Forwards coach Rito Hlungwani has revealed a major factor behind the Stormers’ unbeaten start to the season.
After a bruising Vodacom URC derby win over the Bulls in Cape Town, the Stormers are deep into preparations for Sunday’s Investec Champions Cup clash against Harlequins at the Twickenham Stoop.
“It was a very tough game, lots of sore bodies,” Hlungwani said on Monday. “But business carries on as usual. We’ve got a massive game waiting for us in London and we want to make sure we’re ready – and we will be ready.”
The Stormers have won eight out of eight in the URC to top the log, while also victorious in their two opening Champions Cup fixtures away to Bayonne and to La Rochelle in Gqeberha.
A big reason for the Stormers’ consistency, Hlungwani believes, is the intensity of their weekly preparation.
“We spend Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays training against each other, and that’s actually more time than an 80-minute game”.
He compared this to an actual match which “is usually like 36 minutes ball in play”.
“This weekend we had 18 lineouts, and 12 of those were mauls,” he continued. “At training we’ll do 40 or 50 lineouts and more than 20 mauls. The cohesion is built there.
“What people see on a Saturday is just the result.”
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Crucially, player engagement is non-negotiable, regardless of selection.
“Whether you played or not, everyone watches the game, everyone reviews it,” Hlungwani said. “In meetings, anyone can be asked a question. Everyone is engaged in the process. The guys who didn’t play are often the first to speak about what we need to fix. It’s a collective mindset.”
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Prop Oli Kebble, who is in line to make his 50th appearance for the Stormers if selected this weekend, says the team’s training culture has driven their success, particularly up front.
“Training sessions are sometimes harder than games. We challenge each other all week, whoever’s playing and whoever’s not. That’s bred the scrum culture we take into matches.”
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Kebble is eagerly anticipating the contest up front against Harlequins.
“They’ve got good front-row depth, but so do we,” he said. “To compete in the URC and Champions Cup, you need two frontline packs. It doesn’t matter who wears the jersey – we’re going there to take them on.”
Photo: Cole Cruickshank/Gallo Images
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