read the game puts McCaw in the right place at the right time, which spells trouble for the Stormers. Whether he lasts the full 80 minutes or not, McCaw will return fresh and hungry to disrupt Saturday's hosts.
Head-to-head: Jean de Villiers versus Sonny Bill Williams. The surest way to neuter the deadly Crusaders' outside backs is to apply some squeeze on their supply of quality ball. If the more experienced JDV can get to the multi-talented SBW quickly enough, the physical attention De Villiers delivers (or has the potential of delivering rather) may well be enough to rattle a player who, however gifted, still has his weaknesses.
Prediction: It will be a battle royale, but we are on the Crusaders by 8!
The teams:
Stormers: 15 Conrad Jantjes, 14 Gio Aplon, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Peter Grant, 9 Dewaldt Duvenage, 8 Nick Koster, 7 Francois Louw, 6 Schalk Burger (c), 5 Andries Bekker, 4 Rynhardt Elstadt, 3 Brok Harris, 2 Tiaan Liebenberg, 1 Wicus Blaauw
Replacements: 16 Deon Fourie, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Anton van Zyl, 19 Schalk Brits, 20 Louis Schreuder, 21 Juan de Jongh, 22 Johann Sadie.
Crusaders: 15 Tom Marshall, 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Robbie Fruean, 12 Sonny Bill Williams, 11 Zac Guildford, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Andy Ellis, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 6 George Whitelock, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brad Thorn, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Corey Flynn, 1 Wyatt Crockett.
Replacements: 16 Quentin MacDonald, 17 Ben Franks, 18 Luke Romano, 19 Matt Todd, 20 Kahn Fotuali'i, 21 Matt Berquist, 22 Ryan Crotty.
Date: Saturday, July 2
Kick-off: 17:10 (15:10 GMT)
Venue: Newlands, Cape Town
Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Jaco Peyper (South Africa), Stefan Breytenbach (South Africa)
Television match official: Shaun Veldsman (South Africa)
By Adam Kyriacou