Stormers steadfast ahead of URC title defence

Stormers assistant coach Rito Hlungwani does not care if the inaugural United Rugby Championship (URC) winners now have a target on their back.

They want to improve anyway as they start the defence of their title later this month against Connacht in round two of the new tournament. The URC kicks off on September 16, while the Stormers will host the Irish outfit on September 24 at Danie Craven Stadium in Stellenbosch.

“When we met up again our main focus was how can we get better than we were last season‚” Hlungwani said. “We can’t control how teams see us or how they play against us. What can we do better to get us into the same position?

“Whether there is a target on our back doesn’t matter. We just want to get better.”

Guided by the “if it ain’t broke” principle, Hlungwani says it is now about refinement.

He argues the Stormers will not fundamentally shift from what worked for them last season.

“In the past couple of years‚ at the start of the season we would try to find our style. Maybe for the first time now we know who we are and we are looking to improve on that.

“We won’t be trying new things. We will keep the things that worked for us. It is a good position to be in when you consider where we were in Super Rugby.

“Our preseason was totally different because in the past it would have been ‘guys‚ what is our game model?’ Everyone is clear how we want to play and win games. The players have clarity.”

Though they succeeded in their mission to bring joy to the Mother City last season, not all the forces within the sport in that region have worked towards a common goal. Much boardroom upheaval dogged the province before SA Rugby placed it under its administration last year.

Hlungwani does not know whether the team’s success has proved a unifying force but stressed that whatever happens outside the team environment will not affect the team.

“We’ve have a nice tight group of players‚ and a nice tight coaching staff. None of those things really got into our circle. ‘Dobbo’ [head coach John Dobson] was quite good keeping it that way. Our main aim was to make Cape Town smile.”

Hlungwani admitted it was hard to comprehend the team’s stunning success in the first URC. He barely gave himself time to celebrate before the defence of the title started gnawing away at his psych.

“That first hour after the win is fun but then you start thinking ‘how can we do it again next season?’ So you pop in and out of moments of celebration‚” he said.

“I don’t think it has sunk in yet. Now and then you think‚ ‘Oh yes‚ we are the champions’. We still see ourselves as the underdogs going into the next competition.”