Having been on the losing end of two finals in 2010, Stormers coach Allister Coetzee believes his side can win the inaugural Super Rugby tournament.
The men from Cape Town came desperately close to clinching silverware last year but defeat to the Bulls in the Super 14 Final was followed by Western Province falling short in the Currie Cup Final against the Sharks.
The new tournament comes with a new format that will see the Stormers sitting out the first week of competition and crucially avoiding games against heavyweight contenders the Hurricanes or Waratahs.
Coetzee is optimistic about his team’s prospects.
“People are usually sceptical about anything new, but I think it’s an exciting thing. We’ll play more derbies which will be great for South African rugby.” Coetzee told SA Rugby magazine.
“Having a bye in the first round is not ideal, but I’d like to look at it as a positive. It will give us an extra week to prepare and an opportunity to gauge the strengths of the other teams competing in the first round.
“Every team is going to have to manage their players carefully in this extended competition, and there will be more player rotation than there was in 2010.
“We won’t play the Hurricanes or Waratahs, who are two teams that regularly push for a play-off place, but we won”t underestimate the remaining opposition. Going to Melbourne to play the Rebels will be a new challenge, because they are an unknown entity.
“We have to start well in the coming campaign, and work to get a few more things right.
“The reality is we are not far off, but this is the season where we are really pushing to go that step further and win the trophy,” added Coetzee.