DHL Stormers touring squad confirmed

DHL Stormers Head Coach Robbie Fleck has named a 27-man squad for the upcoming three-match tour of Australasia.

After getting their 2018 Vodacom Super Rugby campaign off to a winning start with a 28-20 victory against the Jaguares at DHL Newlands on Saturday, the DHL Stormers fly to Sydney where they will face the Waratahs in the second round.

From Sydney the squad will then travel to New Zealand for encounters with the Highlanders and Crusaders, before heading back to Cape Town.

Although hooker Bongi Mbonambi will not be part of the squad due to a burst appendix, there is some good news on the injury front with lock Pieter-Steph du Toit cleared to tour after recovering from a back injury.

Mbonambi’s withdrawal means that hooker Dean Muir, who made his DHL Stormers debut off the replacements bench against the Jaguares, is included in the touring squad along with the likes of loose forward Sikhumbuzo Notshe and prop Caylib Oosthuizen, who did not feature in the opening game at DHL Newlands.

Fleck said that the squad is looking forward to the tour as they look to build on what they achieved in their opening game at DHL Newlands.

“We enjoy touring as a group and feel that there were plenty of positives in our performance against the Jaguares that we can build on in the coming weeks.

“The players have embraced the challenges that lie ahead of us and will be going all-out to raise our game further away from home,” he said.

DHL Stormers touring squad: Nizaam Carr, Damian de Allende, Jan de Klerk, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Dewaldt Duvenage, JJ Engelbrecht, JC Janse van Rensburg, Steven Kitshoff, Siya Kolisi (captain), Dillyn Leyds, Wilco Louw, SP Marais, Dean Muir, Sikhumbuzo Notshe, Caylib Oosthuizen, Justin Phillips, Raymond Rhule, Carlu Sadie, Ramone Samuels, JD Schickerling, Seabelo Senatla, Kobus van Dyk, Chris van Zyl, EW Viljoen, George Whitehead, Cobus Wiese, Damian Willemse.