[ad_1]
The Cheetahs sealed a 19-17 victory over the Vodacom Bulls in Bloemfontein on Friday to continue their positive start in the Super Rugby Unlocked tournament.
The Bulls had a chance to pull a draw from the jaws of defeat after replacement hooker Joe van Zyl stormed from a maul, but Chris Smith skewed the conversion that would have blocked scores at 19-19, thus allowing the Cheetahs He comes out with a narrow but well deserved victory.
In light of their respective first-round performances last week, as well as the recent elimination of the Cheetahs from PRO Rugby, the outcome of this clash is huge for the hosts, and one that speaks volumes for the team’s character.
Going into this clash, the Cheetahs had made a statement with an extra points victory over the Pumas, while the Bulls survived a right-wing scare against Griquas as they narrowly fought for a win.
In a frenzied but entertaining opening period, these teams combined to provide action from start to finish, but neither could apply the finishing touches.
And because of that, the highlights of the first 20 minutes were overshadowed by the serious injuries of Bulls fullback Gio Aplon, who was injured after taking a big hit from Clayton Blommetjies, and Cheetahs scrumalf and the Captain Ruan Pienaar. , who suffered a knee injury.
After exchanging successful kicks on goal, the Cheetahs, who had dictated the pace of the game up to that point, scored an impressive attempt on a set play. From a lineout, the ball quickly traveled to the baseline, where a few deceptive running lines fooled the Bulls defense and resulted in Rosko Specman galloping without any resistance.
To the dismay of the Bulls, the fact that they didn’t make the best use of their territory and possession proved even more costly as the Cheetahs added three more points to their tally for a score of 13-3.
Resurfacing for the second half, the Cheetahs would have been the happier of both sides and it showed on the field.
The Cheetahs suddenly dominated in scrums, while the Bulls completely fell apart at the seams. After Morne Steyn scored a penalty, the visitors’ discipline disintegrated and the Cheetahs made the most of it with Tian Schoeman opening a 13-point lead with the boot.
Adding further insult to injury, referee Cwengile Jadezweni lost patience with the Bulls for their repeated infractions and gave Lock Ruan Nortjie a yellow card. But against all expectations, the yellow card seemed to galvanize the Bulls rather than dissuade them.
They fought the Cheetahs momentum and nailed two consecutive penalties to cut the deficit to seven, establishing a grandstand finish. As it turned out, the Bulls wrote again, using their forwards to dominate the Cheetahs.
In the end, they had to settle for losing a bonus point after Smith’s failed conversion attempt. They’ll regret that particular play, but overall it was too late for the Bulls.
Cheetahs – Test: Rosko Specman. Conversion: Tian Schoeman. Penalties: Schoeman (4).
Bulls – Test: Joe van Zyl. Penalties: Morne Steyn (3), Chris Smith.
Cheetahs – 15 Clayton Blommetjies, 14 Malcolm Jaer, 13 Benhard Janse van Rensburg, 12 Frans Steyn, 11 Rosko Specman, 10 Tian Schoeman, 9 Ruan Pienaar (c), 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Junior Pokomela, 6 Andisa Ntsila, 5 Walt Steenkamp, 4 Carl Wegner, 3 Luan de Bruin, 2 Reinach Venter, 1 Charles Marais.
Subs: 16 Jacques du Toit, 17 Boan Venter, 18 Erich de Jager, 19 JP du Preez, 20 Aidon Davis, 21 Chris Massyn, 22 Tian Meyer, 23 William Small-Smith.
Bulls – 15 Gio Aplon, 14 David Kriel, 13 Cornal Hendricks, 12 Clinton Swart, 11 Jade Stighling, 10 Morne Steyn, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 Duane Vermeulen (c), 7 Arno Botha, 6 Marco van Staden, 5 Ruan Nortje, 4 Jason Jenkins, 3 Trevor Nyakane, 2 Johan Grobbelaar, 1 Jacques van Rooyen.
Subs: 16 Joe van Zyl, 17 Gerhard Steenekamp, 18 Mornay Smith, 19 Sintu Manjezi, 20 Nizaam Carr, 21 Ivan van Zyl, 22 Chris Smith, 23 Stedman Gans.
Photo: Frikkie Kapp / Gallo Images
[ad_2]
