The first of four Toyota Challenge matches between Toyota Cheetahs and the Western Force on Friday earned the hosts R250 000 for a close 31-27 victory.
The first half was spoilt by the number of early-season mistakes made by both sides, however, both sides were willing to run with the ball. The Western Force was the more dangerous side when they spread the ball wide while the home team dominated up front. The Toyota Cheetahs led 21-17 at the halftime break. The second half belonged to the Western Force, however, the Toyota Cheetahs hung on to secure a "lucky" 31-27 win.
The Toyota Cheetahs dominated the early exchanges and deservedly scored the first try from the back of a 5m lineout-maul when Marnus van der Merwe barged over the tryline after eight minutes of attacking.
The Western Force upped the pace following the try of the Toyota Cheetahs, however, they could not finish several try-scoring opportunities, until Max Burey converted a penalty after fourteen minutes of play in the first half. The Toyota Cheetahs led 07-03 at that stage.
The following ten minutes was an arm wrestle for dominance, with early season mistakes making it a stop-start affair, before Gideon van der Merwe scored the Toyota Cheetahs second try from a 5m lineout-maul to take a 14-03 lead after twenty-five minutes of play.
A brilliant attack from Western Force that started in their own half ended when winger Ronan Leahy scored a team try after great interplay and handling by the visitors. The Western Force showed exceptional skills when they spread the ball wide at speed.
The Toyota Cheetahs led 14-10 with five minutes to play in the first half. However, the Toyota Cheetahs struck back almost immediately when Marnus van der Merwe scored his second and the Toyota Cheetahs third try from the back of a 5m lineout-maul to which Harry Potter was the Western Force immediate answer and scored a great try, to trail 17-21 at the halftime break.
The Western Force came out in the second half like a house on fire and pinned the Toyota Cheetahs in their 22m for most of the opening ten minutes. A converted penalty by Max Burey cut the lead of the Toyota Cheetahs to 21-20 as the Western Force threatened to run their host's defence to tatters.
The Western Force continued to dominate for the first twenty minutes of the second half, however, Marco Janse van Rensburg scored the Toyota Cheetahs' fourth try from a 5m lineout maul to extend the Toyota Cheetahs lead to 28-20 after twenty-five minutes of play in the second half.
With eight minutes to play Gio Leituala scored in the corner as the Western Force once again upped the pace of their attack, pinning the Toyota Cheetahs in their 22m. The Toyota Cheetahs led 28-27 following Leituala's try.
The Toyota Cheetahs started to use their forwards once again and set up camp in the Western Force's red zone for the final five minutes of play. A converted penalty by Ruan Pienaar in the last seconds of the match secured a 31-27 victory for the home team.
Scorers:
Toyota Cheetahs: Tries: Marnus van der Merwe (2), Gideon van der Merwe, Marco Janse van Rensburg. Conversions: Ruan Pienaar (4). Penalty: Ruan Pienaar.
Western Force: Tries: Ronan Leahy, Harry Potter, Gio Leituala. Conversions: Max Burey (3). Penalties: Max Burey (2).
Toyota Cheetahs: 15 Tapiwa Mafura, 14 Cohen Jasper, 13 Evardi Boshoff, 12 Robert Ebersohn, 11 Litha Nkula, 10 Ruan Pienaar, 9 Rewan Kruger, 8 Friedle Olivier, 7 Sibabalo Qoma, 6 Gideon van der Merwe, 5 Victor Sekekete (c), 4 Rynier Bernardo, 3 Hencus van Wyk, 2 Marnus van der Merwe, 1 Alulutho Tshakweni. Replacements: 16 Marko Janse van Rensburg, 17 Schalk Ferreira, 18 Dayan van der Westhuizen, 19 Mzwanele Zito, 20 Daniel Maartens, 21 Jeandre Rudolph, 22 George Lourens, 23 David Brits.
Western Force: 15 Harry Potter, 14 George Poolman, 13 Sam Spink, 12 Bayley Kuenzle, 11 Ronan Leahy, 10 Max Burey, 9 Henry Robertson, 8 Jeremy Williams, 7 Carlo Tizzano, 6 Donny Freeman, 5 Lopeti Faifua, 4 Joshua Thompson, 3 Tiaan Tauakipulu, 2 Tom Horton, 1 Marley Pearce: Replacements: 16 Ford Hemi, 17 Angus Wagner, 18 Regi Churchward, 19 Jackson Pugh, 20 Fa’amanu Kalolo, 21 Jack Grooby, 22 Reesjan Pasitoa, 23 Gio Leituala