The last Super Rugby Quarter-final is a repeat of last year’s Super Rugby quarter-final, featuring the same teams at the same venue.
Last year the Chiefs won the match 21-60 in Cape Town but it was the first time that the Stormers had faced New Zealand side.
This season the Stormers played all five NZ sides but won two and lost three.
Crucially though one of those wins was a 34-26 victory over the Chiefs – in one of the games of the season – which will be a big psychological boost for the Cape Town side.
Match detail
We are waiting for the kick-off.
1.00: BEEP BEEP! We are underway in Cape Town for a repeat of last year’s quarter-final and the match from earlier this season; the Chiefs won last year’s quarter-final, but not the round robin game. Jaco Peyper is the referee and he officiated in April’s clash at Newlands.
3.00: The first scrum has been reset twice. The Stormers have the ball inside their half.
6.00: James Lowe throws a loose pass and Cheslin Kolby picks it up, setting up his team with some possession. it is slow ball for the Cape men. SP Marais makes a run, the ball is recycled but Damian Willemse loses the ball. Damian McKenzie gathers and sends the ball deep into the opposition’s half.
7.00: Mitchell Brown is penalised for going off his feet, but the Stormers don’t find touch. The ball is kicked back to the home team and Marais launches a huge kick to give his team territory inside the Chiefs’ 22.
10.00: Both sides are playing for territory. It’s a slow start to this game, especially after the previous encounters.
12.00: Mbongeni Mbonambi controls the ball at the back of the driving maul. Liam Messam is penalised for collapsing the maul. Good drive from the home team. Willemse makes sure of a good touch finder this time.
14.00: The handling by both teams is loose; lots of stray passes and untidy rucks. Nizaam Carr makes two breaks in this series of plays. Damian de Allende is also carrying with conviction in the early stages, however, the Chiefs are solid in defence, win the ball back and launch another counter-attack through McKenzie. It comes to nought and the Stormers have the lineout throw inside their 22.
15.00: Mitchell Brown has been pinged again, this time for sacking the driving maul. Willemse clears to halfway.
16.00: Mbonambi overthrows and the Chiefs attack. Lowe gets the ball, sees open space behind the Stormers’ backline and kicks a poor kick, straight to SP Marais. It’s pretty messy at the minute; both teams making two handling errors in the opening quarter and kicking possession away.
20.00: Peyper is reviewing a previous play for a tackle in the air by Carr on McKenzie. It is only a penalty. Aaron Cruden clears to the Stormers’ 22.
22.00: SP Marais kicks the ball behind the Chiefs after another handling error by the Kiwis. McKenzie clears, but only after some good work from Lowe, who made it back to stop the danger.
23.00: Brodie Retallick is blown up for jumping across the Stormers’ lineout. Marais calls for the tee.
24.00: PENALTY! SP Marais gets the game’s first points: 3-0
26.00: A messy lineout from the Chiefs, results in the Stormers winning the ball. Scrum to the blue and white hoops on the halfway line. The set piece is reset again, this time because of the slippery conditions.
28.00: Penalty to the Chiefs after a good scrum from Kane Hames and the front row. McKenzie will take a shot; he has 120 points in this season’s competition.
30.00: PENALTY! From 45-metres, the fullback levels the scores: 3-3
31.00: Stephen Donald breaks from his 22 and goes to halfway before throwing a loose pass into touch. The Chiefs win the penalty after the lineout and McKenzie will take another shot at goal from 48 metres.
32.00: PENALTY! The fullback, with a smile on his face as he is booed, makes no mistake and gives the Kiwis the lead: 3-6
35.00: Some more magic from McKenzie, this time taking a high ball one handed and hanging on as he is hit. The Chiefs earn another penalty and kick to the corner.
37.00: Rynhardt Elstadt is penalised for being on the wrong side and not rolling away. The Chiefs kick to the corner again.
38.00: Damian de Allende is offside, Cruden kicks away the ball, but the advantage was being played, so the Chiefs have a penalty in front of the posts. Peyper gives Siyamthanda Kolisi a warning for multiple infringements. McKenzie will have an easy kick to extend his side’s lead.
39.00: PENALTY! It’s good and three from three for the fullback: 3-9
40.00: Nathan Harris wins the penalty at the breakdown after the Stormers’ late surge. Cruden kicks the ball out and the teams head for the shed.
The half-time score was Stormers 3 Chiefs 9
41.00: BEEP! BEEP! We are back underway in Cape Town for the last 40 minutes of the quarter-finals in Super Rugby.
43.00: The Chiefs have an early scrum, just outside their 22. They go wide, but Lowe loses the ball and the Stormers win the penalty after Michael Leitch is caught at the ruck. Marais kicks to the corner.
45.00: Carr is smoked in the tackle. The Stormers have two penalty advantages.
