The Stormers produced their best performance of the season with an under-strength team to almost topple a Leicester side packed with internationals in a thrilling Champions Cup match on Sunday night.
They lost 35-26 to make a mockery of what had been billed as a David versus Goliath contest in terms of Champions Cup history.
𝘓𝑒𝘪𝑐𝘦𝑠𝘵𝑒𝘳 𝘛𝑖𝘨𝑒𝘳𝑠 3️⃣5️⃣- 2️⃣6️⃣ 𝐷𝘏𝐿 𝑆𝘵𝑜𝘳𝑚𝘦𝑟𝘴
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) December 10, 2023
The Tigers strike at the death, securing the bonus point against a spirited Stormers in the #InvestecChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/HeDzA94EE3
It was the Stormers’ first-ever match at the intimidating Welford Road, the historic Leicester home ground in the East Midlands of England.
John Dobson had left his Springboks at home as he keeps his powder dry for the big battle with champions La Rochelle in Cape Town this week but as bereft of Boks as the Stormers were, the way some of their youngsters played, they have Boks in waiting.
Youngsters like the loose forwards Morabe Keke and Nama Xaba while the former Junior Springbok lock Hendre Stassen was another who threw his weight around to imposing effect.
The former Maties captain, Jurie Matthee made a Stormers debut of astonishing composure given that his first taste of top-flight rugby could not have been in more challenging circumstances.
The Stormers came to scrap but were a little overeager and the first points went the same as Handre Pollard after Xaba went palpably offside at a ruck.
The Stormers made a decent fist of the set scrums and the line-outs were okay in the first half and they equalised on the scoreboard when Leicester dragged down a Stormers line-out. Youngster Matthee stepped up and kicked his first points in a Stormers jersey.
Almost immediately the 23-year-old had a kick charged kicked down when he was put under pressure by his scrumhalf, Paul de Wet, and the ball was carried over.
A big Leicester scrum allowed Jasper Wiese to get onto the front foot and feed the big Tongan centre Solomone Kata for a burst over the line, and a 10-3 lead after 15 minutes.
It was interesting to see Courtnall Skosan putting England fullback Freddie Steward under pressure in the air, a department where Steward is recognised as the best in the business.
Steward made a season full of mistakes in this game and another uncharacteristic mistake was made by Wiese not far from his team’s tryline. He was on the drive when he lost the ball as he lined up Matthee and from the resulting scrum, No 8 Keke Morabe charged over to level the scores at 10-10, after half an hour.
The pressure in the tackles from the gallant Stormers kept forcing mistakes and on the brink of half-time, the home team made another error from a set scrum and De Wet hacked the ball ahead for Skosan to score.
Almost nobody would have predicted a Stormers lead of 17-10 at half-time.
Leicester coach Dan McKellar would have fired some rockets in the home change room and straight a minute into the half the forwards won a penalty for Pollard to kick home from close to the centre spot.
The Stormers line-out was under growing pressure and a poached throw-in was spread wide by Leicester for Kata to score even though earlier in the move the Tongan seemed to pass it forward to the wing, Josh Bassett, who passed back to him. Strangely, the try was not reviewed.
The Stormers hit straight back after quality ball carrying from a line-out gave Matthee the space to snap over a drop goal to level it up at 20-20.
Pollard restored the lead with a penalty earned from a scrum but the Stormers replied by winning the next scrum and Matthee made it 23-23.
As the game hit the three-quarter mark, there was a telling moment when Lee-Marvin Mazibuko was yellow-carded for a high tackle on Wiese.
From the territory earned from the penalty, scrumhalf Ben Youngs chipped towards the line and Pollard slid over for the try.
Almost predictably, the Stormers bounced straight back with another Matthee penalty but they were denied a bonus point at the death when Bassett scored in the corner.
Point-scorers
Leicester 35 — Tries: Solomone Kata (2), Handre Pollard, Josh Bassett. Conversions: Pollard (3). Penalties: Pollard (3).
Stormers 26 — Tries: Keke Morabe, Courtnall Skosan. Conversions: Jurie Matthee. Penalty: Matthee. Drop Goal: Matthee.
IOL Sport