Morgan Bolton
Underdogs?
There will be no such talk from the Lions as they seek to topple the Stormers in the United Rugby Championship (URC) this weekend in a crunch tie that will decide their play-off fate.
The Lions travel to the Cape Town Stadium ninth in the standings on 49 points, knowing that only victory – a bonus-point one preferred – will see them into the top eight of the tournament and contesting the quarter-finals for the first time. The Stormers, meanwhile, are in sixth having already qualified for the play-offs and are mathematically assured of Champions Cup rugby next season.
They are buoyed by homeground advantage, and two good victories on the road against the Dragons (44-12) and Connacht (19-16). The Lions, too, resume the final round with two victories under their wing, having dispatched Cardiff 34-13 and Glasgow Warriors 44-21 at Ellis Park.
Nevertheless, the Stormers have lost only once this season at home in the URC – a shock defeat to the Ospreys in April – so one can be forgiven for believing that the Lions are already on the back foot. That, however, is not how Lions scrumhalf Morne van den Berg sees it.
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“I haven’t felt that tag at all in the last two weeks,” said Krappie yesterday. “If we are labelled underdogs, then ja, it is that. Definitely in the camp, we don’t feel inferior.”
Assistant coach and former Springbok Jaque Fourie also shrugged his shoulders nonplussed by any such notion, saying: “Any team would prefer to be the underdogs for a game with everyone writing you off and not giving you a chance.
“We all know that whenever your back is against the wall and you have nothing to lose, you are a dangerous team. We don’t mind going into this team as the underdogs.
“The last three, four games, the way we have been playing, we have a lot of confidence. Hopefully, we can continue with that confidence and build on that.”
The Joburgers remain the only South African side in the URC era to beat the former champions in Cape Town, securing a 19-37 victory in 2021. It is the Lions’ only victory over their coastal neighbours in five league games.
Earlier this season, in the opening round of the competition, the Stormers travelled to Ellis Park to secure a narrow 35-33 win. The Capetonians had thought that they had wrapped up that encounter by the 41st minute when they took a commanding 30-7 lead, but an irrepressible Lions side went on the rampage, scoring four unanswered tries in the second half to come close in affecting a remarkable comeback.
It was a poor first half, however, which the Lions will seek to avoid this time around, while also managing a desperate need to win.
“We are only human,” Fourie mused, about keeping their emotions in check. “We will always have that thought in the back of the head that it is a must- win for us.
“But I think with the players we have and the season that we have got, we are process driven. If we do what we have trained for during the week and we stick to our basics, then 90% of the time we come out victorious.
“Even though it is a big occasion, we need to stick to our structures and what we want to achieve. The end result will take care of itself.”
Fourie added that there were no injury concerns ahead of the match. Captain Marius Louw, who missed the Glasgow match with a sketchy knee, should also be fit. Only the three-match suspension of Ruan Venter will be of immediate concern regarding the matchday 23.