Stormers vs Bulls: Bok tighties meet challengers

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In anticipation of the Vodacom United Rugby Championship’s first north-south derby in Cape Town, DYLAN JACK previews the battle between the two contrasting but equally combative tight fives.

Marvin Orie vs Ruan Nortje

Since returning from Springbok duty, Orie has been an ever-present for the Stormers, starting 10 games this season. The Cape-born 29-year-old made his first-class debut for the Bulls back in 2014 and, after a stint with the Lions, made his way ‘back home’ to the Stormers in 2020. A wily campaigner who has made close to 100 appearances in all top-flight competitions, Orie knows just how to get under the opposition’s skin, but is equally adept at running the Stormers’ lineout.

However, the Stormers have not looked the most secure of the SA teams in the lineout, and that is why Nortje will be rubbing his hands ahead of Saturday’s match. Despite still only being 23-years-old, Nortje has emerged as a near-indispensable member of the Bulls pack. He was entrusted to run the team’s lineouts in both of their Currie Cup final victories last year and has made 14 starts in the URC. Nortje currently ranks fifth in the competition for lineout steals and has often been the player to come up with that crucial steal when the Bulls have been under pressure near their own tryline.

Adre Smith vs Walt Steenkamp

Signed by the Stormers After helping Griquas into the semi-finals of the 2021 Currie Cup, Smith is starting to hit his stride as the team’s enforcer. He capped a solid performance against the Ospreys by scoring one of his two tries this season. At 107kg, Smith is not the biggest of No 4 locks in the country, but his work rate and mobility around the park suits the Stormers’ high-tempo style of play. Like second-row partner Orie, Smith was born in the Western Cape, but made his professional debut for the Bulls and will look to get one over his former side on Saturday.

Steenkamp is comfortable at both No 5 and No 4, but has mostly been fielded in the latter role this season. Despite being played most as the Bulls’ enforcer, Steenkamp notably ranks second in the URC’s lineout poaching stat, having stolen seven in his 14 appearances this season. The 26-year-old showed his potential when he won Varsity Cup player of the season in 2018 and has built on that since joining the Bulls from the Cheetahs in 2020.

Steven Kitshoff vs Mornay Smith

Stormers captain Kitshoff is one of three Springboks that the home side will be fielding in their starting tight five on Saturday. The 30-year-old’s prowess in the scrum is obvious by now as, together with fellow Springboks Scarra Ntubeni and Frans Malherbe, he has been powering the Stormers in that department for the last decade. As a World Cup and Lions series winner, Kitshoff has proven a handful for even the best tightheads,  while his work around the park on defence and at the breakdown is probably still an underrated part of his game.

If anything, scrumming against a loosehead of Kitshoff’s class gives young Bulls tighthead Mornay Smith an opportunity to show why he is regarded as one of the better up-and-comers in his position in South Africa. Only 24 years old, Smith is a relative rookie in his position, but his importance to the Bulls scrum was underlined as his team struggled in that department during his injury-enforced absence. Having made an impressive return to the starting lineup against Ulster, Smith can help the Bulls hold their own against a powerful Stormers scrumming unit.

Neethling Fouche vs Gerhard Steenekamp

Even though it is part of the Stormers’ wider gameplan for this match, it says so much about Neethling Fouche that he has been picked ahead of Malherbe to start on Saturday. Fouche has come on in leaps and bounds since joining the Stormers from the Bulls in 2018 and at 29 years old is starting to reach his peak as a tighthead prop. His recent performance off the bench against Ulster in Cape Town, where he won a couple of crucial scrum penalties, shows why he has been entrusted with the No 3 jersey against his former side.

Having only made his debut for the Bulls in 2020, Steenekamp has quickly been entrusted as the team’s go-to loosehead prop. Alongside Smith, Grobbelaar formed a youthful front-row unit that helped the Bulls defend their Currie Cup title towards the end of last year. In that match, Steenekamp was up against the Sharks’ Thomas du Toit, but the 24-year-old showed that he won’t back down even when he faces up to an experienced Springbok.

Scarra Ntubeni vs Johan Grobbelaar

Having come through Western Province Rugby’s youth division with Kitshoff and Malherbe, Ntubeni has been a loyal servant to the Stormers. The 30-year-old’s happy-go-lucky attitude off the field tends to belie his combativeness on it.  Ntubeni recently recovered from a leg muscle injury and his accurate darting – he ranks first in successful lineouts with 108 – should help the Stormers shore up that area of the game against the Bulls. He won his first and only Springbok cap in 2019, but is eager to add more to his tally.

Matching Ntubeni’s energy will be the task of the Bulls’ explosive scrumcapped hooker Grobbelaar. The 24-year-old was deservedly called-up to the Springbok squad which toured Australia in the second leg of last year’s Rugby Championship and he will look to kick on and prove he is worthy of that first Test cap. Grobbelaar is currently second on the season’s top try-scorer list with eight, showing not only how deadly he is from short range, but also the effectiveness of the Bulls’ maul.

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Dylan Jack