Stormers director of rugby John Dobson says they are hoping to build on last week’s win against the Lions and get one over their coastal rivals.
The Stormers have announced a strong side to play the Sharks in their United Rugby Championship (URC) return leg derby at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday (kick-off 5pm).
The Stormers have won five of their last six games against the Sharks, though the latter took the win in Durban last month. The Sharks have not won at Cape Town Stadium since May 2021.
The Sharks narrowly beat the Bulls 20–17 in another URC derby last weekend to take them up to fourth on the overall table. They are now fifth.
The Stormers earned a more convincing bonus-point victory against the Lions (final score 29–10) but still have a ways to go as they linger in 13th place on the table. Still, they are second in the South African shield behind the Sharks.
Stormers squad announced
Fullback Warrick Gelant will play his 50th game for the Stormers, where a big crowd of over 40 000 spectators are expected.
There are just three changes to the matchday squad that secured the crucial win against the Lions.
The injured Leolin Zas is replaced on the left wing by Seabelo Senatla, while tight forwards Andre-Hugo Venter and Ruben van Heerden are included among the replacements for the last match of the year.
Director of rugby John Dobson said that his team is hoping to build on last week’s win and end the year on a high.
“It makes such a difference playing at Cape Town Stadium and this weekend we have got a huge crowd turning up, which should make for quite an occasion,” he said.
“We know there are a few areas we can improve on and want to keep that upward trajectory going in what will be a tough match against a quality side.
“We have kept some continuity in selection and hopefully we see even more fluency in these combinations on Saturday.”
Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Suleiman Hartzenberg, 13 Ruhan Nel, 12 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 11 Seabelo Senatla, 10 Manie Libbok, 9 Herschel Jantjies, 8 Marcel Theunissen, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Deon Fourie (captain), 5 JD Schickerling, 4 Salmaan Moerat, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Ali Vermaak.
Replacements: 16 Andre-Hugo Venter, 17 Brok Harris, 18 Neethling Fouché, 19 Ruben van Heerden, 20 Willie Engelbrecht, 21 Paul de Villiers, 22 Paul de Wet, 23 Jean-Luc du Plessis.
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Kolisi, Richardson and Van Heerden return to Sharks lineup
The Sharks announced their squad earlier on Friday.
Number 8 Siya Kolisi returns from injury to lead the side while hooker Dylan Richardson and lock Emile van Heerden also return from injury.
Ethan Hooker shifts from centre to wing to accommodate the absence of Makazole Mapimpi, with Jurenzo Julius getting a start after wearing the number 23 jersey last week.
