Stormers riding high thanks to their pack

The Stormers have their Springbok-laden pack and offensive defence to thank for the unbeaten start to their Super Rugby campaign. The Cape franchise are four-for-four and have amassed 17 points from a possible 20, placing them top of the overall standings for the first time.

But it is still early days in the competition and premature to start talking up their chances of winning a maiden title.  

Coached for the first time by John Dobson, the Stormers had downed the Hurricanes, Bulls and Lions, before seeing off the Argentinian-based Jaquares 17-7 at a wet Newlands on Saturday, their third time at the venue that they will vacate at the end of the season.

Dobson’s men return to their home base on Saturday for a cross-conference clash with the Blues, who floored the Bulls 23-21 last Saturday thanks to a last-gasp penalty that netted the New Zealanders a second victory from four starts.

The Stormers at this stage of the 15-team competition have conceded the fewest number of points (39) and tries (four). And that is down to the front eight dominating their opposite numbers and an all-hands-on-deck defensive effort.

The scrum has been rock-solid, the tackling in the tight exchanges equally impressive, and when under the cosh, each member of the team has put their bodies on the line.

But the perfect performance still eludes Dobson’s men. Basic errors were made by both sets of players and try-scoring opportunities were  butchered, hence they have collected just two bonus points from tries scored.

Dobson, however, is not too concerned that there has been no reward from 10-plus phases. “We’re not a team like Exeter or the Rebels who want to build 10-15 phases. A lot of the stats show that the more closer you get to seven phases, the next five or seven phases, the less likely you are to score. We’re a team that want to try to strike, that means pushing the envelope a little bit.

“Our players’ DNA is to try to create, not a mundane phase-based team. Of course, we would like to have more patience with the ball through the phases with less mistakes,” he stressed.

“On Saturday in that first half, which I thought we dominated, we only got turnover ball four times in their 22, so that is a bit of a concern. But we must remember it was raining at Newlands pretty much for most of the game against a team which, I think, every player has a Test cap.”