There will be no Springbok reinforcements for the Stormers yet as they look to pick up the pieces after a crippling 38-7 loss to Edinburgh this past weekend.
With Munster next in the Mother City, the Cape side sees this clash against the former United Rugby Championship (URC) winners as crucial to get their campaign back on track. But, newly-wed Manie Libbok and Bok tighthead Frans Malherbe will only return ahead of the Glasgow game with both given three weeks off after the Rugby Championship victory.
Director of Rugby John Dobson says his team is looking forward to returning to Cape Town for their first home game of the @Vodacom #URC season at DHL Stadium. #iamastormer #dhldelivershttps://t.co/7SYOBSwDJg
— DHL Stormers (@THESTORMERS) October 13, 2024
After two defeats in their three European tour matches, being back home and in front of their supporters could provide the spark they need to return to winning ways.
But they will have to lift their game massively to achieve that after a flat performance, littered with penalties and handling errors, alongside a below-par refereeing one, saw them concede five tries at the Hive Stadium. The Stormers will be the first to admit they made life difficult for themselves in Edinburgh after conceding 15 penalties.
The frustration on director of rugby John Dobson's face was evident in the Stormers' post-match press conference, although he remained upbeat about their campaign, despite the early losses.
“I don't understand how we didn't get the scrum advantages in the game.”
But it won't be surprising if they knock on the door of the URC referee boss looking for answers to some questionable calls from referee Ben Whitehouse throughout the match.
“I don't understand how we didn't get the scrum advantages in the game, I could go on but I will keep that in-house,” Dobson said, after the match.
“We had a breakdown in the middle of the field, the ball clearly gets scraped back by them (out of the ruck and they end up in our 22 with a line-out. That was not deemed a penalty because it wasn't in the act of scoring a try. We were very frustrated with what happened out there.”
Dobson stopped himself from continuing on the track because, at 38-7, he did not want to sound like he was making excuses. Instead, he said they must take responsibility for the loss.
“Our discipline was poor, I don't know the penalty count yet, but it's going to be a new record for the Stormers.”
“Our discipline was poor, I don't know the penalty count yet, but it's going to be a new record for the Stormers. We made a lot of mistakes and then went into chase mode. Leading up to their first try,
“it was five penalties in a row and a team would score (against you). We had Edinburgh under the pump when we played direct but then we went away from that. The next two will be crucial against Munster, the 2023 champions, and Glasgow, the defending champions.
“If we can get our fizz back at home, then we will be good for the season. This (winning one from three) doesn't feel as bad as last season's zero from four games. If we get those two right, we will be alive and kicking.”