The home team delivered a strong first-half performance in their 24-7 win over Fiji to seal the Cup final early. The Kiwis scored four unanswered tries through Tomasi Cama, DJ Forbes and Frank Halai (2). Fiji hit back via Waisea Nayacalevu and kept New Zealand scoreless after the restart, but they couldn’t surpass the massive half-time deficit.

Meanwhile, Paul Treu’s charges triumphed 24-0 as they dominated an ill-disciplined and fatigued Tongan outfit in the Plate final. They cruised through the first half, scoring three tries via Frankie Horne, Cecil Afrika and Kyle Brown for a 19-0 lead. Afrika scored the only points in the second half to seal the win.

In the Plate semi-final, South Africa edged Canada 21-19.

It was a close encounter against the North American minnows, with both teams scoring three tries apiece. In the end, Cecil Afrika’s goal kicking was the difference as he added all the extras.

Taylor Paris put Canada on the score sheet first before Cornal Hendricks and Brown gave South Africa a 14-7 lead at half-time. Paris grabbed his brace early in the second stanza, but debutant Stephan Dippenaar restored his team’s slim lead. Canada’s Ciaran Hearn then crossed the chalk, but the following conversion was missed. The Blitzboks held on for the win.

Earlier in the day, the Springbok Sevens crashed out of the tournament title race with a 21-5 defeat to Fiji in the Cup quarter-finals.

South Africa opened the scoring with a try through Hendricks, but Fiji went on to dominate the rest of the match as they sealed the win with three unanswered scores through Nemani Nagusa, Osea Kolinisau and Emosi Vucago.

Day two results:
Cup quarter-final: South Africa 5 Fiji 21
Plate semi-final: South Africa 21 Canada 19
Plate final: South Africa 26 Tonga 0

Click here for all results

The match was played in four quarters in front of a crowd of 6,000.

The Blues scored six tries through Jerome Kaino, George Moala, Chris Lowrey, Anthony Boric, Sherwin Stowers and Dan Prior, while Michael Hobbs kicked three conversions.

Replacement Hurricanes flyhalf Beauden Barrett kicked four penalties in the third quarter as his side opted for the three points each time they were within kickable range. They did eventually score a try, though, through Julian Savea, which Barrett converted.

John Mitchell’s Lions deserved their 2011 Currie Cup success, but it is their 2012 Super Rugby campaign that will prove more telling. And it has to be a results-driven one.

Putting in good performances is no longer good enough. Playing good rugby is also not good enough. Winning in 2012 is what has to define the Lions.

Mitchell’s mongrels (said with great affection) are no longer a young squad. This will be their fourth tournament campaign with Mitchell and for all the heroics of their domestic high, the road to the play-offs was made easier because of the World Cup. The Lions, it cannot be ignored, were not affected by national call-ups. There was no disruption from the Super Rugby tournament into the Currie Cup. No other team had such a luxury.

Mitchell’s side struggled in Super Rugby in 2011 because of poor decision-making, inexperience and an inability to translate good intentions into victories.

For every good performance there was the converse a week later. Many of the results were defeats by less than seven points, but that should never be the measurement of a team with any aspiration. To win you only need one more point than your opponent. Those who beat the Lions may feel they won with something to spare.

Lions president Kevin de Klerk has spoken glowingly of Mitchell and his influence at the union. De Klerk said he never stopped believing in the New Zealander and never doubted for a moment that he could transform a team – mocked as circus Lions – into something a bit more intimidating.

The euphoria among the Lions players, management, administration and supporters was understandable after the Currie Cup final win against the Sharks. But the reality of the Lions is that until they deliver a winning Super Rugby season little will have changed.

I am not suggesting they have to win the tournament, but the expectation has to be a top-six – and play-off – finish. The Currie Cup is a feeder competition to Super Rugby. The strength of a team is what they do in Super Rugby and not the Currie Cup.

There is no escaping this reality and the only way to give the Currie Cup success of 2011 credibility is for those same players to win more than they lose against Australia, New Zealand and South Africa’s best. This will also be an important season for Mitchell, who has a reputation for being able to fix a team but not always deliver champions.

I don’t think the Lions have a good enough squad to win the Super Rugby title, so it would be unfair to demand of Mitchell to add it to their Currie Cup crown, but if the hype of dominating a watered down Currie Cup tournament is to be accepted as an accurate reflection of their strength, they can’t be excused a season in which they finish in the bottom three and claim the odd victory.

