Stormers wary of Du Preez factor
Yesterday at 03:25 AM
Norman Laker and Marcel Theunissen have acknowledged the threat of Springbok powerhouses Jean-Luc and Dan du Preez when the Stormers and Sale Sharks clash on Saturday.
The English outfit are set to put the Stormers through the pressures of a Test match in a round 3 Champions Cup match at Cape Town Stadium, in a rematch of their first meeting at the venue at the same stage of the competition last season.
Leolin Zas scored a brace of tries as the Stormers claimed a bonus-point win in the shadow of Table Mountain. Rob du Preez, who played for the Stormers between 2015 and 2017, kicked nine points against his former team, and with his younger siblings and fellow Boks Jean-Luc and Dan has played a key role for Sale over the last five seasons.
The Du Preezs are three of eight South Africans on the books at Sale, with former Stormers skipper Ernst van Rhyn also having made a huge impact for Alex Sanderson’s side after joining the Manchester club in 2023.
Addressing the challenge posed by a quality Sale outfit bolstered by several familiar faces, Stormers assistant coach Laker on Tuesday told the media: "Their Afrikaans might be better than ours, and definitely the former Sharks from Durban!
"We know Ernst van Rhyn quite well, Rob du Preez has played here, we know the twins as well. They're a quality outfit.
"We also know their coaching staff quite well and look forward to seeing them, and spending time with them as well.
"They're a big pack with good, dynamic ball-carriers, and like I said, we know the Du Preez brothers quite well. We've coached against Dan and Jean-Luc quite a bit, they're both good ball-carriers and Sale relies on them quite a lot, the same as the Currys."
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"They're physical and are a team that if you don’t match up to them physically they can beat you," he added.
"They have guys who can beat you individually, like Dan and Jean-Luc's offloading game is good and we all know it.
"Once they get front-foot ball they will throw a few offloads and try to go wide to beat you. They're an all-round formidable team."
Theunissen, who can play across the back row, is relishing the opportunity to make his mark at the back of the scrum, and expects a huge physical challenge up front against Sale.
"Everyone knows that we must have the right mentality to be physical and dominate up front in the mauls and the scrums," he said. "We need to pitch up on Saturday, that is a decision that we have to make as a team.
"We know what is coming for us, so we need to have the right mindset to embrace it and give it back to them. We will need to stand up physically. We know that they will try and dominate us up front and in the set phases, so we will have to match them in those areas."
"I think playing at No 8 in the system that our team plays suits me because I can play to my strengths," Theunissen added.
"If I am needed at six or seven I will play there as well, but eight suits me nicely and I am enjoying it."
Photo: Ian MacNicol/Getty Images for Sale Sharks
The post Stormers wary of Du Preez factor appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
