Stormers flyhalf Jurie Matthee believes that their massive United Rugby Championship (URC) match against Irish giants Munster will be played at Test match intensity, when the two sides meet in their top of the table clash at Thomond Park in Limerick on Saturday.
The Stormers and Munster have enjoyed the perfect start to the season, with five straight wins each, both level on 23 points, and the Cape side ahead of the Irish team solely on points difference.
It is thus set to be a cracking encounter between two in-form teams fighting to keep their unbeaten runs intact.
Munster will be slight favourites, as they are playing at home, where the Stormers have never won before, and will potentially be boosted by a few Irish stars on their return from national duty, while the South African team don’t have any of their stars available.
But the Stormers have already shown this season that their backup players are more than good enough to make the step up when needed, with Matthee himself having stood out in games in the absence of star flyhalf Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu.
“Playing Munster, it’s almost going to be like a Test match, playing in wet conditions. I’m looking forward to that challenge. It’s just about getting the momentum right and playing on the right side of the pitch,” explained the No 10 this week.
“Playing against those players and measuring yourself against the best is great. But whatever they bring, we will be looking to execute our game plan. The bigger the stage, the better the opportunity. It’s Munster and we are up for the challenge.”
Away form
The Stormers will be extremely happy with their away form so far this campaign, after previously being viewed as a poor traveling team. This season they enjoyed their first ever three-game winning European tour, beating Scarlets, Zebre and Benetton on the road.
Admittedly those teams are all currently in the bottom half of the log, so Munster on home turf will be a considerable step up, but Matthee believes that have done enough prep and know what to expect, and have a squad good enough to give the hosts a run for their money.
“I think we are well prepared for what is coming, and conditions will be a little bit different. It is going to be a physical battle and we are ready for it,” said Matthee.
“We have a couple of guys who can slot in anywhere. The connection is there. Hopefully we can play in the right areas and find each other on the field as well. It went well on the training pitch.
“As a group, we kind of prepare ourselves to be ready for anything. We have set ourselves the goal of touring well after our previous tour and it’s quite satisfying to have gotten the results. But in saying that, I think at Thomond Park we’re ready for all the conditions and we’ll react to what they bring.”
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