FEISTY KINGS NO PUSHOVER FOR CHEETAHS
PRO14 whipping boys put bodies on line until bitter end in closing encounter of season
IT was hand-to-hand combat for almost 80 minutes before the Cheetahs were able to book their passage into the PRO14 playoffs with a 29-20 win over the Southern Kings at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.
The Cheetahs, who needed a point to make sure of a playoff berth, knew they were in for a battle from as early as the fifth minute when Ntabeni Dukisa put the home team ahead.
This year the Kings have been the PRO14 whipping boys, and it was clear they wanted to go out on a high after a difficult season that produced one win in 21 games.
In the end, though, the Cheetahs held too much firepower in the forwards and this laid the platform for the Free Staters’ four tries and a hard-earned victory.
With the Kings putting their bodies on the line, the Cheetahs were unable to stamp their authority on PRO14’s worst-performing team for long periods.
“For the first time this season I thought we started really well and we were able to put the Cheetahs under a bit of pressure,” Kings coach Deon Davids said.
“We were also a bit unlucky in the beginning with the bounce of the ball and we did not capitalise on all our opportunities.
“Overall, it was a huge effort from the boys and there was a lot of energy and competitiveness throughout the game.
“In my view we might have lost the game in the scrums, because the Cheetahs’ scrum was much better. They used their scrum effectively as an attacking weapon.
“The breakdown for me was a free-for-all. I was unsure at times what the outcome would be whenever there was a breakdown.
“That broke our momentum and the Cheetahs capitalised in one or two areas from that.
“Overall, it was a special performance from the guys if you think of what we went through for the past two weeks with injuries. It looked like a hospital here at the stadium.
“All the players we took to the field against the Cheetahs were players who were available. “The rest were injured.” Cheetahs coach Rory Duncan said it was clear the Kings had been determined to make a statement in their final outing of the season.
“The Cheetahs were never expecting to have an easy game here in Port Elizabeth,” he said.
“We knew in the last game of the season, no matter which team the Kings threw out, they were going to come out with plenty of fight and they clearly wanted to make a statement. I think they did that.
“You had two teams who wanted to move the ball around.
“There was a lot of pressure at the breakdown in terms of line speed, so you saw a lot of balls going down and thrown around.
“I think the Kings managed the game well and we did not have a lot of time in the opposition half.”
The Free Staters had to wait until the 52nd minute for the first try of the second half when skipper Francois Venter crashed over.
There was an early try for Dukisa and the Kings were flying into their tackles against a Cheetahs side who made a jittery start.
Fifeteen minutes in, the Kings, against expectations, were leading 10-3 after Masixole Banda struck a penalty.
It was former Kings player Paul Schoeman who brought the Cheetahs back into the game with his side’s first try after 18 minutes.
With their scrum dominant, the Cheetahs scored two more firsthalf tries via Neil Marais and Uzair Cassiem, to take a handy 22-13 lead. Scorers: Southern Kings 20: Tries: Ntabeni Dukisa, Harlon Klaasen. Conversions: Masixole Banda (2). Penalties: Masixole Banda (2). Cheetahs 29: Tries: Paul Schoeman, Niel Marais, Uzair Cassiem, Francois Venter. Conversions: Niel Marais (3). Penalty: Niel Marais.