The Stormers team hopes that Damian Willemse and other Springboks national team players can add confidence to their ambitions in the Champions Cup, similar to how they did last week in the United Rugby Championship (URC).
Following the victory in the Great Rivalry Series with a score of 3-1 over the All Blacks, players such as Willemse, Bok captain Siya Kolisi, midfielder Sacha Feinberg-Munegomezulu, versatile forwards Deon Fury and Paul de Villiers, and tighthead prop Wilko Lowe immediately had a positive impact on the team.
Now that Stormers are facing Bristol Bears in their debut Champions Cup match on Saturday at DHL Stadium (kick-off at 16:15), the team expects that the confidence gained from the confrontations with the All Blacks and Sharks will successfully translate to the European tournament.
Willemse was one of the Springboks players who actively participated in the Rugby's Greatest Rivalry matches, where the world champions triumphed over their strongest opponents in four matches, confirming their status as the best team in the world. The versatile defender believes that the experience of playing against the All Blacks over the month has given the players a valuable boost before returning to the club environment.
Willemse stated: 'It definitely gives you a lot of confidence. Not only in terms of wins, but also in playing at this level against some of the best players in the world in the All Blacks.' He continued: 'We did this for four weeks, so it definitely gives you a lot of momentum coming back to club rugby. I am happy with where we are now, and we aim to maintain this form because the next stretch of games in the coming weeks will be tough. After Bristol we have Scarlets, and then Ulster, who also play very good rugby.' He added: 'We want to maintain this momentum, keep playing good rugby, and get the results we need to climb the table.'
Stormers will also benefit from the presence of Feinberg-Munegomezulu, Lowe, de Villiers, Fury, and Kolisi. They all participated in the international campaign, with Lowe, Feinberg-Munegomezulu, and de Villiers making an appearance in the return match against the Sharks—their first outing of the season for Stormers.
The task now is to continue this duel with the Sharks and maintain the standards set in the last match. If the Cape Town team can do this, Bristol will face a serious challenge to win in the Mother City.
Stormers have built an ideal foundation in scrums and rucks, and the combination of the front line, consisting of tighthead Sazi Sandi, hooker J.J. Kotze, and loosehead Vernon Matongo, should meet expectations. Springbok Zacharie Potten is also preparing for a rare opportunity in the Stormers jersey if he comes on as substitute number 3. Lowe and teammate Bok tighthead Nitling Fosher are resting for this match.
The return of Bok player Evan Roos will provide reinforcement in the scrum's backline, but he too must live up to expectations after the strong performance of injured Hajime Jaimani in that position. It is an exciting combination of free players with Kolisi and de Villiers, and they will be ready for the physical battle with opponents.