Match Preview: DHL Stormers

• 22 Mar 2024
• Previews

Get set for the BKT United Rugby Championship Round 12 clash against DHL Stormers in Cape Town with our Match Preview.

FOLLOW LIVE

The match is live on Viaplay 1 with coverage starting at 2.55pm ahead of a 3.05pm GMT kick-off  in Cape Town.

Can’t watch on Viaplay? Follow all the action in the Galbraith Match Centre with whistle to whistle updates.

TEAM NEWS

WP Nel will become only the third player to reach 200 appearances for Edinburgh Rugby in club history when he takes to the field tomorrow evening.

Scotland internationalist Nel, 37, will fittingly enter the 200 club in Cape Town where his professional rugby career started at Western Province 16 years ago.

Having been a mainstay in the capital pack since arriving in Edinburgh in 2012, the tighthead prop now joins club legends Alan Jacobsen [273 appearances] and Chris Paterson [205] in an exclusive group of Edinburgh players.

Scotland duo Sam Skinner (lock) and Ben Healy (stand-off) both start in the South African capital, fresh from Guinness Six Nations action.

Everitt is also able to welcome Jamie Hodgson back from injury, with the Scotland lock featuring for the first time since December.

Ben Muncaster – who made his return from injury against Ospreys in Round 11 – makes his first start of the season at blindside flanker, while academy graduate Jake Henry, 23, makes his professional debut on the wing.

Henry – who came through the ranks at Highland Rugby Club – has featured for Southern Knights and Heriot’s Rugby in the FOSROC Super Series and returns to South Africa where he was placed on the prestigious Macphail Scholarship in 2019.

Click here for all team news ahead of match day in Cape Town

WHAT’S BEEN SAID

Head Coach Sean Everitt said: “We’re delighted to see WP hit 200 appearances for the club. He’s an Edinburgh legend and it’ll be an extremely proud moment for him and his family when he takes to the pitch at DHL Stadium tomorrow evening.

“This team doesn’t need any added motivation, but I’ve got no doubt they’ll be playing with a bit of extra fire to make it a special day for WP.”

Everitt continued: “It’s brilliant to welcome back experienced, quality players like Sam [Skinner] and Ben [Healy] who are both real leaders for us on the park.

“We’re also very excited to see Jake [Henry] make his professional debut for the club. He has worked extremely hard to get back from injury and he really does deserve this opportunity.

“The boys have worked tirelessly since arriving in Cape Town at the start of the week and we’re raring to go for what is always a massive challenge at DHL Stadium.”

THE STORY SO FAR

Edinburgh Rugby return to BKT United Rugby Championship action having won three on the bounce (Glasgow Warriors, Zebre Parma and Ospreys) and face back-to-back fixtures on South African soil.

Edinburgh have travelled to Cape Town for this weekend’s Round 12 match-up with the majority of the club’s Scotland contingent, however it is just Sam Skinner and Ben Healy that start at DHL Stadium, with others given another week’s rest following the conclusion of the Guinness Six Nations.

It is the third time Edinburgh Rugby have travelled to Cape Town (after facing the Stormers in the 2021/22 URC Quarter-Finals and Round 3 of last year’s Championship) while the capital side became the first URC team to win in South Africa on their last visit to Durban.

Edinburgh will be looking to pick up crucial away points as the race for the URC play-offs heats up, with Sean Everitt’s side currently sitting in fourth place in the Championship.

LEAGUE STANDINGS

LAST TIME OUT

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