The Lions in 2011 were the good-news story of South African rugby, more so because it allowed everyone to forget the Springboks’ Tri-Nations and World Cup disasters, in which the Boks finished last in the former and equalled their worst-ever performance at the latter.

The Lions can’t afford to be an illusion similar to the Boks of 2011. There has been no internal analysis of where the Boks went wrong in 2011. There has simply been a collective belief that the Boks were done a dirty by a New Zealand referee.

There has to be a bit more realism attached to the story of the Lions and there are still questions that have to be answered. We’ll get that in the 2012 Super Rugby tournament.

What we will also get is the return of the Bulls. I’m backing them to be the South African team to beat, which doesn’t excuse the Lions finishing outside the top six.

– This column first appeared in the Jan-Feb issue of SA Rugby magazine. The March issue is on sale from 15 February. Click here to subscribe to the print or digital edition.

South Africa trailed 5-0 at the break, but took the lead when Mark Richards scored a try early in the second half. Branco du Preez then beat three defenders to give his side a nine-point cushion.

England scored their second try in the final minute of the match, but the Blitzboks secured the kick-off, won a penalty and booted the ball into touch.

Earlier in the day, Cornal Hendricks scored a brace in South Africa’s 43-0 hammering of the Cook Islands in Wellington.

Paul Treu’s charges shot to a 19-0 half-time lead thanks to tries by Hendricks, Steven Hunt and Boom Prinsloo. Frankie Horne scored soon after the restart while Hendricks added his second two minutes in. Cecil Afrika and Paul Delport added further tries to complete the rout.

The Blitzboks also recorded a 21-0 win over the United States of America. Afrika scored a brace while Hunt also got his name on the scoresheet.

South Africa will play Fiji in the Cup quarter-finals on Saturday.

For all the results, click here.

The game was over as a contest by the end of the first half with the Crusaders racing to a 35-0 lead. Crotty scored three tries in 26 minutes as the Highlanders’ defence battled to cope with Crusaders’ attack.

Highlanders assistant coach Simon Culhane agreed that the hit-out had revealed some defensive weaknesses.

‘We were sorry second in the first half – we didn’t get a lot of ball and they got pretty easy gainline and capitalised from it,’ Culhane said. ‘Our personnel changes in the second half helped. The guys needed to have a game.’

The Chiefs ran in six tries, impressing with their fluid attack against a disjointed defensive line. The Rebels’ new high-profile recruits James O’Connor and Kurtley Beale entered the match in the second quarter but failed to make any telling impact.

Chiefs coach Dave Rennie was pleased with the outcome. ‘It was good to give the whole squad a run with all the players getting at least thirty minutes on the field,’ Rennie said.

‘There was good competition within the squad and I really happy with the defence. There are always plenty of things to work on but it is a good start.’

Rebels coach Damien Hill was forthright in his assessment. ‘Overall it’s disappointing, you don’t like to be beaten by 36 points whether it’s a trial or not,’ Hill said. ‘It highlighted a few areas in attack and defence we need to work on which is what these trials are for.’

The France utility forward was reportedly involved in what the French press described as a heated exchange with coach Pierre Berbizier on Monday night. However, in a statement club president Jacky Lorenzetti merely cited a difference of opinion between the player and team management.

The statement added that Lorenzetti and Chabal had failed to agree terms on a new deal and following a disagreement about the club’s ‘sporting strategy’, the two parties had, ‘decided to put an end to their collaboration and prefer to leave on good terms.’

Toulon are thought to be most likely to sign the 34-year-old.

Last Friday, Saru CEO Jurie Roux confirmed that the Southern Kings will play Super Rugby in 2013. However, he added that it had not been decided how they would be accommodated along with the other five South African franchises (the Bulls, Stormers, Sharks, Cheetahs and Lions) and he hoped that Sanzar would allow all six teams to compete next year. However, Peters said another tournament format change will not be possible for the next three seasons.

‘Sanzar has sold the current structure of Super Rugby to broadcasters and commercial partners for the period ending December 31 2015, so until that time expansion of the competition is not possible,’ Peters told The Times.

This will force Saru to drop one of the current participating South African franchises to make way for the Kings next year, most probably the Cheetahs or Lions, who have enjoyed the least success. However, Saru vice-president Mark Alexander, who is one of Saru’s two representatives on the Sanzar board, dismissed Peters’ statement as he believes a tournament format change is still possible.

