Stormers Player Ratings: Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s Brilliant Cameo Nearly Secures Victory

The Stormers fell 28-27 to RC Toulon in the Investec Champions Cup round of 16. John Dobson’s side pushed hard but came up one point short. Filmogaz.com assesses individual displays and key moments from the match.

Overview

Toulon controlled much of the possession and territory. The Stormers fought back late. A TMO decision ultimately denied them a dramatic quarter-final entry.

Backs — ratings and notes

• Warrick Gelant — 7. Covered the backfield well and offered attacking flair. He overcooked one kick into the Toulon 22.
• Damian Willemse — 7. Produced a jinking run past Corentin Mezou. His offload set Hacjivah Dayimani free.
• Ruhan Nel (c) — 6. Steady captaincy and solid defence. No unnecessary fuss.
• Dan du Plessis — 6. Competed strongly against Juan Ignacio Brex. Conceded three turnovers before being replaced.
• Leolin Zas — 5. Reliable under high ball but had few attacking opportunities. A couple of defensive misreads hurt him.
• Jurie Matthee — 6. Kicked accurately from hand and tee. Limited by Toulon’s territorial superiority.
• Cobus Reinach — 7. Returned to the starting line-up in good form. Box-kicking was effective despite a few errors.

Forwards — ratings and notes

• Evan Roos — 8. Scored and made a huge workload on both sides of the ball. Took a heavy hit from Setariki Tuicuvu.
• Hacjivah Dayimani — 6. Busy carrier with a standout break from Willemse’s offload. Replaced early in the second half.
• Paul de Villiers — 7. Aggressive at the breakdown and strong in defence. Conceded a late penalty as his only notable blemish.
• Connor Evans — 5. Solid tackling and ruck work. The lineout struggled at times and he shares responsibility.
• Adré Smith — 7. Scored a quality try and carried well throughout the game.
• Neethling Fouché — 6. Scrummaging was mixed in the first half. Made several powerful carries.
• André-Hugo Venter — 7. Played the full 80 minutes and showed aggression in contact. The side still managed an 86% success rate in the lineout.
• Oli Kebble — 6. Performed his role with little fuss and maintained consistency.

Replacements and decisive interventions

The bench swung momentum toward the Stormers late on. Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s brilliant cameo sparked the comeback.

• Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu — Injected tempo after replacing Matthee. His grubber created the sequence that led to Evan Roos’ try. He then broke through to set up Imad Khan.
• Deon Fourie — Won a crucial turnover after coming on.
• Marcel Theunissen — Played with aggression and looked to have scored a match-winner. The TMO disallowed the effort.
• Wandisile Simelane and JD Schickerling — Delivered bright moments off the bench.

Key takeaway

Filmogaz.com notes the Stormers showed resilience and depth. Their substitutes nearly reversed the result. Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s brilliant cameo and the strong bench work almost secured the victory.