Dobson names two veterans
The Stormers have run short of scrum-halves days before the United Rugby Championship starts, and head coach John Dobson has put two familiar names on the table.
“Loan players are an option, like Faf (de Klerk) and Louis Schreuder from Boland,” Dobson told Rapport. “We are looking at that.”
Imad Khan and Dewaldt Duvenage both picked up knocks against the All Blacks in Cape Town. Cobus Reinach remains tied up with the Springboks. Dobson is counting bodies at the base of the scrum with a season about to start.
Try it for $0.99.
What de Klerk would bring
De Klerk has won 68 Test caps and was part of the Springbok squads that lifted the World Cup in 2019 and again in 2023. He has since worked through the Lions, Sale Sharks and the Yokohama Canon Eagles, and he now plays for the Cheetahs.
A short-term deal would hand the Stormers a nine who has run Test matches under pressure, which is not something a franchise usually finds available in late August.
Schreuder offers experience of a different kind. The 36-year-old has worn Stormers colours before, along with the Southern Kings, the Sharks, Newcastle and Bath. His single Springbok cap came against Wales in 2017. He is currently at Boland, which makes him the simpler transaction of the two.
Nothing signed yet
Dobson framed both names as options rather than agreements, and the Stormers have not confirmed an approach to either player.
The calendar is the pressure here. The URC does not pause for an injury list to clear, and whoever arrives will have days rather than weeks to learn how this Stormers side wants to play from the base.
Discover the rest of our rugby news on MathODDS!
in your pocket.
Real-time notifications & alerts
Leave a Reply