Cape Town – Stormers skipper Steven Kitshoff says the fact that the players are friends, and not just teammates, played a key role in the work they have put into their United Rugby Championship (URC) campaign.
The Stormers became the inaugural URC winners after defeating the Bulls in the Grand Final at Cape Town Stadium at the weekend.
It has been a superb season for the Stormers. Their victory over the Bulls – their third this season alone – capped an 11-match winning streak.
They also won the South African Shield and will compete in the Champions Cup next year along with the Bulls and the Sharks.
In the final, the Stormers were 7-3 down at half-time but came out firing in the second half.
It was a beautiful display by the hosts after the break, especially considering how the Bulls controlled the game during the opening 30 minutes.
Speaking after the final, Kitshoff shared some insight into what has kept the Stormers machine running.
“That never-say-die attitude is one of the special characteristics of this team,” said Kitshoff.
“As soon as there is a bit of care and a bit of love with great friendships then guys are willing to go the extra mile for you.
“It also has a lot to do with Dobbo (head coach John Dobson) and his team socials.
“There is a true friendship among each other in the team and you can actually see it on the pitch.”
Kitshoff added that it’s that friendship that has helped them through tough times, and there has been no shortage of that. When the South African teams first joined the URC late last year, things were looking disastrous.
They struggled to adapt to the new competition’s components, and while the entire South African contingent of teams had that in common, something that the Stormers had to deal with in addition to that was the never-ending behind-the-scenes issues back at home in the form of financial instability and administrative disasters, which saw the Western Province Rugby Football Union placed under administration by SA Rugby last October.
“You can see it at the HPC (High Performance Centre) where the guys bond and chat and actually care for each other and that spills over into the game,” the Cup winner said.
“When times get tough, the guys go the extra mile to ensure the team gets the result.”
@WynonaLouw
