The Stormers have always been a team that thrives on resilience, and Bulls mentor Jake White's remarks about their injury struggles a couple of weeks ago only seemed to fuel their fire when they faced his side this past weekend.
Instead of letting the words of the Bulls’ director of rugby get under their skin, the players turned it into extra motivation ahead of facing their arch-rivals. They used it as a reminder of their toughness and the team's ability to never back down, especially in a North-South derby.
Rather than focus on their injuries and who was unavailable, the Stormers focused on proving White wrong - showing that no matter who's playing on the day, they can compete at the highest level. It’s a perfect example of how a team can take something seemingly negative and turn it into a positive.
If anything, White’s comments seemed to galvanise the Stormers' resolve, as they played with a sort of demented look in the eye at the Bulls' holy grail, determined to show that they are more than just the sum of their injuries. They battered their hosts from the first kick-off and White’s side didn't know what hit them. It was so ferocious that three Bulls left the field with injuries - that shows how tough the battle was.
Beast Mode activated by @evanroos4 at Loftus to take the Fans' Man of the Match Award on our WhatsApp channel this week. #iamastormer pic.twitter.com/XWcgt1DqWS
Eighth man Evan Roos, captain and lock Salmaan Moerat, prop Neethling Fouche, hooker Joseph Dweba and flank Ben-Jason Dix led the charge. Every Bulls player they had in their sights felt the wrath of their tackling and rucking. The Stormers were bullish and the Pretoria players seemingly had big red targets on their chests and backs.
It would also not surprise if the Cape side's director of rugby John Dobson printed out the words White uttered two weeks ago and hung it in every changeroom of his players. To motivate them. White got a jab in ahead of the North vs South derby and threw shade at the injuries of his opponents, questioning ''surprisingly" why Dobson didn't include WP legends Gert Small and Carel du Plessis on the injury list of 15 players he sent out.
Wonderful Wandi! #BULvSTO #iamastormer @Vodacom #URC pic.twitter.com/RVKNkQzmQq
But this comment would've been all the motivation the players needed.
White's team was on the cusp of achieving a first double win in a season over the Cape side. This would've been a big achievement because up until last season at Loftus, they couldn't even win one game in the URC against the Stormers.
And Dobson had the last laugh as his side did the talking on the field. The little jab he got in on Saturday after the game when he said Roos stood in well for the injured Smal was the icing on the cake.
That and of course the 19-16 win that brought the Stormers firmly back into contention in the URC.