Stormers Star midfielder Damian de Allende says the standard of play from his Super Rugby team-mates has made his return from injury that much easier.
The Springbok centre made his first appearance of the season for the Stormers in the 46-19 victory over the Sunwolves at Newlands Stadium, coming off the bench and making a real impact.
Having been sidelined for four months, there was always going to be some apprehension ahead of his first game back, but he said the dominant display from his teammates meant there was far less pressure.
“Credit to the guys that have been playing – I think that has made it easier for me as well because they have been putting up good performances so there wasn’t any pressure for me to come back.
“It was nice to get 35 minutes against the Sunwolves, but it was also nice to see how well the guys played in the first half. If they didn’t play well then it would have been a bit scary for me to come back for my first game to play for 35 minutes under pressure, it was nice to come on and have a bit more freedom on the field,” he said.
Another factor, which helped the big centre slot right back into things, was the relaxed team environment he is very familiar with.
“It is a very relaxed set-up off the field, so everyone gets treated the same way, there are no egos or arrogant people here.
“It is nice to come here because every day we want to get better as individuals and as a team, and you know that no one is leaving it short.
“So you know that every day everyone is coming in and giving 100% and playing for each other and trying to help each other as well.
“I have been lucky enough to be here since 2013, so I know a lot of the guys quite well and it is quite easy for me to come back from injury and filter in quite nicely,” he added.
