Stormers chief John Dobson says a victory over Leinster is crucial to the team’s playoff ambitions, while veteran Deon Fourie anticipates a Test-calibre URC showdown in Dublin on Saturday.
The Stormers are bracing for a blockbuster match against the unbeaten league-leaders at the Aviva Stadium in round 10 of the competition.
Leo Cullen’s Leinster squad is missing a core of Ireland internationals to 2025 Six Nations preparation but still boast several capped players, including two-time Springbok world champion RG Snyman, as well as the expertise of senior coach Jacques Nienaber.
Dobson recalled key players Warrick Gelant, Ben-Jason Dixon, Manie Libbok and skipper Fourie to help boost the Stormers’ chances in Dublin, where a win could propel the 10th-placed Cape outfit into the URC top four at just over the halfway mark of the 18-round league campaign.
Speaking via teleconference from the Irish capital on Friday, Dobson acknowledged the magnitude of the task while underlining the value of win to the Stormers playoff aspirations.
“They’re one of these super-clubs with north of 25 internationals, like Toulouse and Toulon,” the Stormers boss said. “If you look at that team that’s been released, it’s an all-international side.
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“A good international front row, players who are world class like RG Snyman and guys who’ve got massive amounts of Irish experience.
“While it’s not Leinster at full strength, it’s a very strong team, and a team that can win a lot of URC and European games.
“If we want to be at the sharp end of the URC, which is our plan for the season, we need to put in a proper winning performance tomorrow.”
Fourie, a veteran of high-stakes matches, expects an intense contest: “They’re a well-drilled side, and I know Jacques since I was with the [WP] U21s. His attention to detail is always there, and even before he arrived there, the Ireland players’ attention to detail was there.
“It’s just like a double-edged sword with Jacques there as well.
“I told the guys in the week, it’s going to be like a Test match, so you have to be sharp and clinical for 80 minutes or you’ll get punished. They are not going to hold back.”
Storm Éowyn has caused havoc across the Republic of Ireland, but the seasoned flanker added: “It’s clearing up nicely, the sun is shining and it’s looking like we’ll be good tomorrow.”
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The Stormers are unbeaten against Leinster in three previous meetings, including a draw in Dublin in 2023. But Cullen’s charges will be determined to maintain their perfect record of nine wins from as many matches so far this season.
“Deon’s right, it’s going to be a proper, really intense match, and they’ve got no intention of losing at the Aviva, ever. They’ve got an incredible record there,” Dobson added.
“While we’ve never played their full Irish side, they’ve never beaten us, and they’re going to want to beat us this week.”
Despite their exit from 2024-25 European cup competition with defeat to Racing 92 last week, Dobson sees the URC as an opportunity for redemption.
“Paris didn’t dent our confidence; it increased it. Our job now is the URC, and we think we’ve got a team together to put a proper run together,” he said. “But the truth is we have to win in a game like this against this Leinster team.
“We have to go get a result in Belfast [against Ulster], get a couple of wins on the Highveld or win two of the three local derbies that we’ve got left. We get that right, we’ve got a reasonable run and amount of home games.
“[But beating Leinster] is helluva important if we want to put together this run that could even see us get a home playoff.”
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