Cheetahs don’t mind running with the Bulls

Having topped the try-scoring charts in the league stages of the Currie Cup, the Free State Cheetahs are unlikely to yield to a more measured approach when they meet the Bulls in the semifinal on Saturday.

The pressure that comes with playing knock-out rugby may provide a backdrop to the semifinal in Bloemfontein, but Cheetahs head coach Hawies Fourie wants his team to react to what is in front of them.

“We’ll have to stick to what we did well,” said Fourie about his team that scored 63 tries in this season’s competition. “You don’t want to change too much ahead of a big game. We went through a difficult patch in the season where I perhaps changed too many things. And perhaps changed the team too much. We learnt from that.”

The Cheetahs have taken many lessons on board as they eventually finished top of the Currie Cup standings. The most recent was to avoid a slow start, which almost cost them dearly when they downed the Bulls in their last league match at Loftus Versfeld last weekend.

“We can't afford to go 9, 10 down early in the game and then think were are going to launch a rearguard action. The team that dictates the tempo of the game will have the best chance of winning it,” Fourie said.

“We’ve put some things in place to get the mindset ready, which will enable us to fire from the start. If we have a packed stadium there won’t be a slow start. We trained this week to start a bit faster.

He is hoping the Free State Stadium is packed out for the occasion. The Cheetahs and the Bulls have a lively rivalry and the hosts will need every bit of help they can muster. Fourie is desperate to repay the fans for their loyalty. “We’ve performed better away from home. We’ve dropped our fans by losing to Lions and Sharks at home and want to reward them with a win now.”

The other main cause for concern from their win at Loftus last weekend was their high penalty count. They conceded 16 penalties in Pretoria and Fourie knows a repeat will have dire consequences this weekend.

“Conceding 16 penalties is a lot,” the coach acknowledged. “There were three or four that we could have avoided. We were under pressure for long passages and the team without the ball usually gets penalised.

“We will have to do better. We can’t concede 16 penalties in a semifinal. We have to be sharper.”

Fourie is hoping to select from more or less a full strength squad this weekend. Last week Ruan Pienaar withdrew two days before the match in Pretoria to attend to family matters. This week the talisman is available for selection.

“We have a fit squad and they’re all available. Ruan would have played last week if it weren’t for the family reasons. He had to take care of his family. I’m sure he’ll be ready this weekend. He’ll play nine or 10. He will definitely be back in team.”

The Lions meanwhile, have named new recruits Richard Kriel, Erich Cronje, Conraad van Vuuren and Zander du Plessis to their player ranks.

Kriel and Cronje joins from fellow United Rugby Championship campaigners Zebre, while Van Vuuren and Du Plessis join from Free State and Griquas respectively.

They are apparently yet to conclude deals with out-of-favour loose head prop Sti Sithole, scrumhalf Andre Warner and utility back Tiaan Swanepoel. They may all head for the exit.

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