‘We still have to meet with our partners in Sanzar. Greg Peters cannot decide there won’t be any expansion of the tournament. That was an irresponsible statement to make. There is a window of opportunity with our partners in Sanzar. We are currently preparing a 16-team schedule so that we can go and debate with them,’ said Alexander.

‘Our relationship with Sanzar has improved tremendously. We are very close to our partners in Australia and we work very closely with New Zealand and our relationship has changed. There is a window of opportunity provided we sell a workable solution about 16 franchises playing in the competition.’

The Stormers’ recent struggles at the scrum prompted coach Allister Coetzee to bring in referee Jonathan Kaplan as a consultant for a live scrumming session on Tuesday. The Stormers believe they are coming to terms with the change to the engagement law, but are hoping that more questions will be answered when they face the Cheetahs this Saturday.

Captain Schalk Burger admitted that the results of these warm-up matches are inconsequential and that it’s the quality of performance that’s important. The Stormers aren’t happy with their recent scrum showing against the Lions nor their display at the defensive breakdowns. While they aim to lift their efforts this Saturday, they will also be looking to Joubert for some practical guidance.

It is, as Burger suggests, important for both teams that they obtain a good understanding of what’s required before the real competition kicks off on 24 February.

‘It’s a warm-up match, it’s not on TV, so you will get the opportunity to have a chat with the ref,’ said Burger. ‘Because it’s played over four chukkas I will have a chance to ask him a few questions during the water breaks.

‘It’s not like Craig is being assessed for this match, so I’m sure I will be able to ask him some questions.’

The Stormers skipper added that he was pleased with last week’s performance on attack, particularly at the breakdown. In Burger’s opinion, the refs are going to be very strict on the breakdown area this season so it’s important that teams shake off the rust and adapt in the warm-up matches.

The Cheetahs have selected Heinrich Brüssow in their starting line-up and he is sure to test the Stormers at the breakdown. Burger highlighted this threat but also suggested that the breakdown competition won’t be a one-on-one contest.

‘The Lions were very good last week, even in the midfield they have some strong players on the ground like Doppies la Grange. We have to make sure that our attacking breakdowns are good once again, and improve our defence. It’s not just about one player doing the job, it’s a team thing.’

WHAT SUPER RUGBY REFS WILL BE LOOKING FOR IN 2012:
Scrum
· Alignment – front rows must be in a position to interlock on engagement; there must be no touching of heads.
· Early engagement – both teams must start the engagement process simultaneously on the referee’s call.
· Engagement angles – front rows must push straight and parallel to the touchlines; loosehead props must not ‘walk’ the scrum around the tighthead.
· Binding – front rankers must bind on their opponent in the appropriate manner; no hands on the ground for support.
· Post-engagement infringements – illegal wheeling on purpose, so-called ‘whip wheeling’ and not pushing straight and parallel to the touchline are all actions to be penalised.

Tackle
· The tackler must release and clear away after the tackle.
· The tackler-assist must release in a clear and obvious manner before going for the ball.
· Arriving players must not go past the ball into an offside position and try to obstruct the opposition going for the ball.
· Players must respect the offside lines at the ruck and maul (the hindmost foot of their player in the ruck or maul).
· Arriving players not attempting to clean-out the opposition must demonstrate positive actions to stay on their feet.
· A player who uses correct technique but ends up off his feet after removing a threat is not penalised.

Assistant referees at Super Rugby level will also be called on to take a more involved approach to the game without becoming an interference or hindrance to the referee. This will involve greater monitoring of offside lines at the ruck and maul and infringements close to the touchline where the referee may be unsighted.

By Jon Cardinelli

Head coach Drotske has named a similar side that beat the Southern Kings (made up of just Border and SWD players) 33-20 last weekend after resting the bulk of his first-choice players during the Cheetahs’ 38-7 win over the Griffons in Welkom on Tuesday.

There are only three changes to the starting line-up that ran out in East London. No 8 Ashley Johnson drops to the bench as flanker Philip van der Walt is promoted. This sees Davon Raubenheimer shifted to eighthman. Lock Andries Ferreira starts ahead of Francois Uys while tighthead prop WP Nel takes the place of Trevor Nyakane in the front row.

The backline remains the same, which means 20-year-old flyhalf Johan Goosen retains the No 10 jersey ahead of Sias Ebersohn.

