Stormers weigh up Damian Willemse shuffle for crunch Glasgow clash

The selection headache facing coach John Dobson this week ahead of the Stormers' crunch United Rugby Championship clash with the Glasgow Warriors is where to utilise Springbok star Damian Willemse.

As the Cape side prepares to host the Scottish giants in a top-of-the-table clash, the question reverberating around Cape Town is whether it is time to shift the versatile back to the No 15 jersey or closer to the action at inside centre.

Willemse has played on the wing over the last few matches because of his aerial ability and the amount of contestable kicks being put up in this year’s URC competition.

If he moves to fullback, it will potentially be at the expense of the mercurial, yet increasingly erratic, Warrick Gelant.

Gelant’s ability to conjure magic from nothing remains undisputed, but a string of inconsistent performances has left the Stormers’ backfield looking vulnerable. In a match of this magnitude, the requirement for tactical discipline might just outweigh the need for individual flair.

Assistant coach Dawie Snyman hinted that a reshuffle is very much on the cards, especially with outside back Suleiman Hartzenberg returning to fitness.

Hartzenberg, who has played most of his rugby on the wing this season, is just as good under the high ball, which could see Willemse move to fullback. This would get him into the game a lot more than what we saw of him in Saturday’s defeat at the hands of Connacht.

“I think it is important in terms of some of the tactical areas that we want to go to. I think rugby at this stage is highly contested in the air. It's a lot of kicking and a lot of contests in the air where Damian is world-class,” Snyman said about Willemse’s move to the wing.

“So, if you can have him in that position where he's done really well for us on the wing and contesting in those positions, it also frees him up to attack sort of anywhere on the field. So yeah, he's done a great job for us in that space.

“He can also play 15 really well, obviously, and centre. With Suleiman back, it does open up options for us to maybe move him. But we'll decide in the week exactly where we're going to use him.”

The table-topping Glasgow are likely to make a few changes of their own, with some of their big players set to return for the match following their 54-12 defeat against the Lions at Ellis Park.

Stormers flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu is relishing the prospect of facing a full-strength Glasgow outfit, regardless of who slots in behind him.

“I think naturally it maybe brings an extra percentage to the competitiveness and also emotions from the last time,” Feinberg-Mngomezulu said. “I've played against these guys three or four times and I've still yet to be part of a winning Stormers team against them.”

The young flyhalf is wary of the physical and tactical challenge posed by Glasgow’s stars like Sione Tuipulotu, noting that against their best personnel, “you kind of just know what you're getting”.