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Stormers player ratings: The DHL Stormers travelled to Scotstoun Stadium in search of a third consecutive semi-final space.
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Instead, they will return to Cape Town, ruing a missed opportunity as they were defeated by the Glasgow Warriors 27 – 10.
Here is how John Dobson’s players performed in their final match of the 2023/24 season.
1. Brok Harris – 4
The veteran loosehead had a real tussle with Scotland international Zander Fagerson at scrum time. Unfortunately for the Stormers, he seemed to come out second best more often than not.
2. Joseph Dweba – 5
Although he ended his shift on the pitch having made double-digit tackles, the Springbok hooker will be frustrated with his outing. He struggled to get to grips with the stiff breeze as his line-out throwing became a crapshoot before being replaced early in the second half.
3. Frans Malherbe – 6
Clearly relished the challenging conditions as he went to work against Jamie Bhatti. Seeming to get underneath and twist the Scottish international, Malherbe more than held up his side of the scrum. Around the park, however, the 33-year-old had little impact as a carrier but did his fair share of work at the breakdown.
4. Salmaan Moerat – 6
Leading from the front, the skipper had some key defensive moments as well as some nice touches. His yellow card was avoidable, to say the least, as he completely misjudged his challenge both in terms of body angle and timing.
5. Ruben van Heerden – 7
The strongest carrier in the pack for the Stormers today, the 26-year-old had a top-notch outing on both sides of the ball.
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6. Willie Engelbrecht – 6
The unheralded veteran in the pack, Engelbrecht, had a workman-like performance, having already made double-figure tackles by early in the second half.
7. Ben-Jason Dixon – 7
Continuing to grow his reputation as a hard-hitting ‘bone collector’, the utility forward’s work ethic was phenomenal. Setting him up in the midfield from line-outs as a gain line breaker was the Stormer’s most effective yard-gaining tactic.
8. Hacjivah Dayimani – 7
Renowned for his roaming running game, Dayimani’s breakdown work stood out today. Completing a pair of key turnovers in the first half and routinely cleaning up loose ball, the Racing 92 bound man filled the void left by the industrious Deon Fourie.
9. Herschel Jantjies – 6
The nippy scrumhalf had it all to do in the face of a relentless breakdown onslaught by the warriors who were flying into the ruck all match. Not quite finding his well renowned running game will disappoint him although this had more to do with the Warriors incredible defensive shift.
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10. Manie Libbok – 4
Few players in World Rugby are as hot and cold as the mercurial Stormers playmaker, who had a disastrous evening from the kicking tee. Leaving behind ten points whilst lacking his usual attacking spark really cost his team.
11. Ben Loader – 6
One of those nuts and bolts kind of evenings for the former London Irish flyer as he chased kicks, made his tackles and cleared up the backfield efficiently. His efforts would be rewarded with a well-taken try in the left-hand corner, but outside of this, there were no highlight reel moments.
12. Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu – 6
Exploded into action following a quiet opening thirty minutes, his probing kicks and offloads poke holes in a stingy Warriors defence. Finding a moment of magic to put Loader over in the corner was a snippet of just why he is so highly touted in South African Rugby circles.
13. Dan du Plessis – 4
Really struggled to contain the Scottish international pair of Tuipulotu and Jones who both had joy going down his channel. On the other side of the ball he made little impact on the Warriors gain line in what was a disappointing outing for the usually potent centre.
14. Suleiman Hartzenberg – 7
Once again, the main threat in the Stormer’s backline, Hartzenberg’s willingness to go looking for work, was evident. Winning the aerial battle and getting over the gainline a few times sealed an overall solid effort for the Stormers’ most improved player this season.
15. Warrick Gelant – 6
Generally handled the wet and slippery conditions well as he contended with a bombardment of testing kicks from the Warriors before returning fire. His kicking game at the line gave the Stormers some much-needed field position, but ultimately, they failed to capitalise on it.
Replacements:
16 Andre-Hugo Venter – 5
Had some good moments with the ball in hand, but like the man he replaced, his line-out throwing was inconsistent and cost his team a late opportunity to get back into the match.
17 Sti Sithole – 5
Trotting out for a fifteen-minute cameo, Sithole seemed to struggle to get up to the pace of the game as he conceded a scrum penalty nearly immediately.
18 Neethling Fouche – 6
Brought great energy from the bench as a willing carrier but endured a mixed bag at scrum time.
19 Adre Smith – 5
An industrious showing from the lock without really having too much impact on the game either way.
20 Marcel Theunissen – 5
Replaced Engelbrecht with half an hour to play and had some nice moments in the carry but ultimately was on defensive duty for the bulk of his time on the park.
21 Connor Evans – N/A
Too little time on the pitch to rate.
22 Paul de Wet – 8
Began his evening in the 62nd minute and scored three minutes later as he sniped through a gap in the uncharacteristically stretched Warrior’s defence. Minutes later, he would scrag a rampaging Tom Jordan to stop a certain try for the Warriors. Overall, he upped the Stormer’s tempo, but by that stage, the pack began to lose parity with their hosts.
23 Jean-Luc du Plessis. – 4
Very quiet from the replacement who didn’t have the influence of the man he replaced.
