• Fixtures
• Results

Cheetahs massacre feeble Lions

Sat, 15 May 2010 16:54

Livewire: Cheetahs scrumhalf Sarel Pretorius

The Cheetahs massacred a very feeble-looking Lions team, ensuring they will have a top-10 finish in the final Super 14 season - when they produced a 59-10 victory at the Northwest Stadium, in Welkom, on Saturday.

The nine-try rout in front of 10,300 spectators at this rural venue ensured the Cheetahs had equally their best ever finish in the Super 14, overtaking the Chiefs on the standings with a display of running rugby that had class written all over it.

The result also means the Cheetahs had finished the season with three consecutive victories, another highlight for the Cheetahs.

Captain Juan Smit was full of praise for his men for the manner in which they bounced back from their disastrous tour in Australasia.

As for the Lions, they are now officially the worst team in the history of Super Rugby - a record 13 defeats in a season that produced now wins and 14 consecutive defeats. They have also conceded a record 585 points and let in a record 72 tries.

The Cheetahs totally dominated the early possession, enjoying as much as 78 percent in the first half, and made the Lions pay for their shoddy play. In the first quarter alone the Lions had four knock-ons and conceded four penalties.

Having lost their captain, Wikus van Heerden, midway through the first half certainly didn't help the Lions' cause either, but generally they were just a pitiful excuse for a professional rugby team.

Even though the Lions saw more of the ball after the break, they still lacked any structure to really threaten a Cheetahs team that were simply just too classy for them.

The Cheetah's dominance can be summed up in the stats from the first hour of play - when the Lions were forced to make well over 100 tackles and the Cheetahs made less than 20.

The Lions thought they were in for an early score, with Charles Emslie racing clear, but they were called back for a foot in touch. The Cheetahs then stole two consecutive line-outs on the Lions' throw, before a blindside move put Bjorn Basson into space - a chip-'n-chase, with Basson getting a favourable bounce in the Lions' ingoal area, producing the opening score.

A Carlos Spencer brain explosion, when he tried to run the ball out of his own 22 without support and got tackled, gave the Cheetahs a line-out seven metres from the Lions' line. They mauled it up and over and even though the call went to the TMO, the try was awarded, with scrumhalf Sarel Pretorius the man getting the accolades. Naas Olivier's conversion made it 12-0 in as many minutes.

A scrum penalty against WP Nel in the 14th minute gave Herkie Kruger a chance to open the Lions'; account and he obliged.

Less than two minutes later Pretorius scampered over from a ruck near the Lions' line, after the visitors had already conceded two penalties at the breakdown in the build-up to the score. Olivier's conversion made it 19-3.

The Cheetahs continued to run riot, the fourth try (not that bonus points mattered for these teams) came in the 18th minute. From the restart the Cheetahs ran at the Lions, first Corné Uys beating his marker on the left and then Bjorn Basson finding space on the right and over he went. Olivier made it 26-3 and the first quarter was not up yet.

It got worse for the Lions as they lost captain Wikus van Heerden with what appeared to be a fractured arm.

The next score was not long in coming, veteran lock Barend Pieterse diving over from a ruck close to the line, following a series of pick-'n-drives inside the Lions 22. Olivier didn't add the extras, but at 31-3 it was clear the visitors now needed a miracle.

The sixth try came with four minutes in the half remaining - Corné Uys scoring after taking a pass from flyhalf Naas Olivier, a very simple move from a scrum. Olivier's conversion made it 38-3 - a lead they retained through to the half-time break.

There was a glimmer of hope for the Lions faithful after the break, as Michael Killian scored after the visitors pounced on a Cheetahs mistake. Herkie Kruger's conversion made it 10-38.

However, the relentless Cheetahs onslaught continued and in the 47th minute fullback Hennie Daniller scored after another period of sustained pressure. Olivier made it 45-10.

The Lions' pathetic defence was again exposed in the 56th minute, when Daniller scored his second try with a basic move from a scrum. Olivier converted as the Cheetahs reached the half-ton - 52-10.

Although the Cheetahs' scoring tempo slowed down dramatically, as they were by now playing only at a fraction of the pace they set in the first half, the Lions still struggled to make any real inroads.

The Cheetahs had to wait till the 76th minute for their next score, when prop Coenie Oosthuizen wriggled his way over from a ruck close in. Louis Strydom added the conversion for a 59-10 lead.

That was also the final score as the Cheetahs moved into the Top 10 on the standings.

Man of the match: Juan Smith was a workhorse, as always, Barend Pieterse also produced a performance that belied his age. In the backs Hennie Daniller and Bjorn Basson always looked dangerous with ball in hand, but our award goes to Cheetahs scrumhalf Sarel Pretorius - another accomplished performance by the No.9.

The scorers:

For the Cheetahs:
Tries: Basson, Pretorius 2, Basson, Pieterse, Uys, Daniller 2, Oosthuizen
Cons: Olivier 6, Strydom

For the Lions:
Try: Killian 
Con: Kruger
Pen: Kruger

Teams:

Cheetahs: 15 Hennie Daniller, 14 Wilmaure Louw, 13 Robert Ebersohn, 12 Corné Uys, 11 Bjorn Basson, 10 Naas Olivier, 9 Sarel Pretorius, 8 Phillip van der Walt, 7 Juan Smith (captain), 6 Hendro Scholtz, 5 Barend Pieterse, 4 Izak van der Westhuizen, 3 WP Nel, 2 Skipper Badenhorst, 1 Wian du Preez.
Replacements: 16 Ryno Barnes, 17 Coenie Oosthuizen, 18 Waltie Vermeulen, 19 Davon Raubenheimer, 20 Marnus Hugo, 21 Riaan Viljoen, 22 Louis Strydom.

Lions: 15 Carlos Spencer, 14 Tonderai Chavhanga, 13 Marius Delport, 12 Jaco Taute, 11 Deon van Rensburg, 10 Herkie Kruger, 9 Jano Vermaak, 8 Derick Minnie, 7 Franco van der Merwe, 6 Wikus van Heerden (captain), 5 George Earle, 4 Nico Luus, 3 Ross Geldenhuys, 2 Charles Emslie, 1 JC Janse van Rensburg.
Replacements: 16 Hannes Franklin, 17 Gert Muller, 18 David Bulbring, 19 Jonathan Mokuena, 20 Jacques Coetzee, 21 Michael Killian, 22 Bernardo Botha.

Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Joey Salmans (South Africa), Stefan Breytenbach (South Africa)
TMO: Johann Meuwesen (South Africa)

Contact Us | Terms and Conditions | Privacy Policy | Advertising

This site requires cookies to be enabled!

Send Feedback on Rugby365!

News | Tournaments | SA Schools

Copyright © 2009 Primedia Online. All rights reserved. Developed by Primedia Online