Centre Ruhan Nel has been named captain of the DHL Stormers for their opening Vodacom United Rugby Championship match against Leinster at DHL Stadium on Friday[1].[3] Regular leaders Salmaan Moerat and Deon Fourie are sidelined with injuries, making Nel—an established leader within the squad—the natural choice to skipper the side according to Director of Rugby John Dobson.
The starting lineup features JD Schickerling and Adré Smith in the second row, with Ruben van Heerden set to come off the bench. Evan Roos anchors the scrum at number eight, flanked by Ben-Jason Dixon and Paul de Villiers, while Ruan Ackermann will make his Stormers debut from the bench[1]. The backline is led by Simelane, Senatla, Nel, du Plessis, Zas, Matthee, and Ungerer.
Dobson highlighted the squad’s thorough pre-season preparation and emphasized the importance of starting strong at home against the reigning champions: “There has been a lot of hard work put in from players and management to get to this point, and we are all very excited to get going…Playing the defending champions at home means that we will have to be on our game to get the result we want and we know we will have our fans right behind us as always.”[1]
The confirmed DHL Stormers team is:
- 15 Wandisile Simelane
- 14 Seabelo Senatla
- 13 Ruhan Nel (captain)
- 12 Dan du Plessis
- 11 Leolin Zas
- 10 Jurie Matthee
- 9 Stefan Ungerer
- 8 Evan Roos
- 7 Ben-Jason Dixon
- 6 Paul de Villiers
- 5 JD Schickerling
- 4 Adré Smith
- 3 Neethling Fouché
- 2 André-Hugo Venter
- 1 Vernon Matongo
- Replacements: 16 JJ Kotze, 17 Olly Reid, 18 Zachary Porthen, 19 Ruben van Heerden, 20 Ruan Ackermann, 21 Marcel Theunissen, 22 Dewaldt Duvenage, 23 Clinton Swart
This match marks a rare opportunity for the Stormers to start the URC season in Cape Town, a prospect the team is eager to capitalize on with strong home support[5]. For up-to-date match details, learn more at the Stormers’ official match centre[6].