Blues caught by Cheetahs
LEINSTER’S troubled South African safari ended in disarray in Bloemfontein last night as the Cheetahs blew them away 38-19 to end their unbeaten start to the Pro14 season. It started promisingly for the Blues as Barry Daly crossed for a fifth-minute try but it soon went from bad to worse as captain Isa Nacewa lasted just 15 minutes before going off injured and the visitors then found themselves 14 points down at the break. Cheetahs turned the screw in the second half and, despite Daly bagging a further brace of tries to complete his hat-trick, replacement Luther Obi made sure of the victory when he sprinted the length of the pitch for the home side’s fourth of the night. It was also a sobering night for Munster who were well beaten in Glasgow, going down 37-10. The only bright spot on the home front was Ulster’s 52-25 bonuspoint win against Dragons.
LEINSTER slipped to their first PRO14 defeat of the season in Bloemfontein despite a hattrick of Barry Daly tries as Cheetahs secured a 38-19 victory. The hosts were initially reliant on the kicking of Ernst Stapelberg, with his four penalties keeping Cheetahs ahead for much of the first half despite Daly crossing for a fifth-minute try in the left corner. William Small-Smith scored Cheetahs’ first try of the night two minutes before the interval, and Stapelberg’s successful conversion gave them a 19-5 half-time lead. Leinster’s task was made harder when hooker James Tracy was shown a yellow card shortly after the break, compounding their misery after captain Isa Nacewa had earlier gone off injured, while the likes of Dave Kearney (right) never really got going. Cheetahs soon made their numerical advantage tell as Torsten van Jaarsveld bundled over from a maul. The hosts’ forwards were proving too hot to handle as Ox Nche went over from a lineout, with Stapelberg adding the extras, although Daly scored his second of the night on the hour mark and Ross Byrne kicked the conversion. Daly completed his hat-trick after 74 minutes after getting in down the left flank, but Luther Obi ended any hopes of a comeback with a length of the field effort late on.
CHEETAHS: S Petersen; R Specman, F Venter (capt), W Small-Smith (N Lee 64), M Mapimpi; E Stapelberg, T Meyer (S Venter 64); C Marals (O Nche 51), T van Jaarsveld (J du Toit 80), T Botha (J Coetzee 46); J Basson, R Hugo (R Bernardo 74); P Schoeman, H Venter, O Mahoje (J Pokomela 62) Scorers — Tries: Small-Smith, van Jaarsveld, Nche, Obi Pens: Stapelberg 4 Cons: Stapelberg 3 LEINSTER: J Carbery; D Kearney, N Reid, I Nacewa (R O’Loughlin 16), B Daly; R Byrne (C Marsh 74), J Gibson-Park (N McCarthy 61); C Healy (P Dooley 51), J Tracy (S Cronin 56), M Bent (A Porter 51); R Molony, M Kearney (R Ruddock 51); J Murphy (M Deegan 71), J van der Flier, J Conan (M Deegan 70). Scorers — Tries: Barry Daly 3 Cons: Ross Byrne 2 Referee: M Adamson (Scotland)