Stormers coach John Dobson was pleased with his team’s performance in Friday’s 16-16 draw with the Ospreys at the Swansea.com Stadium, which was marred by heavy rain.
MATCH REPORT | Ospreys defeat Stormers 16-16
The result keeps the defending champion Stormers undefeated after four rounds of the new season – and second on the log – while they have not lost in their last 15 matches dating back to February.
Given that the Stormers led 16-9 going into the final ten minutes, Dobson said after the game that he was generally pleased with his team’s efforts on the night in what were extremely difficult conditions.
“We haven’t played in tournament conditions like this before, and we know we had a bit of a lucky run in February and March with a stretch of home games,” Dobson said.
“We’ll be better for it, and I believe we could have won with better game management near the end.
“From where we were [in the coaching box], we couldn’t see the field. Until the last few minutes, I thought we did well in the conditions.
“Given the circumstances, I thought it was one of our better performances tonight. It was nice to see us score one of our classic tries.
“We’re pleased. I believe we’re wasting energy and letting ourselves down in one or two areas, such as the lineout.
“I thought we were doing pretty well tactically until the last 10 minutes. We had a lot of space.”
Dobson also praised flyhalf Manie Libbok, who put in another mature performance in the No 10 jersey to keep his chances of a Springbok berth alive.
In the final stages, Libbok attempted a drop goal that he pushed to the right, but his kicking from the tee was flawless.
“He’s only 25 and has travelled around a bit in terms of provinces,” Dobson explained.
“I thought he almost got away at the end, which would have won it for us. Should he have taken the drop? I’m not sure, but he’s unique.”
The Stormers’ next game will be against Cardiff on Saturday.
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