Cape Town - Use brains and not brawn.

That was referee Jonathan Kaplan's message to the Stormers in a discussion over the rules of the game.

"The Stormers are a very experienced group, but the same principle which applies to me, applies to them as well: No matter how much experience you've got, you have to keep on growing," Kaplan told Die Burger newspaper.

"The transition from good to exceptionally good won't be measured by how much kilograms you can push, but by good decision making on the field.

"You don't want to wonder after the match about what could have been.

"I'm not arguing that physical strength does not play a big role in rugby, but tactics and decision making determine the winner," said Kaplan.

Earlier this week, South Africa's refereeing boss André Watson said referees have been told to be very strict when handling the breakdown area in the upcoming season.

Kaplan discussed the rules in a constructive manner with the Stormers this week. "It's my job to provide them with information and the coaches' job to decide on the application."

Craig Joubert will blow the Stormers' pre-season match against the Cheetahs this weekend, which will show how much they have learnt from their session with Kaplan.

The teams can also expect to be punished when engaging too early at scrum time.

"There will be quicker action taken against a team that engages early. A penalty will immediately follow a free kick against the team transgressing. In the past we were much more lenient.

"Sometimes a free kick against the team transgressing is not enough punishment.

"If you have a situation where the two packs of forwards are equally strong, one team could gain an advantage if it wins the engagement.

"It's our responsibility to ensure that there's a fair clash."

Teams:

Stormers:

15 Gerhard van den Heever, 14 Danie Poolman, 13 JP du Plessis, 12 Marcel Brache, 11 Ederies Arendse, 10 Demetri Catrakilis, 9 Nic Groom, 8 Nizaam Carr, 7 Siya Kolisi, 6 Schalk Burger (captain), 5 De Kock Steenkamp, 4 Rynhardt Elstadt, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Deon Fourie, 1 Deon Carstens.

Substitutes: 16 Siyabonga Ntubeni, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Brok Harris, 19 Eben Etzebeth, 20 Don Armand, 21 Nick Fenton-Wells, 22 Rohan Kitshoff, 23 Bolla Conradie, 24 Kurt Coleman, 25 Michael van der Spuy, 26 Berton Klaasen


Cheetahs:

15 Hennie Daniller, 14 Dusty Noble, 13 Robert Ebersohn, 12 Andries Strauss, 11 Rocco Jansen, 10 Johan Goosen, 9 Pieter van Zyl, 8 Davon Raubenheimer, 7 Philip van der Walt, 6 Heinrich Brüssow, 5 Izak van der Westhuizen, 4 Andries Ferreira, 3 WP Nel, 2 Adriaan Strauss (captain), 1 Marcel van der Merwe.

Substitutes: 16 Ryno Barnes, 17 Lourens Adriaanse, 18 George Earl, 19 Francois Uys, 20 Ashley Johnson, 21 Marnus Hugo, 22 Sias Ebersohn, 23 Philip Snyman, 24 Rayno Benjamin, 25 Willie le Roux.

Referee: Craig Joubert