Staff Reporter.
Frans Steyn kicked 17 points as the Cheetahs rounded off their ill-fated Currie Cup campaign with a 22-18 victory over Griquas in Kimberley.
Griquas thought they had opened the scoring in the third minute after crossing the line with from an unstoppable driving maul, but after a review it was confirmed that hooker Alandre van Rooyen had lost control of the ball in the in-goal area before grounding it.
That meant the first quarter flew by with no points scored. But the Cheetahs would draw first blood when hooker Marnus van der Merwe’s strong leg drive helped him breach Griquas’ staunch defence for the first try of the game.
As the match dragged on, Tinus de Beer landed back-to-back penalties to make it a one-point game, but Steyn booted the Cheetahs back into the lead with a penalty on the stroke of half time that made it 10-6 in the visiting team’s favour.
The Cheetahs created a few scoring opportunities early in the second half, but were left frustrated by Griquas’ continued resilience in defence. To make matters worse, the home side then scored at the first opportunity inside their own half to retake the lead.
From a lineout deep in the Cheetahs 22m the Griquas set up the maul and powered it over, with Gideon van der Merwe dotting down in the corner, before De Beer missed his first shot at goal of the night with the score staying 11-10.
The home side were then punished for some really poor discipline as they conceded eight penalties in a row which allowed the superb boot of Steyn to put his team back in front and ahead by more than a converted try during a five minute period.
First from a scrum penalty in the Griquas 22m in the 58th minute Steyn popped over the kick, before two long-range bombs, the first a 58m shot on the angle from his own half and the second a 46m shot from in front saw the Cheetahs move 19-11 up after 63 minutes.
Griquas replacement flyhalf George Whitehead then missed a chance to bring his side back within a try of the visitors by pushing his shot at goal wide in the 72nd minute.
But it turned out to be a blessing in disguise as Steyn’s 22m drop out went over the Griquas dead-ball line giving them a scrum on the Cheetahs 22m from which they attacked, sending the ball one way and then the other, with scrumhalf Zak Burger giving right wing Daniel Kasende a short pass, allowing him to fly threw a gap and step fullback Clayton Blommetjies to go over next to the uprights.
Whiteheads extras made it a one point game, only for the Cheetahs to move 22-18 up with another long-range Steyn penalty with just over three minutes remaining in the match.
The Griquas had one last chance to get the win with a couple of penalties in the Cheetahs 22m which they kicked to touch, however a superb steal from Cheetahs lock Reniel Hugo after the fulltime hooter made sure they held on for the win.
Finishing fifth in the Currie Cup however would have been deeply unfulfilling for the Cheetahs.
They wanted to make a point as the yearn for the playing fields of Europe.
The Cheetahs who were part of the PRO14 along with the Southern Kings from 2017, have been excluded from this year’s expanded tournament that will now feature former Super Rugby entities, the Bulls, the Lions, the Stormers and the Sharks.
Griquas – Tries: Gideon van der Merwe, Daniel Kasende. Conversion: George Whitehead. Penalties: Tinus de Beer (2).
Cheetahs – Try: Marnus van der Merwe. Conversion: Frans Steyn. Penalties: Steyn (5).
Meanwhile Covid-19 precautionary measures have triggered the adjustment of the Carling Currie Cup playoff dates, with both semi-finals and the final now scheduled for a week later than initially planned. The change is to ensure tournament integrity and allow the participants to manage Covid-19 challenges.
The Carling Currie Cup final has been moved to Saturday, 30 January, with the two semi-finals scheduled for the previous weekend – when the Vodacom Bulls will host the Xerox Lions in Pretoria, and DHL Western Province taking on the Cell C Sharks in Cape Town – with both matches on Saturday, 23 January.