Any thoughts that the Stormers can bank on a comfortable URC win over Zebre would have been banished after seeing the Italian team record a stunning 42-33 victory over Munster.
Meanwhile, John Dobson’s team suffered a chastening 37-24 Round 2 defeat to the Ospreys at the Brewery Field, where they led 13-3 at one point.
It’s added heightened importance to Saturday’s encounter, with the clash kicking off at 20:35 (SA time).
Follow the Stormers-Zebre URC live scoring below:
Stormers: 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Suleiman Hartzenberg, 13 Ruhan Nel, 12 Dan du Plessis (captain), 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Jurie Matthee, 9 Paul de Wet, 8 Keke Morabe, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Marcel Theunissen, 5 Ruben van Heerden, 4 JD Schickerling, 3 Neethling Fouche, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Sti Sithole.
Replacements: 16 Andre-Hugo Venter, 17 Brok Harris, 18 Sazi Sandi, 19 Adre Smith, 20 Louw Nel, 21 Dewaldt Duvenage, 22 Warrick Gelant, 23 Angelo Davids.
Date: Saturday, October 5
Venue: Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi, Parma
Kick-off: 20.35 (20.35 SAST; 18.35 GMT)
Referee: Chris Busby (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Fillipo Russo (Italy), Franco Rosella (Italy)
TMO: Mark Patton (Ireland)
Zebre will be hunting their second home win a row to remain in the top eight on the standings following their morale-boosting 42-33 victory against Munster last week after going down by 22-17 against Cardiff away in their opening game of the season.
However, the Capetonians – who suffered a 37-24 defeat against Ospreys last week – are unbeaten against the Italians in the competition after three outings, which included a 37-20 victory at Stadio Lanfranchi, and this is expected to boost their confidence going into the match.
Adding to this, the Stormers will be mindful of the fact that Zebre have not won successive matches in the tournament since January 2021 and have not won back-to-back home games in the tournament since 2018, while their only win against a South African opponent was in November 2023, when they beat Sharks 12-10.
Looking ahead to this next challenge, Dobson said: “This is a hell of a long way from a gimme and that’s why I am anxious.
“They are young, Italian and fearless and a tough team to break down. It was a good Munster side they beat.
“You don’t want to play Zebre early on in the season, especially away from home, because they have still got hope and belief.
“Right now, they are on a ride and we are on a precipice. We didn’t get any points out of last Saturday, so if we lose to Zebre we will feel like we have a dagger to our throats.
“This is absolutely mission critical for us, otherwise we really are going to be under a lot of pressure. We need this one desperately.”
What is your score prediction?
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