Cheetahs pummel Lions to maintain unbeaten start to Currie Cup

The Cheetahs underlined their gulf in class over the Lions in the Currie Cup when they hammered their visitors 66-14 in Bloemfontein on Saturday.

The Cheetahs completely overwhelmed opponents, whose resources are spread thin due to the United Rugby Championship (URC), with a clinical performance that would have thrilled coach Hawies Fourie.

They dominated from the outset and not even a break in play due to lightning broke their stride.

To be fair, it was the Cheetahs who provided the fireworks.

They were rampant as they thoroughly vanquished the hapless Lions who had a few URC combatants in their line-up.

The Cheetahs led 38-7 at the break, which was impressive when you consider both teams were forced off the field due to lightning after 24 minutes.

The hosts did not lose any of their intent either side of the unscheduled break.

The Lions were forced to make 36 first half tackles as the home side ran rampant dotting down six times and the second half wasn't much better.

In truth, the Cheetahs very much looked like the side that had made most of the running in the initial stages of the Currie Cup, while the Lions tightened their cloak of cellar dwellers.

They had shown some encouraging signs in their defeat against the Sharks in their last match but their reality now looks quite stark.

The wet pitch did little to douse the Cheethas' sense of endeavour.

Cheetahs scrumhalf Ruan Pienaar and inside centre Frans Steyn made their vast experience count in the way they hoofed the ball downfield.

It was upfront though where the Cheetahs made the most telling inroads, they thoroughly stamped their authority on the game in the first quarter.

Tries by Malcolm Jaer, Wilmar Arnoldi gave them a decisive lead but the break for lightning, it was thought at the time, might break their momentum.

The game was brought to an abrupt halt after 24 minutes when there was a lightning strike within 10km of the match venue and it was only a temporary reprieve for the Lions.

The pressure the Cheetahs applied to the visitors could not fully absorbed.

Sibusiso Sangweni's yellow card came as double whammy as the Lions conceded a penalty try.

From a turnover well inside Cheetahs territory the hosts hit to the right with Pienaar making the telling offload that allowed Gideon van der Merwe running in a try to bring down the curtain on the first half.

The visitors did score a second half try through PJ Botha but they were well off the pace.

The defeat means the Lions remain winless after four matches in this season's Currie Cup.

They are using this competition as feeder facility for the URC and based on this performance no-one can doubt them.

Scorers

Cheetahs — Tries: Wilmar Arnoldi (2), Daniel Kasende Kapepula (2), Malcolm Jaer, Gideon van der Merwe, Louis van der Westhuizen, Conraad van Vuuren, Juandre Rudolph, penalty try. Conversions: Ruan Pienaar (6), Reinhardt Fortuin.

Lions — Tries: Jarod Cairns, PJ Botha. Conversions: Tiaan Swanepoel (2).