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Evan Roos was injured during the Stormers' clash with Racing 92 in the Champions Cup on Saturday. Picture: GALLO IMAGES/ASHLEY VLOTMAN
Evan Roos was injured during the Stormers' clash with Racing 92 in the Champions Cup on Saturday. Picture: GALLO IMAGES/ASHLEY VLOTMAN

The Stormers may have to go into their most challenging match of the season without the all-action No 8 Evan Roos.

The Cape side take on high-flying Leinster in Dublin in the United Rugby Championship (URC) on Saturday and they need all hands on deck.

The Stormers were hoping to deploy a full strength line-up after keeping their powder dry against Racing 92 last weekend but the injury to Roos may complicate matters.

Roos was injured in Saturday’s Champions Cup clash against Racing 92 in Paris.

The shoulder of home team hooker Feleti Kaitu’u connected with the Stormers No 8’s left cheekbone.

The cheekbone showed significant swelling but Roos played to the final whistle. Kaitu’u’s actions went unpunished.

The Stormers went into that clash with a weakened team as backs Manie Libbok, Warrick Gelant and Leolin Zas, among others, looked on from the stands while their teammates did duty at the La Defense Arena last weekend.

They are likely to be thrust into battle against the URC log leaders this weekend.

Leinster have been in imperious form this season. They went unbeaten through their four pool matches in the Champions Cup and have won all nine matches in the URC to sit atop the standings 10 points clear of second placed Glasgow Warriors.

The Stormers’ form is less convincing. They are 10th with four wins from eight matches but their recent form in the URC is decent, with wins on home soil over the Lions and Sharks.

The Stormers received a boost before Saturday’s clash with the news that experienced tighthead prop Neethling Fouché has signed a three-year contract extension.

Since joining the squad in 2018, Fouché has earned 88 Stormers caps with 36 for Western Province and should add significantly to those, having signed a new contract that will keep him in the blue and white until at least 2028.

Director of rugby John Dobson said he expects the 32-year-old to become more influential for the Stormers over the next three years.

Neethling is an incredible team man and as a tighthead prop is coming into his prime so we are looking forward to bigger things from him.

He competes with one of the greatest tight heads in Frans Malherbe and keeps pushing his standards, so it is understandable that many other teams would love to have a player of Neethling’s stature in their squad.

He is another player who has bought into the project here and plays a key role in helping develop the next generation of front-row stars, so we are thrilled to have him on our books for another three years,”   Dobson said.

Fouché said playing for the Stormers is something he will never take for granted.

Every time I put on the Stormers jersey I get emotional. This team means the world to me and I don’t want to play my rugby anywhere else. 

Driving in to work and staring at Table Mountain, I don’t know where else you can get that.

I have rubbed shoulders with some legends of the game here and will keep pushing myself to improve.

This squad has the potential to achieve great things and we are only at the beginning,” he said. 

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