Dan Thomas says Cardiff will run out at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday with “no excuses” and no fear as they battle the Stormers for a place in the Vodacom URC semi-finals.
The Welsh side stunned the Stormers 22-16 at Arms Park just two weeks ago to seal their playoff place, and Thomas believes that performance proved his side can compete with the former URC champions.
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“From minute one, everyone’s attitude was there,” said the Cardiff Players’ Player of the Season.
“It wasn’t like, ‘We will feel our way into the game’.
“It was, ‘From minute one, we will take the game to them’.”
Cardiff now face a far tougher challenge at Cape Town Stadium, but Thomas dismissed any suggestion that travel or conditions could become a factor.
“We’ve all travelled enough now to know what’s happening and what’s coming,” he said.
“There is no excuse when it comes to travel or the body being sore or anything like that.”
Thomas said mentality would ultimately decide whether Cardiff can produce another upset on South African soil.
“As long as your mentality is up there, your body will catch up,” he said.
“If you’re not up for it mentally, you shouldn’t be on the pitch.”
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Cardiff narrowly missed out on the playoffs last season, something Thomas says fuelled the squad throughout this campaign.
“We wanted to be in the playoff mix because anything can happen then,” he said.
“You play rugby to win things. You want to win silverware.”
Photo: Gallo Images
