Tom Dawson-Squibb has acknowledged the intensity of Friday’s make-or-break Currie Cup task at Loftus Versfeld for his Stormers XXIII side.
The Stormers are on 11 points and in sixth place heading into the penultimate round of the competition, and a north-south derby showdown against the winless Vodacom Bulls XV.
Griquas and the Cheetahs share top spot on 21 points, with the Pumas (17) and Boland Cavaliers (16) rounding out the playoff places – all four non-Vodacom URC sides. The Lions, Stormers, Sharks XV and Bulls make up the bottom half in that order.
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Dawson-Squibb, who led the UCT Ikeys Tigers to three Varsity Cup finals and a semi-final in five seasons, and was part of UCT’s 2011 title-winning campaign in a performance-coaching role, said the pressure of a must-win game suited him.
“Some coaches may be better at being chilled about the result and saying things like, ‘It’s just about the process’, but that’s not me,” the Stormers coach said. “I want to win, and I want the guys to win, and when you want to win, it brings stress, tension and intensity.
“But if you were to ask me: ‘Would you rather have the intensity of trying to prepare a team for the Bulls, or would you rather be sitting at home and lighting a fire at 12 o’clock tomorrow?’ I’d much rather have what we’ve got.
“But we know we have a big task ahead of us. The Bulls players are going to be desperate and hungry.”
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Missing regular captain Jean-Luc du Plessis and scrumhalf Stefan Ungerer for the Pretoria trip, Dawson-Squibb highlighted the challenges facing his squad this season, yet the 42-year-old is still optimistic.
“If you take out Springboks, URC players and injuries, it leaves your squad a little thinner. I think it’s the same for the Bulls, Lions and Sharks, and I suppose the league table reflects that,” he noted.
“Having said that, Markus Muller is a superstar in waiting. Divan Fuller and Kyle Smith both played SA U20. We’re not dealing with average players; we’re dealing with exceptional ones.
“It’s just building cohesion in a short space of time against teams for whom this is the pinnacle of their year, and who’ve been together longer.
“We know there are challenges in the way the competition is structured, but that doesn’t mean we can’t win.”
The post Stormers coach on the stress of winning appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
Tom Dawson-Squibb has acknowledged the intensity of Friday’s make-or-break Currie Cup task at Loftus Versfeld for his Stormers XXIII side.
The post Stormers coach on the stress of winning appeared first on SA Rugby magazine. Read More