Cheetahs – 15 Hennie Daniller, 14 Dusty Noble, 13 Robert Ebersohn, 12 Andries Strauss, 11 Rocco Jansen, 10 Johan Goosen, 9 Piet van Zyl, 8 Davon Raubenheimer, 7 Philip van der Walt, 6 Heinrich Brussow, 5 Izak van der Westhuizen, 4 Andries Ferreira, 3 WP Nel, 2 Adriaan Strauss (c), 1 Marcel van der Merwe.
Subs: 16 Lourens Adriaanse, 17 Ryno Barnes, 18 George Earle, 19 Ashley Johnson, 20 Marnus Hugo, 21 Sias Ebersohn, 22 Willie le Roux, 23 Philip Snyman, 24 Ryno Benjamin, 25 Francois Uys.

England will field a new-look team, that sees a total of nine changes to the starting line-up that faced France in the World Cup quarter-final.

Barritt, who will receive his first Test cap, will form a new midfield combination with Saracens team-mate Owen Farrell. Interim head coach Stuart Lancaster has interestingly named the 25-year-old at outside centre. For Saracens, Farrell features in the No 13 jersey while Barritt starts on his inside.

‘To pull on a Test jersey is the ultimate for a player, it is something you dream about as a kid. It will be an immensely proud moment for me and my family to represent England,’ Barritt told reporters.

‘We are blessed in the squad with 32 really talented individuals and Owen and I are going to make our debuts together. I am sure he [Owen] will take to it like a duck to water. You have seen in the past 18 months that any obstacle that has come his way, he has embraced it and taken on the challenge.

‘Having Charlie [Hodgson] and Strets [David Strettle] in the backs means it is a great day for Sarries. But if were to be playing with anybody else I would be just as proud and just as content going into the game.’

Eighthman Phil Dowson also makes his Test debut at the age of 30 while Saffa Mouritz Botha is picked in the second row. On the bench, there are five more uncapped players in hooker Rob Webber, lock Geoff Parling, flanker Ben Morgan, scrumhalf Lee Dickson and centre Jordan Turner-Hall.

England – 15 Ben Foden, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Brad Barritt, 12 Owen Farrell, 11 David Strettle, 10 Charlie Hodgson, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Phil Dowson, 7 Chris Robshaw (c), 6 Tom Croft, 5 Tom Palmer, 4 Mouritz Botha, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Dylan Hartley, 1 Alex Corbisiero.
Subs: 16 Rob Webber, 17 Matt Stevens, 18 Geoff Parling, 19 Ben Morgan, 20 Lee Dickson, 21 Jordan Turner-Hall, 22 Mike Brown.

The defending champions were reduced to 14 men after No 8 Ruan Hugo was red carded, but they still went on to defeat Impis in Maritzburg. Hooker Baksteen van Heerden, wing Nico Steenkamp and skipper and flyhalf Inus Kritzinger capitalised on impressive CUT attacking play to seal the win.

Meanwhile, in Johannesburg, Wits crossed the chalk eight times to trash Fort Hare 58-16. Wits wing Riaan Arends grabbed a brace in the 42-point drubbing.

UKZN 10(5) - Tries: Leon Stevens, Hanno Botha.
CUT 30(18) – Tries: Baksteen van Heerden, Nico Steenkamp, Inus Kritzinger. Conversions: Jannie Myburgh (3). Penalties: Myburgh (2).

Wits 58(21) – Tries: Riaan Arends (2), Brent Crossley, Devin Montgomery, Charles Baggott, Olivier Rochat, Ruan Noeth, Heinke Hartdegen. Conversions: Kyle Peyper (6).
Fort Hare 16(8) - Tries: Garth van Rayner (2). Conversions: Teboho Makuru (2).

The 34-year-old ended his Test career against the Wallabies in Cardiff last December. He then signed a contract extension with his club Ospreys until the end of the 2013 season, but both parties have agreed to release the veteran from the deal a year early.

Ospreys have announced that Williams will then take up an ambassadorial role at the club, where he ‘will promote rugby in and around the region whilst also working in conjunction with the Ospreys’ existing and future commercial partners’.

Gerber won two Super Rugby titles with the Pretoria franchise prior to his departure to Paris in 2009. He has signed until the end of August and will add quality depth in the prop department, which has been depleted with Rossouw de Klerk suffering a long-term injury.

Bulls coach Frans Ludeke said: ‘Rayno has a proven track record at this level and we are delighted to secure his services. He brings experience, stability and ability to one of the most specialised positions in the game.’

Gerber explained his decision to return to South Africa saying that he wanted his children to grow up close to their family. He also admitted that it would be tough to get up to speed after a long period of inactivity. ‘I have not played for around five months now and know that the fitness regime will be brutal, but that has always been like that at the Bulls. It is good to be back,’ he said.

