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Stephen Nell
Cape Town - The official word is that Dewaldt Duvenage will run out at scrumhalf for the Stormers on Saturday, but developments behind the scenes point to the team that was announced in Bellville on Wednesday not necessarily being the one that will take the field in the Super Rugby semi-final against the Crusaders.
SANZAR, governing body for Super Rugby, confirmed that the Stormers have applied to register Nic Groom in time for the semi-final.
The move comes after Duvenage sustained an injury in training this week. Neither he nor Springbok centre Jaque Fourie trained on Wednesday.
SANZAR are expecting a medical report on Duvenage on Friday and have since approved that Groom may train with the Stormers.
An injury to Duvenage could be a big problem for a number of reasons.
Louis Schreuder and Groom are both very young and against a strong pack of forwards and All Black scrumhalf Andy Ellis there won't be any place to hide.
Duvenage is also the reserve flyhalf, which could lead to a crisis if Peter Grant sustains an injury during the game.
It will therefore come as no surprise if the Stormers seek permission within the next 48 hours for Earl Rose to be included on the bench, especially if the news on Fourie takes a turn for the worse.
Duvenage appeared to be walking around without any discomfort at the WP High Performance Centre in Bellville on Wednesday.
Stormers coach Allister Coetzee said that the rest for Duvenage and Fourie was a "precautionary" measure.
Conrad Jantjes has been restored at fullback and Gio Aplon therefore moves to the right wing. Jean de Villiers will be used in midfield again this week. Fourie has been pencilled in as his midfield partner.
"The reasons that we opted for Conrad are his positional play and defence. It has worked for us previously. Gio is a better option if you want to play an attacking game," said Coetzee.
"But this is a playoff game. There is a chance of rain. Conrad has a good kicking boot, has previously done well in big games and the combination has worked for us before. We can always make a change during the match."
Teams:
Stormers:
15 Conrad Jantjes, 14 Gio Aplon, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Peter Grant, 9 Dewaldt Duvenage, 8 Nick Koster, 7 Francois Louw, 6 Schalk Burger (captain), 5 Andries Bekker, 4 Rynhardt Elstadt, 3 Brok Harris, 2 Tiaan Liebenberg, 1 Wicus Blaauw
Substitutes: 16 Deon Fourie, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Anton van Zyl, 19 Schalk Brits, 20 Louis Schreuder, 21 Juan de Jongh, 22 Johann Sadie
Crusaders:
15 Tom Marshall, 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Robbie Fruean, 12 Sonny Bill Williams, 11 Zac Guildford, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Andy Ellis, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (capt), 6 George Whitelock, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brad Thorn, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Corey Flynn, 1 Wyatt Crockett
Substitutes: 16 Quentin MacDonald, 17 Ben Franks, 18 Luke Romano, 19 Matt Todd, 20 Kahn Foutali'i, 21 Matt Berquist, 22 Ryan Crotty
Cape Town - The official word is that Dewaldt Duvenage will run out at scrumhalf for the Stormers on Saturday, but developments behind the scenes point to the team that was announced in Bellville on Wednesday not necessarily being the one that will take the field in the Super Rugby semi-final against the Crusaders.
SANZAR, governing body for Super Rugby, confirmed that the Stormers have applied to register Nic Groom in time for the semi-final.
The move comes after Duvenage sustained an injury in training this week. Neither he nor Springbok centre Jaque Fourie trained on Wednesday.
SANZAR are expecting a medical report on Duvenage on Friday and have since approved that Groom may train with the Stormers.
An injury to Duvenage could be a big problem for a number of reasons.
Louis Schreuder and Groom are both very young and against a strong pack of forwards and All Black scrumhalf Andy Ellis there won't be any place to hide.
Duvenage is also the reserve flyhalf, which could lead to a crisis if Peter Grant sustains an injury during the game.
It will therefore come as no surprise if the Stormers seek permission within the next 48 hours for Earl Rose to be included on the bench, especially if the news on Fourie takes a turn for the worse.
Duvenage appeared to be walking around without any discomfort at the WP High Performance Centre in Bellville on Wednesday.
Stormers coach Allister Coetzee said that the rest for Duvenage and Fourie was a "precautionary" measure.
Conrad Jantjes has been restored at fullback and Gio Aplon therefore moves to the right wing. Jean de Villiers will be used in midfield again this week. Fourie has been pencilled in as his midfield partner.
"The reasons that we opted for Conrad are his positional play and defence. It has worked for us previously. Gio is a better option if you want to play an attacking game," said Coetzee.
"But this is a playoff game. There is a chance of rain. Conrad has a good kicking boot, has previously done well in big games and the combination has worked for us before. We can always make a change during the match."
Teams:
Stormers:
15 Conrad Jantjes, 14 Gio Aplon, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Jean de Villiers, 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Peter Grant, 9 Dewaldt Duvenage, 8 Nick Koster, 7 Francois Louw, 6 Schalk Burger (captain), 5 Andries Bekker, 4 Rynhardt Elstadt, 3 Brok Harris, 2 Tiaan Liebenberg, 1 Wicus Blaauw
Substitutes: 16 Deon Fourie, 17 Steven Kitshoff, 18 Anton van Zyl, 19 Schalk Brits, 20 Louis Schreuder, 21 Juan de Jongh, 22 Johann Sadie
Crusaders:
15 Tom Marshall, 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Robbie Fruean, 12 Sonny Bill Williams, 11 Zac Guildford, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Andy Ellis, 8 Kieran Read, 7 Richie McCaw (capt), 6 George Whitelock, 5 Sam Whitelock, 4 Brad Thorn, 3 Owen Franks, 2 Corey Flynn, 1 Wyatt Crockett
Substitutes: 16 Quentin MacDonald, 17 Ben Franks, 18 Luke Romano, 19 Matt Todd, 20 Kahn Foutali'i, 21 Matt Berquist, 22 Ryan Crotty
