Stormers lose two halfbacks for Currie Cup Bulls clash at Loftus

The Stormers will be without scrumhalf Stefan Ungerer and flyhalf Jean-Luc du Plessis when they meet the Vodacom Bulls XV in the Currie Cup at Loftus Versfeld on Friday. Their absences force a new halfback pairing for a match that carries major consequences for the Stormers’ semi-final hopes.

Ezekiel Ngobeni moves to scrumhalf and will captain the side, with Kyle Smith taking over at flyhalf. The backline also includes the return of Luke Burger at fullback, marking the only other change behind the pack.

The forward group has been reshaped by injuries to Gary Porter, Keke Morabe and Wandile Mlaba. Divan Fuller and Xola Nyali will join Louw Nel in the loose trio, while Luan Botha makes his first start in the second row alongside Tom Barnard.

The Stormers enter the penultimate round in sixth place and need victory to keep their push for a semi-final place alive. Their final regular-season fixture is against the Lions at Ellis Park. The Bulls are bottom of the standings and have yet to win.

Coach Tom Dawson-Squibb said the changes had not reduced the team’s readiness for the Pretoria fixture. He described the north-south derby as significant regardless of the teams’ positions and said the selected players had trained well and were prepared for the occasion.

Burger starts behind Joel Leotlela, Markus Muller, Cornel Smit and Mfundo Ndhlovu, with Ngobeni and Smith completing the backline changes. The front five features Mhleli Khuzwayo, Vernon Paulo, Herman Lubbe, Botha and Barnard, while the replacements are Altus Rabe, Hencus van Wyk, Danie Kruger, Dylan de Leeuw, Eric Basson, Tiaan Fourie, Dominic Malgas and Gino Cupido.