Stormers

Crossings from Herschel Jantjies, Ruben van Heerden, Joseph Dweba, Seabelo Senatla, Suleiman Hartzenberg and Manie Libbok saw them to a bonus-point win. Fly- ...

It only took a minute after the restart for the Stormers to claim the bonus-point try. Meanwhile, the Sharks remain in eighth spot after suffering their fifth defeat in 12 URC matches. Poor handling in the backs from the Sharks allowed Libbok to pounce on the loose ball and sprint clear for the easiest of tries under the sticks.

The Stormers have mostly their forwards to thank for an unexpectedly comprehensive 46-19 away Vodacom United Rugby Championship rout of the Cell C Sharks at ...

Dweba’s try took the Stormers into a 24-0 lead and that looked likely to be the halftime score before Gerbrandt Grobler crossed for a try completely against the run of play just before halftime. And then it was Libbok who lost the ball as he was crossing for what would have been his team’s third try in the 29th minute. With Libbok’s conversion to add to the Jantjies score in the opening minutes, that made it 14-0, and then Libbok kicked a penalty to make it 17-0 after 25 minutes. That made it 31-7 after an excellent Libbok touchline conversion and with a 24 point lead there was going to be no stopping the Stormers after that. With Herschel Jantjies at scrumhalf back to his more assertive and decisive best, it meant the Stormers were able to get their attacking and counter-attacking game together in a game that was a surprisingly good spectacle given the humid conditions. Libbok walked away with the Man of the Match award but it might not be unkind to suggest that had it not been for his plethora of mistakes amidst the sheer genius he also showed, the Stormers might have hit 60.

The Stormers cut the gap on United Rugby Championship leaders Leinster with a dominating six-try 46-19 victory over the Sharks.

It only took a minute after the restart for the Stormers to claim the bonus-point try. Poor handling in the backs from the Sharks allowed Libbok to pounce on the loose ball and sprint clear for the easiest of tries under the sticks. A long cut-out pass from a maul found Senatla in acres of space on the left wing to coast in for a try. The Stormers’ dominance continued when Dweba went over from the back of a maul before the Sharks finally got on the board two minutes before the break when Grobler broke through two tackles to go in under the posts. The Stormers made a lightning start with the opening try in the second minute when fly-half Libbok broke the line and drew his man before flipping to Jantjies to run in for an easy score under the posts and Blommetjies added the extras. [Ruben van Heerden](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/ruben-van-heerden/), [Joseph Dweba](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/joeseph-dweba/), [Seabelo Senatla](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/seabelo-senatla/), [Suleiman Hartzenberg](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/suleiman-hartzenberg/) and [Manie Libbok](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/manie-libbok/) crossed for tries for the Stormers, with Libbok adding a further 14 points with the boot and [Clayton Blommetjies](https://www.rugbypass.com/players/clayton-blommetjies/) two.

Neil Powell was at loss to explain how the Sharks had shown great courage to beat Edinburgh away and then failed to mentally pitch for a derby against the ...

It is about the effort and that was not good enough. There is still a lot of rugby to play. [‘Manie is the man’ and Dobbo loves it when a plan comes together](/sport/rugby/urc/manie-libbok-is-the-man-and-john-dobson-loves-it-when-a-plan-comes-together-02a5035b-0d8f-48d5-9109-d4c317b5b4a4) [One of the greatest tries you will ever see ... Most of the Stormers’ tries came from elementary Sharks' mistakes. They would eventually prevail 46-19 in a result that will hurt in the Shark Tank for years to come. “I have no excuses,” Powell said.

Two minutes into the second half, this United Rugby Championship (URC) was effectively settled by a ruthless Stormers side at a sunny Kings Park in Durban ...

Tries: Gerbrandt Grobler (2), Dan Jooste; Conversions: Curwin Bosch (2); Stormers (24) 46 Sharks (7) 19

Stormers coach John Dobson says his side overcome a lot of negative emotions to dominate against the Sharks in a United Rugby Championship triumph at Kings ...

"When we won the URC last year, our main task this season was to make sure we have a sustainable thing. In the forwards and some positions, we have some really nice depth, so I am very happy about that." "A while ago, there was the devastation of [losing] Evan Roos and leaving Hacjivah (Dayimani) out of this game, but then we see what Marcel Theunissen did this afternoon... "And that's why we didn't take people to Ulster. It was very important in terms of the South African conference... There was emotion when we lost the two URC games in a row, but our plan was to come for this game, we grabbed the opportunity and I didn't quite expect it to work out like it did."

The Stormers thrashed the Sharks 46-19 in their United Rugby Championship (URC) encounter at Kings Park on Saturday without some of their key players.

You would have seen last weekend in Belfast with the backs, where we need to do a bit of work in terms of managing our depth there. The first try that he played a part in set the tone for the game and it was instrumental. “The original plan was actually to rest Manie this week but things went wrong with Jean-Luc out, we selected him again, but he does need a bit of a break.

Five takeaways from the South African United Rugby Championship derby between the Sharks and Stormers at Kings Park in Durban on Saturday.

Since the inception of the URC, the Stormers have won most of their derbies with a draw against the Sharks in Durban and a loss against the Lions in Cape Town last season their worst results. The Stormers are yet to lose against the Bulls in the URC – after beating them twice in the league and the final last season as well as in this season’s corresponding league fixture in Cape Town at the end of last year. The win over the Sharks also gives the Stormers plenty of confidence ahead of their next match, against the Bulls in Pretoria on February 18. The Durban-based outfit were never at the races as they committed a plethora of unforced errors from the outset. When they were taken off early in the second half their replacements, Ali Vermaak and Sazi Sandi, continued to dominate as they too had the home side’s scrum back-pedalling on a few occasions. Another player who caught the eye was stand-in skipper Deon Fourie, who was a menace on defence and impressed with his breakdown work.

IOL Sport's Leighton Koopman takes a look at five standout players from Saturday's clash between the Sharks and Stormers in Durban.

He also put his body on the line helping the Stormers maintain a tackle success rate of 92%. And he kept his promise when he said he will be firing on all cylinders against the Sharks. Almost every time he ran with the ball, the Sharks were in trouble as he wreaked havoc when given an inch of space. He was ever-present around the rucks and milked a couple of important penalties when the Sharks were pinged for holding on. He missed an easy conversion and comically botched a try when he was tackled from behind by Curwin Bosch. On Saturday he played another warrior role leading his team to a 46-19 victory.

Herman Mostert highlights FIVE talking points after Saturday's URC derby between the Sharks and Stormers at Kings Park.

The Stormers are hurtling now toward retention of the SA Shield (at very least) in the 2022/23 URC, writes Rob Houwing.