Mourning Stormers ask ‘what would Chippie want’ against Connacht
· Citizen
The Stormers say they will use the hurt of losing team manager Christopher “Chippie” Solomon as motivation for this weekend’s clash with Connacht, rather than let grief distract them.
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A visibly shaken Stormers boss, John Dobson, and veteran loose forward Deon Fourie said Monday that the Cape side would “never be the same” after news broke on Saturday of the demise of the long-standing Stormers staffer.
Dobson said that, although the club has plans in place to meet logistical needs, the passing had put them a day behind schedule in the buildup to Saturday afternoon’s United Rugby Championship match against Connacht at Cape Town Stadium.
Dobson reflected on the late team manager’s professionalism and attention to detail, coming from a match against Toulon in France, where everything ran impeccably.
‘Most of the guys were crying’
Fourie said he had known Solomon for decades, and joked the man had loved his children more than he did.
“In my first Super Rugby tour I shared a double bed with Chippie,” Fourie said. “He meant a lot to our family and me as a friend.”
Fourie said Solomon took pride in his work, and they could all “strive to be just a little bit like him”.
The Springbok, along with Dobson, said the Stormers would use their grief positively as they aim to finish the URC regular season top of the table so that they could host their playoffs, and the grand final.
“We had a good, long hour meeting this morning where we paid our respects. A few guys told some stories about Chippie and everyone laughed. Most of the guys were crying as well….
“I think we can use it as motivation, but there is a fine line as well between being positive and it being an Achilles heel in the lead-up to the game.”
Stormers aim to honour Chippie, win remaining matches
Dobson said that, while not detracting from the situation, he had asked players “what would Chippie want or what would Chippie do”.
“Not just emotions for the game, it’s how we want to be every day, how we want to prepare. It’s a hell of an important game. A desparate Connacht team who really put us under pressure before. We want to honour Chippie both in the formalities and how we play.”
Dobson appealed to fans to turn up to pay respects as well as support the team as they try to win the tournament for a second time.
“It’s a massive opportunity in very difficult circumstances. We want to both take the opportunity and do justice to Chippie.”