Naka calls for consistency

Cape Town - Cheetahs coach Naka Drotske has called for the same intensity shown against the Stormers when they tackle the Highlanders in a Super Rugby clash in Bloemfontein on Saturday.

The Cheetahs upset the Stormers 25-17 a fortnight ago and Drotske has called for more of the same this time round.

The Highlanders boast the best record in South Africa against the Cheetahs compared to their Kiwi compatriots - they’ve won all four their matches in Bloemfontein.

The other four New Zealand sides’ winning records in central South Africa are as follows: Chiefs (50% or two from four with two draws), Hurricanes (60% or three from five), Crusaders (50% or two from four) and Blues (40% or two from five).

“The big challenge for us this week will be to play with the same intensity as two weeks ago (against the Stormers),” said Drotske.

“We know that this match, like any encounter against physical New Zealand teams with their big backs, will be a big challenge for our backline. They have a couple of danger-men at the back, and from turnover possession they are probably the best in the competition.

“Bad kicks will be punished so we have really worked hard at our tactical kicking and our chase lines, so hopefully we will be ready for them on Saturday.”

Cheetahs captain Francois Uys commented: “We need to put pressure on their set piece, like the Lions did in the second half last weekend, and starve them of possession. Scrums has been a big focus for us and we’ve worked hard on it, so hopefully it will come off this weekend.”

Kick-off for Saturday’s clash at Free State Stadium is scheduled for 19:10.

Teams:

Cheetahs:

15 Clayton Blommetjies, 14 Rayno Benjamin, 13 Francois Venter, 12 Michael van der Spuy, 11 Sergeal Petersen, 10 Francois Brummer, 9 Tian Meyer, 8 Willie Britz, 7 Boom Prinsloo, 6 Tienie Burger, 5 Francois Uys (captain), 4 Carl Wegner, 3 Maks van Dyk, 2 Torsten van Jaarsveld, 1 Danie Minnie

Substitutes: 16 Stephan Coetzee, 17 BG Uys, 18 Ewald van der Westhuizen, 19 Steven Sykes, 20 Carel Greeff, 21 Shaun Venter, 22 Coenie van Wyk, 23 Raymond Rhule

Highlanders:

15 Ben Smith (co-captain), 14 Ryan Tongia, 13 Malakai Fekitoa, 12 Richard Buckman, 11 Patrick Osborne, 10 Lima Sopoaga, 9 Aaron Smith, 8 Nasi Manu (co-captain), 7 John Hardie, 6 Gareth Evans, 5 Mark Reddish, 4 Alex Ainley, 3 Josh Hohneck, 2 Liam Coltman, 1 Brendon Edmonds

Substitutes: 16 Ash Dixon, 17 Daniel Lienert-Brown, 18 Ross Geldenhuys, 19 Tom Franklin, 20 Elliot Dixon, 21 Dan Pryor, 22 Fumiaki Tanaka, 23 Marty Banks