The successful applicant would be expected to contribute to all of HSM‘s sports magazines as well as keo.co.za. He or she would need to have good writing skills and an excellent sporting knowledge.

If you think you’re the right person for the job, e-mail your CV and examples of your writing to simon@hsm.co.za before 8 February 2012. Should you not hear from us within two weeks of the closing date, please consider your application for this position unsuccessful.

CEO Greg Peters announced on Thursday that, after a review of these processes conducted during last year’s World Cup, they believe they have a system that is fair, consistent and simple with fewer full hearings and consequently reduced costs.

‘SANZAR has long held the view that the disciplinary process could be enhanced to provide for a more consistent and simplified outcome,’ said Peters. ‘We believe that these changes are an important step in the right direction.’

Key Changes:

On-field Referee Referral to Citing Commissioner

· Instances where a referee thinks an act of foul play has occurred but is not sure if a red card is warranted, or is unsure of the identity of a player

· Where a player makes a complaint to a referee who did not see an incident

· Can be in addition to a yellow card or penalty

· Referred to the Citing Commissioner for review

Citing Commissioner issues an ‘Off-Field Yellow Card’

· Instances where a Citing Commissioner observes a serious act of foul play that is close to but not quite a red card

· The Off-field yellow card is logged on the player’s disciplinary record in the same manner as an On-Field yellow card

Duty Judicial Officer

· Performs an initial assessment of citings, red cards or three yellow cards

· Duty Judicial Officer may hold a brief teleconference with the player and/or his representative

· Determines whether or not to offer the player a preliminary indication of penalty

· May refer to a full judicial hearing

· The player must accept he committed an act of foul play to be offered an indication of penalty

· If player does not accept the indication of penalty the matter will be referred to full hearing

Judicial Hearings

· Where a full judicial hearing is required it will be held by video conference or teleconference with ‘in-person’ hearings only taking place in exceptional circumstances.

· Other processes for the hearing will be the same as previously

Appeals

· Sanzar has a right of appeal the outcome of a judicial hearing on the following grounds:

- Where there is substantial unfairness, or the penalty imposed on a player is clearly excessive or inadequate

- Where there has been a fundamental error by the Judicial Officer in reaching his decision

· Normal rights of Appeal apply for players

The All Blacks pivot will play his first match since picking up a serious knee injury in last year’s Rugby World Cup final.
The pre-season warm-up in Geelong will allow the Chiefs’ coaches to assess their new recruit’s condition.

However, they won’t be able to see him in combination with Sonny Bill Williams, who was lured from the Crusaders. Williams is preparing for a boxing match against American-born Auckland resident, Clarence Tillman, on 8 February.

Chiefs squad to play the Rebels: Alex Bradley, Phillip Burleigh, Shane Cleaver, Aaron Cruden, Marcel Cumming-Toone, Hika Elliot, Mike Fitzgerald, Josh Hohneck, Andrew Horrell, Richard Kahui, Tawera Kerr-Barlow, Tanerau Latimer, Fritz Lee, Brendon Leonard, Lelia Masaga, Liam Messam, Tim Nanai-Williams, Martino Nemani, Augustine Pulu, Ronald Raaymakers, Brodie Retallick, Robbie Robinson, Toby Smith, Ben Tameifuna, Sona Taumalolo, Kane Thompson, Asaeli Tikoirotuma, Scott Waldrom, Jackson Willison.

Captain Pocock will be rested as per the request of the Wallabies management staff. After a taxing 2011 season that ended in a tour to the United Kingdom, all of Australia’s Test players were allotted extra time to recuperate.

Sharpe and Brown, however, are battling injuries. Sharpe has a minor calf strain while Brown is recovering from a serious shoulder injury.

The match in Darwin will serve as the first hit-out for both teams. Lock Sam Wykes will lead a 27-man squad, and the coaches of both sides have agreed that the laws governing match substitutions will be relaxed.

The Force and Brumbies will also play each other on 24 February in Round 1 of the competition proper.

Western Force squad:

Forwards: Jake Ball, Phoenix Battye, Nathan Charles, Angus Cottrell, Pek Cowan, Tetera Faulkner, Matthew Hodgson, Ryan Hodson, Kieran Longbottom, Toby Lynn, Salesi Ma’afu, Ben McCalman, Ben Whittaker, Sam Wykes (c).
Backs: Chance Bunce, Cam Crowley, Nick Cummins, Alfie Mafi, Napolioni Nalaga, JP Pretorius, Ben Seymour, Brett Sheehan, Rory Sidey, Winston Stanley, James Stannard, Justin Turner, Samu Wara.

