Stormers go down fighting against NZ

The DHL Stormers 26/27 home jersey was revealed on Friday night in the historic clash against New Zealand at DHL Stadium.

The DHL Stormers took on the world’s second-ranked international team for the first time and marked the occasion by playing in their new home jersey, with replica jerseys set to go on sale to the public in early September.

The Stormers rose to the occasion, going toe-to-toe with New Zealand for 80 minutes and pushing them all the way. The match was deadlocked at 14-14 after 65 minutes before a raft of injuries caught up with the hosts, resulting in the visiting side claiming a 38-21 win in front of a crowd of over 47 000 passionate fans.

While retaining many of the elements of the 25/26 home jersey – the blue and white hoops and black shorts and socks – there have been some key changes that bring the DHL Stormers in line with the other teams around the world that proudly wear adidas kit.

The white collar and white stripes on the shoulders reinforce the ties to the timeless heritage of the classic Western Province jersey, while also aligning the iconic style of the jersey with the likes of their opponents on the night at DHL Stadium.

It was an impressive effort from the Stormers, who were in the game until the last 15 minutes until several injuries to key players saw the international side score some late tries to inflate their score.

The visitors struck first as they claimed advantage in the 22 and made use of it, with hooker Samisoni Taukei’aho scoring from a maul.

The Stormers were not to be deterred and marched straight into opposition territory with a strong maul of their own.

New Zealand centre Anton Lienert-Brown was shown a yellow card for a high tackle on Jonny Roche and his teammate Simon Parker shortly afterwards, after an infringement at a maul.

The Stormers took advantage after an initial maul try by Andre-Hugo Venter was disallowed but made sure at the second attempt, with veteran flank Deon Fourie going over.

The conversion by debutant flyhalf Yaqeen Ahmed levelled matters and it looked like they would go into half-time deadlocked but a try from Parker just before the break saw New Zealand claim a 14-7 advantage.

The home side came out firing in the second half and were back on level terms when Seabelo Senatla burst through from a set move to score under the poles.

Injuries to Dewaldt Duvenage and captain Ruhan Nel forced the Stormers to juggle their resources, with Senatla playing scrumhalf and flank Hacjivah Dayimani moving to the wing.

New Zealand managed to take advantage by scoring a string of tries, although the hosts never stopped fighting and were awarded a penalty try when Warrick Gelant was tackled high in the act of scoring.

The end scoreline flattered the visitors somewhat after an entertaining game that saw the enthusiastic crowd engaged throughout.

Stormers Rugby Chief Commercial Officer Leontine De Sutter said that the opportunity to reveal the new home jersey at a game of this magnitude was too good to pass up.

“This match was a historic occasion, so while this jersey is for the 26/27 season, we wanted to bring another element of excitement to the game.

“Both teams play in adidas kit and both the blue and white hoops and the black jersey are steeped in history. It made sense to give our fans something special on the night at DHL Stadium,” she said.

The 26/27 away jersey will be officially revealed in early September, with both replica jerseys set to go on sale then.