The Stormers managed to survive a late rally by the Jaguares to record a 28-20 win in their opening 2018 Super Rugby match at Newlands on Saturday afternoon.
The Cape Town outfit led the Argentine team 15-6 at the break after outscoring them two tries to one. However, the Jaguares reversed that stat in the second half, and almost snatched a shock victory. The home team, though, managed to hold on for the win.
The Jaguares took the lead in the third minute through their flyhalf Nicolas Sanchez following a dangerous tackle by Stormers No 8 Nizaam Carr.
The first half as a bit of a scrappy affair, as both teams struggled to shake off the pre-season rust. But there were more than enough moments of magic, especially from the home team who looked really dangerous with ball in hand.
The Stormers took the lead in the 19th minute off the back off a great scrum that led to a turnover. Inside centre Damian de Allende then took advantage of the quick ball from the base and stepped his way through the Jaguares side to score under the poles.
The visitors' discipline remains an issue in Super Rugby, and they conceded a plethora of penalties in the first half. Fullback Joaquin Tuculet was sent to the bin in the 26th minute for a professional foul, and Stormers flyhalf Damian Willemse kicked the resulting penalty to give his team a 10-3 lead.
The Jagaures were hammered in the territory stakes because of the high penalty count, and the Stormers managed one more try before the break after the Jaguares scored slotted penalty. Captain Siya Kolisi took advantage of some ordinary tackling by the visitors, before charging over the line to score.
The Stormers started the second half in a similar fashion, and tried to run the Jaguares off their feet on a hot afternoon in Cape Town. Wing Raymond Rhule, making his Stormers debut, scored their third try almost straight from the kickoff with a wonderful individual effort.
The Jaguares, though, seemed to get stronger as the match wore on and they pulled a try back when Emiliano Boffelli managed to evade the tackles of Dyllin Leyds and De Allende to score.
The Stormers then found themselves with 14 men on the field after hooker Ramone Samuels, who started the match in the absence of Bongi Mbonambi, who needed surgery to remove his appendix, was sent to the bin in the 65th minute after persistent infringements by the home side. The Jaguares got a penalty try almost immediately afterwards following a massive scrum on the Stormers' line.
The Jaguares has another scrum against the seven-man Stormers pack in the 73rd minute, but this time it was the home side that managed to dominate and win the scrum penalty of their own.
Willemse then robbed the Jaguares of a losing bonus point in the last minute of the match with a penalty.