“Ruhan Nel Praises Dan du Plessis’ Return for Stormers vs. Dragons”
Ruhan Nel has welcomed Dan du Plessis back to the Stormers midfield. They will host the Dragons in Cape Town on Sunday.
Ruhan Nel praises Du Plessis’ return ahead of the clash with the Dragons. Du Plessis recovered from a knee injury and will play his first match of the year.
Midfield partnership
The pair have formed a long-running midfield partnership since 2018. They helped the Stormers lift the URC title in 2022.
Stormers CEO Johan le Roux said the duo hold the second-most starting caps as a centre pairing. Only De Wet Barry and Marius Joubert have more starts together.
Du Plessis’ comeback and role
Nel described Du Plessis as an “unstable individual” and called him a strong character. He added that a degree of unpredictability can benefit the inside centre role.
Du Plessis goes into the match eager to show his form. Damian Willemse and rookie Jonathan Roche impressed in the No 12 shirt during his absence.
Nel played a full 80 minutes in last weekend’s 32–19 win over the Bulls. He expects a similar work rate from his centre partner.
- Venue: DHL Stadium, Cape Town.
- Kick-off: Sunday at 3pm.
- Du Plessis: returning from knee injury; first match of the year.
- Pairing rank: second-most starting caps as a Stormers centre duo.
- Recent result: Stormers beat the Bulls 32–19 last weekend.
