The Toyota Cheetahs returned to form just in time to clinch the fourth and final semifinal place with a hard-fought 41-14 victory (halftime 14-9) against the Airlink Pumas in their final Carling Currie Cup league match at the Mbombela Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
First-half tries from Cheetahs powerful Congolese wing Daniel Kasende and scrumhalf Jandre Nel were answered with three penalties from the home side’s number 10, Clinton Swart, but the visitors grew in confidence towards the end of the first 40 minutes and might have had a third try when flank Gideon van Merwe’s apparent touch down was disallowed with both the on-field referee and TMO unable to confirm the five points.
Both tries were scored from close range but in contrasting styles with Kasende muscling his way through a clutch of bodies while the sniping Nel slipped through the smallest of gaps, both men scoring under the posts leaving the excellent Ethan Wentzel with straightforward conversions.
The home side were seriously hampered by an early injury to scrumhalf Ross Braude necessitating a complete backline reshuffle with fullback Tino Swanepoel and left-wing Darren Adonis both spending time in the No 9 position.
The Pumas briefly drew level at 14-14 with a try from flanker Ntsika Fisanti, but the Cheetahs replied immediately with the best try of the match involving a kick and chase from Wentzel and lightning fast offload to winger Munier Hartzenberg who scored under the posts.
Player-of-the-match Kasende completed a brace of tries in the match with his eighth in the last eight matches finishing in the left-hand corner with 20 minutes to go giving the visitors a useful 12-point lead at 26-14, a lead which was made comfortable at 15 points with a penalty from replacement flyhalf George Lourens with 10 minutes remaining.
The Cheetahs' victory margin extended to a slightly flattering 27 points with a late, fourth try from replacement forward Aidon Davis and another when Van der Merwe was driven over the line for the try he was denied in the first half.
But there was little doubt that the victory was well-deserved after three consecutive losses had threatened to keep the defending champions out of the knockout stages.
The Toyota Cheetahs run riot in Mbombela and secure their place in the #CarlingCurrieCup semi-final 👏 pic.twitter.com/mwzwDVWk0F
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) September 7, 2024
The Cheetahs will now play the Fidelity ADT Lions at Emirates Airlines Park in Johannesburg next weekend while the Vodacom Bulls will host the Hollywoodbets Sharks XV at Loftus Versveld.
SCORERS
Airlink Pumas: Tries: Ntsika Fisanti, Penalties: Clinton Swart (3)
Toyota Cheetahs: Tries: Daniel Kasende (2), Jandre Nel, Munier Hartzenberg, Aidon Davis. Gideon van der Merwe. Penalty: George Lourens. Conversions: Ethan Wentzel (3), George Lourens.