Johannesburg – Cheetahs captain Francois Uys says he is filled with pride following his side’s first win in six Super Rugby matches with their 24-15 victory over the Western Force at the nib Stadium, in Perth, on Saturday.
”I thought it was great the way the guys stuck to their guns,” said Uys.
“It has been a tough tour and I am immensely proud of the guys.”
The men from Free State scored a try early in the encounter, and though the hosts took the lead on the quarter hour mark with a score of their own, the visitors kept pace with the Perth outfit throughout the 80 minutes.
With 12 minutes remaining in the clash, Heinrich Brussow crossed the whitewash to reclaim the lead they would not relinquish.
“We had to make a lot of tough tackles and we did, we defended well,” said Uys.
The Cheetahs triumph was one of three on the day for South African sides over Australian opposition, with the Stormers beating the Waratahs 32-18 and the Bulls overcoming the Reds 43-22.
With the win, the Cheetahs move to 13 points from their eight matches as they occupy 12th spot on the log.
For the Force, meanwhile, it was their seventh defeat in a row in a season they would probably like to forget.
Against the Cheetahs, the hosts would have felt disappointed by the way they let their lead slip at the end.
Force captain Sam Wykes said his side were close to the win, but conceded his charges were not good enough to overcome the Cheetahs.
“We played a lot of footy and got a couple of tries, but we didn’t carry on with it,” said Wykes.
“They didn’t have to defend enough.” – ANA