Stormers head coach John Dobson is wary of the threat of Munster, who need to make the most of their South African tour to qualify for the play-offs and next season’s Champions Cup.
Munster need two points to guarantee a spot in the top eight, but this is made difficult by their final two games of the season being against the defending champions and the Sharks.
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Must-win attitude makes Munster dangerous
Dobson has huge respect for the Irish province and knows that because they are approaching the game with a must-win attitude it makes the team that much more dangerous.
“Munster are desperate,” he said. “They want to win this game to pretty much make sure they qualify for Europe. For a giant club like Munster, with their European traditions and history, it is very important.
“Of course, they also still want to have a go at winning the URC and who you end up playing in those knockout stages is important. You can see they are desperate from their squad selection. It does up the ante.”
Dobson insists the fixture is important for the Stormers despite already having qualified for the play-offs and Champions Cup as the Capetonians are playing for at least a home semi-final.
“It is significant,” he said. “We could also end up playing a South African team, but we are very keen on playing at home. There’s a larger reason for that, other than winning, and that’s our whole duty to make Cape Town smile and connect with the people. So us offering a home semi-final is important.”
The Stormers are also eyeing an improved performance after their poor outing against Exeter Chiefs in the Champions Cup quarter-finals that saw the side lose 42-17.
Dobson is determined for his side to find “fixes” from that performance and bounce back at their fortress DHL Stadium in Cape Town.
“There were lots of mitigating factors, but there were certainly things that were in our control, that – had we done right – we could have won the game,” said Dobson.
“It seems to us that the fixes were really simple, small technical details that we didn’t get right. We are still happy with our campaign. We are mostly disappointed we didn’t put up a better show in Exeter.”
Ticked the boxes
The head coach, however, insists that his side has already achieved what they set out to and anything from here is a bonus.
“I think we have had a successful season, no matter what happens now,” he said. “This wasn’t about selling the team on back-to-back titles. It was more about us consolidating our position in the top two, which I think we have done.
“It was also about building our depth and sense of belonging. I think hosting a last-16 game, getting into the quarter-finals, capping 54 players in the Vodacom URC so far, winning the South African Shield again, that is a massively successful second season.
“All of our major goals have been achieved. Anything from now will be a bonus. We can’t let what happens over the next few weeks detract from our macro-goals and our mission, which was to restore pride in the Stormers shirt. We most certainly have done that.”
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