Waratahs (3) 3 / Cheetahs (6) 23 (Final Score)

A first win for the Cheetahs out of Africa. This was a game where the Waratahs was outplayed on the ground. Heinrich Brussow is back with a bang. He ruled the rucks.

Scoring:-

Waratahs:- Penalty – Kurtley Beale

Cheetahs:- Penalties – S Ebersohn (2) , Try  – Phillip Snyman , Sarel Pretoruis,  Conversion – S Ebersohn(2)

Teams

Waratahs: 15 Kurtley Beale, 14 Atieli Pakalani, 13 Lachie Turner, 12 Tom Carter, 11 Drew Mitchell, 10 Berrick Barnes, 9 Luke Burgess, 8 Wycliff Palu, 7 Pat McCutcheon, 6 Ben Mowen, 5 Kane Douglas, 4 Dean Mumm (captain), 3 Al Baxter, 2 John Ulugia, 1 Benn Robinson.
Replacements: 16 Damien Fitzpatrick, 17 Sekope Kepu, 18 Sitaleki Timani, 19 Dave Dennis, 20 Brendan McKibbin, 21 Daniel Halangahu, 22 Ryan Cross.

Cheetahs: 15 Riaan Viljoen, 14, Phillip Snyman, 13 Robert Ebersohn, 12 Andries Strauss (captain), 11 Fabian Juries, 10 Sias Ebersohn, 9 Tewis de Bruyn, 8 Ashley Johnson, 7 Phillip van der Walt, 6 Heinrich Brüssow, 5 Wilhelm Steenkamp, 4 Martin Muller, 3 WP Nel, 2 Ryno Barnes, 1 Coenie Oosthuizen.
Replacements: 16 Skipper Badenhorst, 17 Lourens Adriaanse, 18 Frans Viljoen, 19 Kabamba Floors, 20 Francois Uys, 21 Sarel Pretorius, 22 Naas Olivier.

Referee: Nathan Pearce
Assistant referees: James Leckie, Angus Gardner
TMO: George Ayoub

Having failed to take what could have been a morale-boosting win over the Lions in Bloemfontein last weekend, the Cheetahs now face their Australasian road trip with the usual dread … and no Juan Smith.

They will be looking to their other talisman, Springbok Heinrich Brüssow, but it is only his second Super Rugby outing after almost a year on the sidelines. He may still be a game or away from some decent form.

The Waratahs, conversely, are fresh, having just come off the bye, and ready to reassert themselves as the best Australian franchise. They will be determined to prove their 18-33 loss to an impressive Crusaders team in Round Three was an aberration and that they are indeed as good as their 43-0 whitewash of the Rebels in Week One suggested.

Cheetahs coach Naka Drotské certainly believes the Waratahs had a temporary slump a fortnight ago and remains a team to be respected.

“I don’t think the Waratahs have weaknesses, the Crusaders are just a very good team,” Drotské told rugby365.com.

He spoke of the Waratahs as a “well-coached team” and said their defensive structures have been among the best in the competition for several years.

They also don’t often lose in Sydney – with a 70 percent success rate at home and a seven-match winning streak in Australia’s most populace city.

“It will be an enormous challenge for us,” the Cheetahs coach said, adding: “However, history has showed that in this competition any team can beat any team on the day and we will do everything to achieve that [win].”

Maintain possession is always key against a team such as the ‘Tahs, but Drotské feels the Waratahs’ sound defensive lines mean you have to utilise every chance that comes your way.

“You obviously can’t attack from anywhere, that will be silly, so you will have to be tactically very good against them.”

Recent results:
2010: Waratahs won 40-17, Sydney
2009: Waratahs won 18-10, Bloemfontein
2008: Waratahs won 23-19, Sydney
2007: Cheetahs won 30-26, Kimberley
2006: Waratahs won 26-3, Sydney

 

 



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