46.00: TRY Siya Kolisi! The Stormers send the ball through the hands and the captain goes over in the corner: 8-9
47.00: MISS! Marais fades his kick across the posts: 8-9
48.00: The Stormers chase the restart and Lowe forces the knock on with good pressure. The Chiefs have a chance to hit back with a scrum inside the 22.
51.00: After several phases, Carr is penalised at the breakdown.
52.00: PENALTY! McKenzie kicks his fourth penalty: 8-12
54.00: The Chiefs break from their 22. Lowe fends off a defender and attempts an offload which Cruden can’t hold. Once again, another handling error stalls a breakaway.
55.00: Kane Hames is penalised for dropping his elbow and collapsing the scrum. The call came from Rasta Rasivhenge on the sideline.
57.00: This time, Pieter-Steph du Toit under no pressure, drops an easy pass from Jano Vermaak. The Stormers have made five handling errors since the break.
59.00: The Cape team go through the phases, but they are penalised after the Chiefs counter ruck. We are going back for a look at a dangerous tackle from Michael Leitch and Sam Cane on Dillyn Leyds in the build up to the penalty. It looks high and reckless.
60.00: YELLOW CARD Sam Cane! Jaco Peyper wanted to award a penalty, but TMO Johan Greeff, calls on him to give the card for a hit to the winger’s chin: huge call!
62.00: The Stormers win a penalty after Kane Hames tackles the dummy runner without the ball.
63.00: Donald is leaving the field with another injury at Newlands. Willemse wants to kick to the corner, but Kolisi motions to the poles.
63.00: PENALTY! Marais reduces the gap to a single point: 11-12
65.00: We have entered the last quarter of the game, the bread and butter of the fit Kiwis: can the South Africans stop them as they did in April?
67.00: The Stormers win the Chiefs’ lineout, but they are penalised. Nathan Harris, who got away with an earlier skew throw, is caught this time. Stormers get the scrum.
69.00: The Stormers get a penalty and Marais kicks into the New Zealand territory.
70.00: Aidan Ross is caught for a side entry on the Stormers’ driving maul. Marais is lining up a shot at goal.
72.00: MISS! Marais misses from almost the exact same spot as he did for Kolisi’s try: 11-12
74.00: Both teams are kicking the ball away, instead of running from their own half. The clock is ticking down. Mbongeni Mbonambi loses the ball in contact near his 22 and the Chiefs counter attack. The Stormers have lost seven of the eight knock out games they have played in Super Rugby.
76.00: TRY Shaun Stevenson! The Chiefs are going through the phases inside the 22. They are attacking the fringes of the ruck and gaining ground. They go wide and the wing, with his first touch, scores after taking Cruden’s excellent pass: 11-17
78.00 MISS! McKenzie misses an important two-pointer and the Stormers are still in this: 11-17
79.00: The Stormers have a lineout inside the Chiefs’ 22. They get a midfield scrum on the Chiefs’ 22.
80.00: It is reset. Twenty seconds to play.
81.00: The hooter sounds. Last chance saloon for the South Africans. No good, the Chiefs get the ball and kick it out.
Full-time
The final score is Stormers 11 (3) Chiefs 17 (9)
Scorers
Stormers
Tries – Kolisi
Pen – Marais (2)
Con –
Drop –
Cards –
Chiefs
Tries – Stevenson
Pen – McKenzie (4)
Con –
Drop –
Cards – Cane (Yellow, 60th minute)
Match Officials
Referee: Jaco Peyper
Assistant Ref 1: Rasta Rasivhenge
Assistant Ref 2: Quinton Immelman
TMO: Johan Greeff
Teams
Stormers
15 Sarel Marais, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 EW Viljoen, 12 Damian de Allende, 11 Dillyn Leyds, 10 Damian Willemse, 9 Jano Vermaak, 8 Nizaam Carr, 7 Rynhardt Elstadt, 6 Siyamthanda Kolisi (captain), 5 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 4 Eben Etzebeth (vice-captain), 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Mbongeni Mbonambi, 1 Jacobus Janse van Rensburg.
Replacements: 16 Ramone Samuels, 17 Oliver Kebble, 18 Wilco Louw, 19 Chris van Zyl, 20 Sikhumbuzo Notshe, 21 Justin Phillips, 22 Seabelo Senatla, 23 Juan de Jongh.
Chiefs
15 Damian McKenzie, 14 Solomon Alaimalo, 13 Anton Lienert-Brown, 12 Stephen Donald, 11 James Lowe, 10 Aaron Cruden (co-captain), 9 Tawera Kerr-Barlow, 8 Michael Leitch, 7 Sam Cane (co-captain), 6 Liam Messam, 4 Mitchell Brown, 5 Brodie Retallick, 3 Nepo Laulala, 2 Nathan Harris, 1 Kane Hames.
Replacements: 16 Liam Polwart, 17 Aidan Ross, 18 Atu Moli, 19 Dominic Bird, 20 Lachlan Boshier, 21 Finlay Christie, 22 Tim Nanai-Williams, 23 Shaun Stevenson
