Stormers defence coach takes responsibility for Currie Cup crumbling at the hands of Boland

The men from Cape Town let in six tries in the rout for their first loss of the Currie Cup season.

"As a defence coach, I'll take full responsibility for that," Pienaar told the press this week.

"The Stormers have got a certain DNA, especially when it comes to our defence. It's something we definitely want to honour.

"Sunday wasn't a reflection of how good this side can be. A week earlier, against Griquas, we showed our collective physicality and our defensive system, but against Boland, they moved the point of contact really well. The ball was too quick for us to get our spacing and our line speed right.

"One of the disappointing aspects was the collision area. We couldn't get decent quality tackles; we couldn't get our defensive lines set and we struggled to find the energy that normally comes from our defence.

"It's not the way the Stormers defend and it's not the way we want to look on the field. We have to make sure we're much better this weekend."

The Stormers XXIII are eager to bounce back when they host the Sharks this Saturday. But Pienaar is undr no illusion as to the challenge that awaits.

"Playing at home is always a massive privilege," he continued.

"Hopefully after Sunday's game there will be a lot of energy and passion because the result simply wasn't good enough for us as a team."

"They've had a good start to the competition. Winning away from home in the first round was a fantastic result and even against the Cheetahs they were in the contest for a long time before the game got away from them.

"They've got a quality set-piece, dangerous ball carriers, an exciting back three and experienced halfbacks. It's going to be a massive challenge for us."