Stormers switch playmakers for Scarlets duel
03/21/2025 05:51 AM
Stormers boss John Dobson has made several changes to his backline for Saturday's round 13 Vodacom URC match against Welsh outfit Scarlets at Parc y Scarlets.
Herschel Jantjies and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu will start as the halfback pairing in place of the injured Stefan Ungerer (groin) and Jurie Matthee, who is in line to feature off the wood after a solid outing at 10 in the Vodacom Bulls win at Loftus two weeks ago.
Returning after a four-month injury lay-off, Damian Willemse comes in at fullback with fellow Springbok world champion Warrick Gelant shifting to the bench.
Among the pack, Marcel Theunissen will start at blindside flank with Bok Ben-Jason Dixon ruled out due to wrist surgery, while Frans Malherbe comes in at tighthead for Neethling Fouche, who has remained in Cape Town for the birth of his second child.
MORE: Dobson eyes top 6 as Stormers stars return
Veteran scrumhalf Dewaldt Duvenage and prop Sazi Sandi join Gelant and Matthee among the replacements in a 5-3 split by Dobson for the clash in Llanelli.
The Stormers, in 12th place on the table, are tied with 10th-placed Scarlets on 28 log points. A victory for either team could see them possibly leap into the top half of the standings depending on other results over the weekend.
While both sides have won five of their 12 matches to date, the Stormers have had disappointing results on the road, losing three of their four matches away from home.
"It is obviously fantastic to have players of Sacha and Damian's quality back in the group and we have made good use of the break to prepare for this game,” Dobson told the club’s official website.
"Scarlets have been impressive this season and we know that it will have to be an 80-minute performance to get the result that we need from this one.”
STORMERS – 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Ben Loader, 13 Wandisile Simelane, 12 Dan du Plessis, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 9 Herschel Jantjies, 8 Evan Roos, 7 Marcel Theunissen, 6 Deon Fourie, 5 Ruben van Heerden, 4 Salmaan Moerat (c), 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Ali Vermaak.
Bench: 16 Andre-Hugo Venter, 17 Brok Harris, 18 Sazi Sandi, 19 Gary Porter, 20 Willie Engelbrecht, 21 Dewaldt Duvenage, 22 Jurie Matthee, 23 Warrick Gelant.
Photo: Grant Pitcher/Gallo Images
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