Stormers sweating on fitness of Fourie and Orie for Connacht clash

Stormers management are still assessing the fitness of flank Deon Fourie who has a tweaked hamstring and lock Marvin Orie struggling with a shoulder niggle

Thu, 11 May, 2023 - 15:22

Craig Ray

The Stormers understandably go into Saturday’s United Rugby Championship (URC) semi-final against Connacht at their impressive DHL Stadium fortress as favourites. One home defeat in their last 23 outings will lead to that.

But they are also going into the match with some doubt over two key players as they look to take the defence of their title to a final against either Leinster or Munster.

Flank Deon Fourie, a menace at the breakdown, is struggling with a tweaked hamstring. The 36-year-old, who became the oldest Springbok debutant when he earned his first Test cap against Wales last July, is only “50/50” to play according to coach John Dobson.

To further furrow the Stormers coach’s brow, Springbok lock Marvin Orie is another on the doubtful list with a shoulder niggle. If those two are ruled out, the balance of the contest swings a little more Connacht’s way.

Dobson tried to play down the potential blow, but there is no escaping the fact that the Stormers struggled without Fourie when he was out for three weeks recently thanks to a fractured orbital bone. They even lost their first home game since December 2021 without Fourie, when Munster caused an upset last month.

And Orie is their lineout general and hard man in the pack. His absence will also be keenly felt if he isn’t cleared.

Fourie, though, is vital to the tempo of the game with his ability to disrupt opposition ball while also securing quick ball for his team on attack.

The dynamic loose forward’s work rate borders on manic, which is probably why his 36-year-old, well-used hamstring is playing up. It shouldn’t be put through as much as it is at this relatively advanced stage of his career.

Fourie is also expected to make the Springbok’s Rugby World Cup 2023 squad later this year where he will cover flank and third-choice hooker. The Boks used Schalk Brits in a similar role in 2019.

Dobson, who always displays his warm human side, admitted that he wouldn’t push Fourie into a situation where he might do more damage to his hamstring and therefore jeopardise his World Cup chances.

“Deon is probably 50-50 at best. We will make a call after the captain’s run on Friday,” Dobson said after Stormers training in Stellenbosch on Wednesday.

“Deon is sore, you saw him go down a few times on Saturday (during the Stormers’ 33-21 quarterfinal win over the Bulls). He trained yesterday but he was a bit sore today.

“It’s a tough one for us, because there is no tomorrow with it being a semi-final, but there is also a consequence to his aspirations this year. That’s where our mind is.

“There is no pressure on him. If we get to Friday and he wants to play, then that’s lekker (great). We haven’t ruled him out yet.”

Orie’s shoulder injury doesn’t appear to be as serious, and Dobson was a little more positive that he would come through for the match.

The Stormers have used 30 players this year and built their depth while managing to remain near the top of the standings. It’s the increased squad depth that has left Dobson feeling confident, even if his two Boks don’t play.

“This time last year the situation might have made me a bit jittery, but we have spread our depth to the point that we have plenty of players who have gained good experience this season to fall back on,” Dobson said.

“So, I am relatively relaxed in comparison to how I might have been 12 months ago.”

Fairytale continues

It’s not just player depth that looks better a year on. This time last year the organisation was still reeling from being placed in administration in late 2021 after Western Province Rugby Football Union (the WPRFU is the union under which the Stormers fall) leaders, nearly ran the club aground.

Administration under the SA Rugby Union (Saru) was a drastic and inevitable step. But Saru was left with no alternative as the union under former president Zelt Marais faced hundreds of millions of rands in lawsuits and had cash flow problems.

In the final days before Saru stepped in, Marais unconstitutionally appointed a “war room” of hand-picked people to solve the union’s massive challenges. The irony was that most of the problems were created on his watch.

Under Marais, the union stumbled from one crisis to another and faced financial ruin because of a damages lawsuit of more than R500-million (25 million euro) from property investment partners Dreamworld Pty Ltd.

Before last year’s URC final against the Bulls, Dobson outlined the plight of the team in the early stages of the inaugural URC.

“It was dark,” Dobson said in reference to the union’s woes.

“Western Province was dying, no doubt about it.

“So, I had in my mind the Dylan Thomas line from his poem “Do not go gentle into that good night” — rage, rage against the dying of the light.

“And then the Greek myth of Sisyphus pushing the boulder up the hill. He’s known as the absurd hero. He was without hope, and his joy became defying that absence of hope.

“As a team, we were 88-1 odds at the start of this competition (in 2021), and we told the players about the absurd hero that was Sisyphus, and they took it on and revelled in proving everybody wrong, week in and week out.

“It was a really tough time at the start of the season. I love Western Province rugby. I didn’t want to see it break down, but we were perilously close to it.”

They’re not out of the mire just yet, as the sale of Newlands still has to be finalised to clear debts. But there is stability and a functioning management. Results are superb and with a bit of luck, another URC final is in reach.