Coach John Dobson says a disjointed performance in the win against log-leaders Leinster took some of the joy out of the Stormers clinching a Vodacom United Rugby Championship playoff berth. DYLAN JACK reports.
The Stormers secured their place in the URC’s top eight by edging a young but gutsy Leinster outfit in Cape Town on Saturday night. The win, combined with the Ospreys’ incredible comeback against Scarlets, means that the Stormers have not only progressed to the playoffs but could push on to get a home quarter-final and a place in next season’s Champions Cup.
It has been a massive turnaround from the Cape side, considering the space that both the franchise and union was in just a few months ago in December.
However, Dobson said at the post-match media conference that the feeling in the dressing room was similar to a loss.
“Toby Booth of the Ospreys told me after the game here, he said that the best team in the competition is Leinster and the second-best team is Leinster B. He wasn’t joking, they were good.
“It did feel a bit anti-climactic,” Dobson said. “Some of the errors we made, whether that was discipline or at the lineout, we could have got the fourth try. I’m not disappointed with the performance or effort. We knew we were going to be in for a hard game.
“Another factor is our own standards. It’s quite a good reflection on this group that has just played Leinster and feeling like we are walking in after a loss.”
Dobson admitted he felt he made an error by over-emphasising the importance of Saturday’s game in an attempt to make sure the Stormers did not take their opponents lightly.
“From my side, I think I made a bit of a coaching error, about it being a high-stakes game, those were literally the opening words when I spoke to the team this morning. I am not sure transferring that sort of pressure is healthy. My concern as a coach was that they were going to think it is Leinster B. Anybody who has watched them over the years would know that they mix and match their teams beautifully.
“I was trying to put pressure on the guys to make sure they realise they are not playing a B side. We felt that pressure today and maybe I felt it. We had a lot to lose today and not much to win and I think it reflected in the performance.”
Dobson added that, with high expectations of the Stormers after a run of eight successive home wins, the performance against Leinster would serve as a constructive way to manage those expectations.
“It is tricky as a coach. That is probably one of the things I got wrong this week. I started trying to shift them from just getting to the quarters because I want to push on, but then we start getting carried away with that. It is a challenge for us.
“We saw tonight, as Nick Mallett told me this morning, you have to beat Leinster B in your own backyard before you think of playing Leinster A at the Aviva. Today was actually constructive from that point. We are better for it. Today probably did the job for me in terms of managing expectations.”
Photo: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images
