Pokomela may be a Stormer, but Gqeberha comforts still warm his heart ahead of Dragons game

The return of United Rugby Championship rugby to Gqeberha when the Stormers face the Dragons on Saturday is more than just a game for loose-forward Sipato Pokomela.

Better known as Junior, the Grey High School for Boys product played his formative rugby in the city before branching out to Bloemfontein and landing up in Cape Town.

What matters to Pokomela is the return of rugby, even if it's for a fleeting Saturday, to the city that played a massive role in what the URC is in its present form.

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It often gets lost in the current success of the tournament that the now-defunct Southern Kings and the Cheetahs carried the torch for South Africa before Super Rugby folded for South Africa.

For Pokomela, a return home is for the people of Gqeberha who have been starved of blue-chip rugby.

Being from New Brighton, he's from an area where rugby is had for breakfast, lunch, supper, and every other meal in between.

"In terms of rugby, it is massive, and my friends are already excited," Pokomela said.

"They don't play in that region when it comes to rugby, and I've given half of my tickets to my family, but it's really special to get an opportunity to play back home.

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"I'm from New Brighton where the famous Spring Rose club originates and the club scene there is massive, and so is the history of club rugby there.

"You just need to look at the calibre of players that come out of PE. There's Siya Kolisi, Mzwandile Stick and Tyibilika. It's crazy when you look at the players the area has produced.

"They often speak about how rich the rugby culture is in the Western