RUGBY NEWS - DHL Stormers captain Siya Kolisi will sit out Saturday’s crucial Vodacom Super Rugby showdown with the Jaguares in Buenos Aires as per the Springbok resting protocols.
Kolisi is joined by prop Frans Malherbe in sitting out the trip to Argentina for the purposes of having a rest, and they will be joined in the group watching the game on television sets back home by flank Pieter-Steph du Toit, who misses the tour because of the shoulder injury that forced him off the field against the Bulls at the weekend.
Utility forward Ernst van Rhyn, who made an impression when he came on as a replacement against the Bulls, will also sit out the trip due to an elbow injury.
With a bye week coming up after this it is unfortunate for the Stormers that they have to travel under-strength as it is an important game, with the Jaguares level with them on a conference log which sees the top and the bottom teams separated by just four points.
However, coach Robbie Fleck would feel justified in arguing that he still has the material to do the job, for there are enough players in the forward group with utility value to cover for those who are absent.
And with Jaco Coetzee and another Springbok in Sikhumbuzo Notshe returning from injury this week, Fleck does have additional options he never had last week.
With Du Toit out it is likely that Cobus Wiese, excellent at lock against the Bulls before being replaced in the second half, will play on the blindside flank, with Eben Etzebeth slotting in alongside the impressive JD Schickerling, who'd have been close to the man of the match award against the Bulls, in the second row.
