Director of rugby Frans Steyn accepts responsibility for the Cheetahs’ 2025 SA Cup opening round defeat, and vows they will be sharper against the Leopards on Friday.
The Cheetahs conceded three tries and trailed 19-0 after 23 minutes against the Boland Kavaliers, before the Free Staters fought back to go 29-25 ahead in the second half of last week’s clash in Wellington.
But Lunathi Nxele’s hat-trick try with 13 minutes left put the hosts back in front and Garth April’s last-minute try wrapped up a 45-29 bonus-point win for Hawies Fourie’s charges.
“It was our first game and, coaching-wise, we made a lot of errors,” Steyn, who debuted as head coach, told reporters on Tuesday. “We got outcoached by Boland.
“We have to learn and move forward. We won’t be outcoached again. We’ve changed things up offensively this week.”
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“Conditioning-wise we weren’t ready for the contest,” the two-time Springbok world champion added. “We didn’t help ourselves out. We came back well but one mistake allowed them back into the game and opened all our wounds.”
Steyn has rejigged his lineup for Friday’s round 2 clash in Bloemfontein. Captain Victor Sekekete is unavailable while scrumhalf Jandre Nel’s impact from the bench against Boland has been rewarded with a starting berth at Free State Stadium.
“If you come off the bench we need players to set a good example for the others,” the Cheetahs boss said. “Jandre did that. Hopefully he can do that from the start this week.
“Victor Sekekete isn’t available this week and Louis van der Westhuizen has stepped into the captaincy role. Everyone at the club respects him and the way he operates. He performs the way a captain should.
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“We want to get back to a place where we are giving the younger players an opportunity to play. Some players make mistakes here or there, but they want to play.
“The big thing for us is to get the balance between experienced players and younger players. It’s crucial for the months to come ahead of the Currie Cup.”
Van der Westhuizen, who represented the Leopards between 2014 and 2016, is well aware of the threat the Cheetahs face this week.
“The Leopards always come out guns blazing,” the hooker said. “They want to beat bigger teams. That is their mentality.
“We can’t expect anything less from them and we plan on meeting them with a bang from the start.”
Meanwhile, the Cheetahs have announced the signing of utility back Tiaan Swanepoel (28), who previously played for the Sharks, Lions, Green Rockets Tokatsu in Japan and represented Namibia at the 2023 World Cup.
In other round 2 of the SA Cup on Friday, Border visit the Eagles in George, while on Saturday, Griquas welcome the Valke to Kimberley, Griffons aim to make Boland feel Welkom and EP take on the Pumas at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
CHEETAHS – 15 Jasper Cohen, 14 Prince Nkabinde,13 Raegan Oranje, 12 Jooste Nel, 11 Banie Britz, 10 George Lourens, 9 Jandre Nel, 8 Pierre Uys, 7 Neels Volschenk, 6 Daniel Maartens, 5 Pieter Janse van Vuuren, 4 Carl Wegner, 3 Aranos Coetzee , 2 Louis van der Westhuizen, 1 Hencus van Wyk.
Bench: TBC
Photo: Grant Pitcher/Gallo Images
