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Bloemfontein – He was a hero in Sydney, but Cheetahs scrumhalf Sarel Pretorius understands his team’s squad system and will Saturday again be used as impact player against the Reds.
‘Super Sarel’, as he became known for his good performances towards the end of last year, is only due to wear the Cheetahs’ No 9 jersey again in their last two tour matches against the Blues and Highlanders.
Even though Pretorius shone in the Cheetahs’ shock 23-3 win over the Waratahs last week, he will be on the bench once again.
He had to lend a helping hand in the unfamiliar position of right wing when Andries Strauss left the field.
The Cheetahs only had two backs on their bench due to injuries. That is why Pretorius played wing, with Philip Snyman moving to outside centre and Robert Ebersohn to inside centre.
He played a major part in creating their first try and also scored the second one.
Pretorius also provided the spark in the Cheetahs’ first few games, in spite of the team suffering four losses.
Many supporters will therefore be of the belief that Pretorius should be in the starting line-up against the Reds, but he and Tewis de Bruyn are being judiciously utilised by their coaching team.
Cheetahs backline coach Hawies Fourie said that Pretorius and De Bruyn know where they stand.
“We spoke to Sarel and Tewis at the beginning of the tour. You can’t let one guy play in 16 consecutive games. Tewis is a better kicker than Sarel and I think he played quite well against the Waratahs,” said Fourie.
“He does things that Sarel does not do. Tewis often rescued us in Sydney by defending at the back. Both know that Tewis will play the first two games on tour and Sarel the last two.”
Corné Uys will be at inside centre and Wilmaure Louw on the left wing against a dangerous Reds outfit in Brisbane.
Uys comes in for the injured Strauss (groin), while Louw replaces Fabian Juries. The Cheetahs therefore effectively have four centres in their team. Uys and Ebersohn are the centre pairing, while two other centres - Louw and Snyman - will be on the wings.
Fourie said that Louw had been drafted into the starting line-up because Juries’ defence was not up to scratch.
“Fabian’s defence was not good enough against the Waratahs and we cannot afford a repeat of that against the Reds. Wilmaure is solid on defence and also reads the game well. It’s a better option to use Fabian as an impact player.”
Bloemfontein – He was a hero in Sydney, but Cheetahs scrumhalf Sarel Pretorius understands his team’s squad system and will Saturday again be used as impact player against the Reds.
‘Super Sarel’, as he became known for his good performances towards the end of last year, is only due to wear the Cheetahs’ No 9 jersey again in their last two tour matches against the Blues and Highlanders.
Even though Pretorius shone in the Cheetahs’ shock 23-3 win over the Waratahs last week, he will be on the bench once again.
He had to lend a helping hand in the unfamiliar position of right wing when Andries Strauss left the field.
The Cheetahs only had two backs on their bench due to injuries. That is why Pretorius played wing, with Philip Snyman moving to outside centre and Robert Ebersohn to inside centre.
He played a major part in creating their first try and also scored the second one.
Pretorius also provided the spark in the Cheetahs’ first few games, in spite of the team suffering four losses.
Many supporters will therefore be of the belief that Pretorius should be in the starting line-up against the Reds, but he and Tewis de Bruyn are being judiciously utilised by their coaching team.
Cheetahs backline coach Hawies Fourie said that Pretorius and De Bruyn know where they stand.
“We spoke to Sarel and Tewis at the beginning of the tour. You can’t let one guy play in 16 consecutive games. Tewis is a better kicker than Sarel and I think he played quite well against the Waratahs,” said Fourie.
“He does things that Sarel does not do. Tewis often rescued us in Sydney by defending at the back. Both know that Tewis will play the first two games on tour and Sarel the last two.”
Corné Uys will be at inside centre and Wilmaure Louw on the left wing against a dangerous Reds outfit in Brisbane.
Uys comes in for the injured Strauss (groin), while Louw replaces Fabian Juries. The Cheetahs therefore effectively have four centres in their team. Uys and Ebersohn are the centre pairing, while two other centres - Louw and Snyman - will be on the wings.
Fourie said that Louw had been drafted into the starting line-up because Juries’ defence was not up to scratch.
“Fabian’s defence was not good enough against the Waratahs and we cannot afford a repeat of that against the Reds. Wilmaure is solid on defence and also reads the game well. It’s a better option to use Fabian as an impact player.”
