Butler: Discipline let us down

By JOHN FALLON

Stormers …………..38

Connacht …………..15

Connacht skipper Jarrad Butler said discipline let them down for the second week in a row when a red card to Ireland centre Bundee Aki killed off any hope of a comeback against the URC champions in Stellenbosch.

It leaves Connacht bottom of the table without a point, and Aki facing a suspension for his dismissal which could be increased after he continued to argue with Italian referee Gianluca Gnecchi afterwards.

Butler said: “We didn't make it easy on ourselves, giving away a lot of loose balls, some scrappy penalties, it just left Stormers applying pressure where we could probably have exited a lot better. That is two weeks now where we have kind of let discipline put us under pressure.”

Aki was sent off for a reckless head tackle after coming on as a replacement, paving the way for the Stormers to claim a bonus point win.

Connacht were trailing 19-8 when Tom Farrell raced in to score under the posts but the move after 55 minutes was whistled back for Aki's tackle, when his shoulder crashed into the head of Seabelo Senatla at full tilt when the winger was crouched over John Porch trying to poach the ball. The Stormers led 13-8 at the break with Evan Roos, capped by the Springboks during the summer, continuing his brilliant form from last year with the opening try.

But hooker Dylan Tierney-Martin got Connacht back in the game when they eventually finished one of their surges.

Aki's dismissal was ruthlessly punished by the Stormers with brilliantly worked tries from hooker Andre-Hugo Venter and flanker Hacjivah Dayimani, before replacement Marcel Theunissen snatched the bonus point in the final play at Danie Craven Stadium.