Stormers name team for URC warm-up against Eagles

Brok Harris will captain an extended 28-man DHL Stormers XV squad in their first pre-season match against the South-Western Districts Eagles at Outeniqua Park in George on Friday evening.

The encounter against the Southern Cape side will be the first opportunity for gametime ahead of the 2023/24 campaign.

The match kicks off at 18:30 on Friday evening.

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A first look

The squad includes all six of the DHL Stormers’ new signings.

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Courtnall Skosan, Ben Loader, Lizo Gqoboka, Sti Sithole and Hendre Stassen will turn out for the Stormers for the first time.

Meanwhile, Warrick Gelant returns in a bid to revive his Springbok career. 

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Plus there will also be a few talented young players such as flyhalf Jurie Matthee, centre Mnombo Zwelendaba and flank Jarrod Taylor who are given a chance to show what they can do.

There is a blend of youth and experience across the starting XV and extended bench, with Harris’ fellow DHL Stormers centurion Juan de Jongh one of five Springboks in the matchday squad.

Head Coach John Dobson said that after a lengthy pre-season, every player is itching to get out onto Outeniqua Park.

“There has been some hard work put in over the last few months, which has been building up to this. We have got an exciting mix of players who are all looking forward to putting what we have worked on into practice.

“The crowd in George is always electric and we are expecting the usual spirited effort from the home side, which should make for a great occasion,” he said.

Stormers team

DHL Stormers XV: 15. Clayton Blommetjies, 14. Courtnall Skosan, 13. Mnombo Zwelendaba, 12. Cornel Smit, 11. Ben Loader, 10. Jurie Matthee, 9. Stefan Ungerer, 8. Marcel Theunissen, 7. Jarrod Taylor, 6. Willie Engelbrecht, 5. Gary Porter, 4. Adre Smith, 3. Brok Harris (captain), 2. Scarra Ntubeni, 1. Ali Vermaak.

Replacements (from): JJ Kotze, 17 Sti Sithole, 18 Lizo Gqoboka, 19 Lee-Marvin Mazibuko, 20 Hendre Stassen, 21 Dylan Sjoblom, 22 Keenan Opperman, 23 Tom Bursey, 24 Godlen Masimla, 25 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 26 Juan de Jongh, 27 Chris Hollis, 28 Warrick Gelant.