The Stormers' plan is to get the edge up front in order to subdue the Blues, starting with a set-piece onslaught on their weakened tight five.

The forwards were the stars of the show in the two victories at Newlands so far this season, and with Anthony Boric the latest All Black in the Blues engine room to fall, the idea is to push the visitors onto the back foot and keep them there.

Stormers coach Allister Coetzee knows that despite their depleted backline stocks the Blues will always be dangerous from broken play, and he stressed the need for his team to control the game by imposing themselves up front.

He said: "You have got to lay a solid platform and you have gotto be direct first.

"We know that you can't afford to make a lot of mistakes against any New Zealand side - they will punish you on the counter-attack.

"They regard turnover as another set-phase, so we know our responsibility is to make sure that we hold on to the ball.

"They put a lot of their pressure on your set-piece and they come out to disrupt and create that looseness in the game, to force you into mistakes," added Coetzee.

While the Blues may seem vulnerable with a young and experienced lock and loosehead prop in Filo Paulo and Pauliasi Manu, the Stormers are actually in exactly the same position.

Eben Etzebeth has formed an imposing second row partnership with Andries Bekker, and Blues coach Pat Lam even commented on how impressive Steven Kitshoff was at scrum-time against the Sharks, but both were in school a few years ago and it is these two who will have to step up before any of the Springboks in the backline get a chance to stretch their legs on Friday night.

Lam said that the way South African rugby is set up gives young players an advantage as they are fully at ease with the systems and are able to make a smoother transition.

He explained: "When you have the one franchise that everyone comes through Currie Cup and Vodacom Cup, it is all under the same structure which is very different from what we have in New Zealand.

"With that sort of system when you bring somebody into the Stormers camp or the Bulls camp or the other franchises as a youngster,they are in that whole environment and they come through so that when those experienced guys go overseas and retire it is easy for them to step in," added Lam.

Although his team has been hit hard by injuries the Blues coach said that the leadership and experience provided by a player like Ma'a Nonu has been a real boost as he has been able to support senior players like Keven Mealamu, Ali Williams and Piri Weepu in guiding the side.

"The experience he [Nonu] brings is massive, he is pretty demanding on the boys which is good. He has got really high standards which is why he is world class and the thing that is working with him this year is the impact he has had off the field," said Lam.

So despite their injuries the Blues still have a core of experienced quality players, and Coetzee is adamant that taking the ball wide without going forward first against them could be fatal.

He said: "We have got to dominate the advantage of the gain line battle before you can attack. You have seen sides who just try to attack by taking the ball wide - they go laterally across the field and that is what we don't want to do against a side with a strong defence like the Blues.

"It is no secret that whenever you play against any New Zealand side the priority is the physicality, you have got to front up," added the Stormers coach.

Coetzee said that although he is fully aware of the threat that the Braid brother pose in competing for the ball on the ground for the Blues, he is confident that his team's defensive system would hold up.

"We are playing against the two Braid brothers who are both good on the ground. We rely heavily on our defensive system which allows anumber of players like Siya Kolisi, Duane Vermeulen and Andries Bekker to have a go on the ground.

"So far I am satisified with the amount of turnovers we have created without having an out-and-out fetcher," he said.

By Michael de Vries