Cape Town - Stormers coach Allister Coetzee showed his troops little mercy when he put them through a hard session in 35°C heat at their High Performance training base in Bellville on Wednesday.

Die Burger newspaper reports that the coach did not hold back nor shorten the session to spare his players in sweltering heat.

Despite only playing a warm-up match against Boland on Saturday, Coetzee emphasised the importance of playing through the pain barrier as they prepare for the Super Rugby tournament.

There are a number of young players in the group and Coetzee wants to determine whether they're tough enough.

"The first thing that especially Super Rugby demands from a player is that he has to be physically up for it. A player's character gets tested in places like Wellington," said Coetzee.

"I'd really like to see how guys like Michael van der Spuy, Burton Klaasen (both centres), Eben Etzebeth (lock) and Nizaam Carr (loose forward) handle the onslaught."

Boland are renowned for lifting themselves when they face their Cape neighbours and have often beaten Western Province in the Currie Cup in Wellington over the last decade or so.

Coetzee on Wednesday also named lock De Kock Steenkamp as captain for the pre-season friendly.

The match will be the first of four pre-season outings for the Newlands-based side before the 2012 Super Rugby season kicks off next month.

Several key performers, including flank and regular captain Schalk Burger, centre Jean de Villiers and prop Deon Carstens, were not considered for the match, with Coetzee looking to test his younger players.

Locks Andries Bekker and Rynhardt Elstadt, as well as eighthman Duane Vermeulen, are on long injury layoffs.

"Elstadt could start training in the next few days but Bekker and Vermeulen will need more time," Coetzee told SAPA.

"These players are all doing well [in terms of their rehab process] and they won't be allowed to play if they are not medically fit.

"We have a very conservative plan to bring them back into action and the same applies to another lock, Hilton Lobberts.

"He'll probably be out for another three weeks before he starts training."

Meanwhile, Boland coach Loffie Eloff named a 30-man squad for the clash. The team differs from the one which thrashed the EP Kings in the Currie Cup First Division final last year.

Some players have been bought by the richer unions, others are injured and two (Bolla Conradie and Clement Lewis) are with the Stormers.

Stormers squad: Adrian Kritzinger, Allistair Vermaak, Berton Klaasen, Bolla Conradie (vice-captain), Brok Harris, Burton Francis, Clement Lewis, Danie Poolman, De Kock Steenkamp (captain), Don Armandt, Eben Etzebeth, Ederies Arendse, Frans Malherbe, Gerbrandt Grobler, Gerhard van den Heever, Gio Aplon, JP du Plessis, Juan de Jongh, Kurt Coleman, Marcel Brache, Michael van der Spuy, Nic Groom, Nick Koster, Nizaam Carr, Reuben Johannes, Rohan Kitshoff, Tiaan Liebenberg, Yaya Hartzenberg.

Boland squad: Charl du Plessis, Chris Buckle, Peet Vorster, Jerry Sefoko, Nolan Clark, Milroy Isaacs, Thor Halvorsen, Junior Bester (captain), Neil Papier, Ricardo Croy, Brandon April, Siviwe Magaba, Jonathan Francke, Alistair Kettledas, Jacquin Jansen. Sunstitutes: Martin Nel, Ludwig Ras, BJ Julies, Jaco du Toit, PJ van Zyl, Franzel September, Zandré Jordaan, Juwell Samuels, Armand Marais, Jeremy Plaatjies, Cola Williams, Senan van der Merwe, Trevor van Rooyen, Adriaan Klaasen, Adam Barlow.