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Devon Williams of Phakisa Pumas during the Super Rugby Unlocked match between Tafel Lager Griquas and Phakisa Pumas at Tafel Lager Park on October 17, 2020 in Kimberley, South Africa. (Photo by Louis Botha / Griquas Rugby Union / Gallo Images)
- The Pumas will be no stranger to the challenge ahead against a Springbok-laden Stormers at home Friday night.
- Mentor Jimmy Stonehouse has adopted a simple philosophy in preparation: do your best but don’t expect miracles.
- He has also advised his players to turn off the lights from a personal perspective against quality opponents as a way to get noticed by the wider rugby community.
It’s quite tempting to label the Pumas’ Super Rugby Unlocked outing against the Stormers in Nelspruit on Friday as a possible mismatch.
Even with Steven Kitshoff and Scarra Ntubeni removed from the Capetonians team due to Covid-19 protocols, the brave hosts have yet to deal with a lineup that includes six World Cup-winning Springboks.
Yet in his effervescent and outspoken way, Pumas rugby manager Jimmy Stonehouse has preached to his players how to strike a balance between optimism and realism.
“As simple as it sounds, I’ve told the players to relax,” he said.
“You can’t ignore the gulf of depth between the two sides. The Stormers are an incredible team and that’s the way it is. We won’t get very far if we’re going to bet on miracles.”
As a result, Stonehouse has come up with a simple plan.
Teams:
15 Devon Williams, 14 Neil Maritz, 13 Erich Cronje, 12 Wayne van der Bank, 11 Etienne Taljaard, 10 Eddie Fouche, 9 Ginter Smuts, 8 Jeandre Rudolph, 7 Willie Engelbrecht, 6 Francois Kleinhans, 5 Pieter Jansen van Vuren (captain) , 4 Darrien Landsberg, 3 Ruan Kramer, 2 AJ le Roux, 1 Morgan Naude
Substitutes: 16 Simon Westraadt, 17 Liam Hendricks, 18 Heath Backhouse, 19 Phumzile Maqondwana, 20 Dian Badenhorst, 21 Niel Marais, 22 Ali Mgijima, 23 Ig Prinsloo
Stormers
15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Edwill van der Merwe, 13 Dan du Plessis, 12 Rikus Pretorius, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Damian Willemse, 9 Herschel Jantjies, 8 Juarno Augustus, 7 Ernst van Rhyn, 6 Siya Kolisi (captain), 5 Chris van Zyl, 4 Salmaan Moerat, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Bongi Mbonambi, 1 Leon Lyons
Substitutes (from): 16 Chad Solomon, 17 Kwenzo Blose, 18 Neethling Fouche, 19 JD Schickerling, 20 Nama Xaba, 21 Jaco Coetzee, 22 Godlen Masimla, 23 Michal Haznar, 24 Tim Swiel, 25 Tristan Leyds
“Friday will be the kind of game where the best of my players will be good enough,” he said.
“Not many people are going to believe that we have a chance, so there is no use thinking about something like that. If you are going to give it your all, at least you are guaranteed to leave the game with your reputation intact and even improved.
“And who knows, maybe then there will be a surprise or two.”
The Pumas showed a great deal of courage by beating Griquas last week, overcoming a demoralizing opening loss to the Cheetahs, as well as the logistics of having to charter a plane to Kimberley on game morning.
Armed with some confidence for a “victory that came at the right time” as well as the carrot to play arguably the best team in the country, the Lowvelders will not lack dedication.
“This is what my players live for. As intimidating as it may be for some of them to play against opponents of this caliber, we have not played against big unions in full force for many years, it is also a wonderful challenge,” Stonehouse said.
“In games of this nature, it’s about determining the players in our group who can step up. That’s what we’re here for, we want to give underrated or forgotten players a chance to shine.
“If you stand out from the crowd against a quality team like the Stormers, you’re going to go a long way to make a name for yourself. Isn’t that what it’s all about in the end?”
