Africa-Press – South-Africa. Stormers coach John Dobson said Heineken Champions Cup qualification for his once ‘written-off’ side is more than an attainable goal.
With the Stormers narrowly, but deservedly beating the Bulls 19-17 in their United Rugby Championship clash at the Cape Town Stadium on Saturday, the Cape side has now moved one point clear at the top of the South African conference.
Crucially, being in fifth-place means they qualify for the Heineken Champions Cup, a privilege reserved for the top seven teams in the 15-team group.
URC Log Standings
The Sharks are sixth behind the Stormers, which means if those sides win their remaining games, they’ve got every chance of controlling their qualification and playoff destinies.
Dobson said he was chuffed that they’ve been able to look after themselves in this manner and also recognised the importance of being in the Heineken Champions Cup from a financial perspective.
“I am pleased with where we are standing on the log, especially for a team that was written off and not highly thought off by our opponents,” Dobson said.
“I think what we want to do as a reasonable goal is to win our conference and qualify for the Champions Cup.
“What is critical is that we qualify for the Heineken Cup and that’s a more than a realistic goal for where we are now.
We’re clawing back some respect for this union, so it’s important from a financial perspective that we play in the Heineken Cup.”
Since losing 37-19 to the Lions at the end of last year, the Stormers have won eight out of their past 10 games.
Stormers see off Bulls to cement top spot in SA’s URC conference
That excellent sequence of results includes a double over the Bulls, an away win over the Lions, along with a draw and a win against the Sharks.
The European teams, barring Ulster, were comprehensively manhandled, but Dobson said they’re still growing as a group.
“To beat the Bulls home and away, a team that’s well-coached and well-drilled as they are, is a great achievement,” Dobson said.
“We’re growing and we’ve gone a lot of hard work to get to where we are now and we don’t want to lose it now.
“We don’t have any concerns with regards to losing momentum.”
After this weekend’s bye, the Stormers host the Glasgow Warriors and Leinster on consecutive weekends before completing their round-robin stage at the Dragons.
With Dobson welcoming back several players from various injury layoffs, Dobson is looking forward to those fixtures.
“We could play next week because our injury roster is very good, but we have to play two teams that are above us on the log,” Dobson said.
“Glasgow hasn’t been playing recently, so they will be preparing for us. It will be tough for us, but if we get that, we should be home and hosed.
“We don’t want to go to the Scarlets needing to win, so physically we are good, but we just need to watch ourselves emotionally.”
For More News And Analysis About South-Africa Follow Africa-Press