Meyer is famed for his ability to rejuvenate struggling teams when at the helm. He first displayed his aptitude in this regard with the SWD Eagles in 1997, earning promotion to the Currie Cup first division and a year later making the semi-final.

The Bulls recruited him in 2000 and he set about implementing structures and recruiting players (senior and junior) he believed possessed the qualities to make them one of the best franchises in the game. Seven years later they became the first South African team to win Super Rugby, and the championship sides of 2009 and 2010 leaned heavily on his teachings.

Meyer successfully installed uniform structures and game plans across all Bulls sides, his primary reasons being that he believed it could be easily adapted to suit law changes and differing opposition and it would make players’ transition between teams relatively easy. He has expressed his desire to replicate this model on a national scale, but is likely to face stern opposition from franchise coaches.

His recruiting was astute and his eye for talent is unrivalled in South Africa. Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha, Bryan Habana and Francois Hougaard are prime examples of world-class players lured to the Bulls from other unions. His talent identification within the region has been excellent as well – Fourie du Preez the shining light in this regard – while he has also secured the services of many of the country’s best junior players.

The latter bodes well for the Bulls, who’ll have a steady stream of Super Rugby and, potentially, Test quality players in the medium term. The structures he implemented remain in place and will need only minor alterations if law changes demand it.

However, Meyer’s loss will be most keenly felt in the finer details. Tactically and technically he is masterful, and while he wasn’t directly involved in coaching at Super Rugby level, head coach Frans Ludeke – who now absorbs Meyer’s former role as director of rugby – often looked to him for guidance and advice. Ludeke is a competent coach, but his education under Meyer was incomplete.

Furthermore Ludeke doesn’t command the respect Meyer did from the players, coaches and management and certainly doesn’t possess his ability to get the best out of players (his ability to do this rested heavily on psychological profiling) and emotional intelligence.

It is unfair on Ludeke to compare him with Meyer, who, through years of experience, has established himself as one of the pre-eminent coaches in the game. But the situation demands the comparison.

Ludeke will grow and improve in the years ahead and will undoubtedly still have his good friend’s ear on coaching matters. But the ceiling of his potential is lower than Meyer’s and herein lies the Bulls’ problem. It is not an insurmountable one. They will remain a force in Super Rugby, but under Meyer’s guidance they had the potential to dominate South African rugby and be among the elite franchises in the world.

Stormers coach Allister Coetzee has stayed true to his word to trial all four of his flyhalves during the pre-season. Burton Francis started against Boland, Gary van Aswegen against the Lions and Kurt Coleman has been deployed from the bench. This Saturday, Catrakilis will have an opportunity to stake his claim for a place in the final Super Rugby squad.

Coetzee said he will cut his squad to 30 players after the Cheetahs game, although he will make use of the fringe players if there are injuries during the Super Rugby competition. While it is not known exactly when first-choice flyhalf Peter Grant will return from Japan, he is certain to be named in that group.

Meanwhile, Coetzee has looked to improve the depth at fullback by picking Gerhard van den Heever to start this weekend. It will mark Van den Heever’s second start at No 15 in three weeks, and Coetzee explained that the Stormers may need a different No 15 option at some stage.

‘We know what we have in Joe Pietersen and Gio Aplon, but Gerhard is a big, tall fullback and in different conditions we may make use of his attributes,’ said Coetzee.

The game against the Cheetahs will mark lock Rynhardt Elstadt’s first since his return from injury. Hooker Tiaan Liebenberg wasn’t considered because of a fractured nose sustained in training, but will be available for the next match against the Kings.

Stormers – 15 Gerhard van den Heever, 14 Danie Poolman, 13 JP du Plessis, 12 Marcel Brache, 11 Ederies Arendse, 10 Demetri Catrakilis, 9 Nic Groom, 8 Nizaam Carr, 7 Siya Kolisi, 6 Schalk Burger (c), 5 De Kock Steenkamp, 4 Rynhardt Elstadt, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Deon Fourie, 1 Deon Carstens.
Subs: 16 Siyabonga Ntubeni, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Brok Harris, 19 Eben Etzebeth, 20 Don Armand, 21 Nick Fenton-Wells, 22 Rohan Kitshoff, 23 Bolla Conradie, 24 Kurt Coleman, 25 Michael van der Spuy, 26 Berton Klaasen.

By Jon Cardinelli