DHL Stormers want to lift the tempo

DHL Stormers Head Coach Robbie Fleck wants his team to lift their tempo and intensity when they face the Highlanders in Dunedin on Friday.

Following their second defeat of the 2017 Vodacom Super Rugby campaign, against the Crusaders in Christchurch, the DHL Stormers will be looking to get back to winning ways at the Forsyth-Barr Stadium.

Fleck said that the team had taken some important lessons from the defeat, not least of which that the tempo and intensity of their effort must be taken to the next level.

“Obviously we need to work on a few things from the loss on the weekend,

“We had a good discussion as a group and we will take the learnings from the Crusaders game and move on.

“The key learning from our side is that we haven’t faced linespeed like the Crusaders presented, where they really got off the line and put us under immense pressure.

“You need to be strong set-piece wise playing over here, but the key for us is to match that instensity and that tempo that the Kiwi sides play at,” he explained.

The DHL Stormers coach knows it will not be easy against a quality Highlanders side playing on home turf, but says that his team will give it everything in an effort to lift their game.

“The Highlanders are a team that like to move the ball around and play an attacking sort of game. They have got a lot of All Blacks so they are a very dangerous side, especially when they are playing in Dunedin.

“There are a lot of young kids in the squad who have never toured New Zealand and it is a fantastic opportunity to play against some of the best players in the world in one of the toughest environments.

“We are going to keep pushing from our side, we are trying to play with a high intensity,” he added.

The DHL Stormers were boosted this week by the availability of fullback SP Marais who has recovered from a groin injury and captain Siya Kolisi who was rested last week due to the Springbok management plan.