Cheetahs aim to finish on high

Naka Drotske's Cheetahs will be hoping to end their Super Rugby campaign on a high note when the face the Lions on Saturday. Photo: Johan Pretorius

Naka Drotske's Cheetahs will be hoping to end their Super Rugby campaign on a high note when the face the Lions on Saturday. Photo: Johan Pretorius

Published Jul 9, 2014

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Bloemfontein – Cheetahs coach Naka Drotske named an unchanged side to face the Lions at Ellis Park in Johannesburg on Saturday, in the last of their Super Rugby matches for the season.

The Bloemfontein-based side beat the Sharks at home last weekend and will take much confidence from their performance in the hope of ending their campaign on a high note.

Drotske was determined to improve his side’s discipline and said they would work on it this week.

“There were a lot of penalties against the Sharks, especially in the first 40 minutes, and we put ourselves under a lot of pressure because of it,” he said on Wednesday.

“Good discipline is something we pride ourselves on and we have to be better at it against the Lions.”

Cheetahs captain Adriaan Strauss said they were eager to perform one last time before many of them headed elsewhere in a mass exodus of players.

“We want to finish strongly against the Lions. We had the opportunity to beat all the South African teams, but we didn’t always use them,” he said.

“Hopefully we can end of on a high. It isn’t going to be easy, especially if you look at their last performance. They play with a lot of passion and going to Johannesburg is going to be tough.”

The Cheetahs have started to bolster their side with players like under-20 winger Sergeal Petersen, whose signature seems all but a formality, while Bulls fullback and winger Clayton Blommetjies had also signed with the outfit. The union also confirmed that Bees Roux has been contracted for the Currie Cup in the absence of Rossouw de Klerk, who was bound for Europe.

Cheetahs side: Willie le Roux, Cornal Hendricks, Johann Sadie, Ryno Benjamin, Raymond Rhule, Johan Goosen, Sarel Pretorius, Philip van der Walt, Teboho Mohoje, Torsten van Jaarsveld, Francois Uys, Lodewyk de Jager, Coenie Oosthuizen, Adriaan Strauss (captain), Trevor Nyakane. Replacements: Caylib Oosthuizen, Luan de Bruin, Carl Wegner, Jean Cook, Henco Venter, Shaun Venter, Elgar Watts, Hennie Daniller. – Sapa

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