Connacht finish South Africa tour on a high

TOM FARRELL and Gavin Thornbury both scored tries as Connacht secured a third successive PRO14 victory over the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein.

The Westerners will head home contented with their work in South Africa having also beaten Southern Kings in Port Elizabeth last week.

The trio of Malcolm Jaer, Joseph Dweba and Shaun Venter crossed for the Cheetahs, but they still slipped to a seventh defeat in 10 games.

Farrell beat Jaer to go in for the game’s first try after just six minutes and Jack Carty added the extras. Carty added a penalty before Thornbury put the finishing touches on a maul to give Connacht a 15-0 advantage.

Cheetahs showed their resilience by bouncing back with two tries in the space of five minutes from Jaer and Dweba. David Horwitz kicked two penalties to extend the Connacht lead before Venter went in and Tian Schoeman converted.