As it happened: Lions v Cheetahs

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Commentary by Sport24's Herman Mostert

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KEY STATS

Metres run: Lions 663-461 Cheetahs
Carries: Lions 99-107 Cheetahs
Defenders beaten: Lions 27-16 Cheetahs
Clean breaks: Lions 13-2 Cheetahs
Tackles made: Lions 108-75 Cheetahs
Tackles missed: Lions 16-27 Cheetahs
Turnovers won: Lions 6-6 Cheetahs
Kicks in play: Lions 22-15 Cheetahs
Rucks won: Lions 56-74 Cheetahs
Mauls won: Lions 9-1 Cheetahs
Lineouts won: Lions 15-9 Cheetah
Lineouts lost: Lions 2-2 Cheetahs
Scrums won: Lions 5-6 Cheetahs
Scrums lost: Lions 1-1 Cheetahs
Penalties conceded: Lions11-12 Cheetahs

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FULL-TIME: Lions 60-25 Cheetahs

Well done to the Lions. Eight tries to make sure they don't finish bottom of the South African Conference. That 'honour' will go to the Cheetahs.

PICTURE

Lood de Jager smothered by Lions... (Gallo Images)

78'- Jeepers, Willie le Roux must feel bad after being completely fooled by a prop forward there.

77'- Jantjies misses his first conversion of the night.

Lions 60-25 Cheetahs

76'- TRY to the Lions!

Replacement prop Corne Fourie sprints like a centre and then throws a dummy to completely fool Willie le Roux. He dives over in style!

75 - As Skosan comes on for the Lions, all 16 subs are now on the field across both teams.

74' - Jantjies CONVERTS from the touchline.

Lions 55-25 Cheetahs

73'- TRY to the Lions! 

Mapoe bags his hat-trick after by diving over in the corner. Another brilliant team try for the Lions.

72' - Just as I mock the Cheetahs scrum they actually dominate one... a bit too late now though...

71'- Skosan is the only Lion still on the bench...

70'- The Lions again kick the ensuing kick-off directly out. And again the Cheetahs opt for the lineout. They're avoiding scrums at all costs.

69'- Watts misses the conversion.

Lions 48-25 Cheetahs

68'- TRY to the Cheetahs!

Cornal Hendricks pounces on a dropped Lions ball deep inside his own half. He kicks ahead and brilliantly follows up to score. Some great foot skills as well as pace.

66'- Yet another penalty conceded at scrum time by the Cheetahs. And Coenie's not even on anymore!

TWEET

This reminds me of that klap the Lions gave the Bulls in last year's Currie Cup. Where is this type of thing the rest of the season? - Ruck & Droll

63'- Coenie Oosthuizen's time in the sin-bin is now up, but he stays sidelined. Another horror night for the Springbok.

Goosen also doesn't return and he's replaced by Watts.

Pretorius also substituted by Venter at scrumhalf for the Cheetahs.

63' - Lions sub: Van der Merwe for Coetzee at hooker.

61'- CONVERSION by Jantjies.

Lions 48-20 Cheetahs

60'- TRY to the Lions!

Fullback Andries Coetzee intercepts a pass from Benjamin and sprints from his own 22m line to dot down his first Super Rugby try.

56'- Referee Marius van der Westhuizen says: "If this continues you're going to have 7 or 8 on the field."

He tells Cheetahs captain Strauss to have a stern word with his players...

56'- Cheetahs sub: Danniler on for Rhule

Luan de Bruin also on at prop with Oosthuizen in the bin.

55'- YELLOW CARD

Meanwhile, while all that was happening, Cheetahs flyhalf Johan Goosen is also off to the sin-bin after cynically not rolling away.

55'- CONVERSION by Jantjies.

Lions 41-20 Cheetahs

54'- TRY to the Lions.

Captain Warren Whiteley rounds off after a break from Volmink, who capitalised after Willie le Roux couldn't handle a rolling kick...

53'- Jantjies CONVERTS from close to the corner.

Lions 34-20 Cheetahs

51'- TRY to the Lions!

Hooker Robbie Coetzee barges over after a dominant driving maul following a lineout. That's the bonus point try for the hosts.

51'- YELLOW CARD

Cheetahs prop Coenie Oosthuizen is off to the sin-bin after conceding another scrum penalty. It had to come. He is all at sea...

50'- Jantjies is now back on for the Lions.

49'- Another kickable penalty to the Lions. But with Jantjies still in the bin, they opt for a lineout...

47'- Cronje's attempt is short and wide...

47'- Another scrum penalty to the Lions in kickable range. Ross Cronje will take the kick in the absence of Jantjies. It's a tough kick, close to the touchline...

45'- Goosen CONVERTS from the corner.

Lions 27-20 Cheetahs

44'- TRY to the Cheetahs!

Springbok wing Cornal Hendricks goes over in the corner after a powerful run down the touchline. Some great strength on display. He ran straight though Volmink before stretching to place the ball over the line...

42'- Great start for the Cheetahs and only a wayward pass from Sadie stops Benjamin from scoring. But the referee goes back for a penalty...

40'- Error from the Lions' Andries Coetzee, who kicks it out on the full. Not surprisingly, the Cheetahs opt for a lineout instead of a scrum.

40'- And we're under way as the Lions kick off!

Cheetahs sub: Jean Cook is on for Torsten van Jaarsveld.

Welcome back for the second half. The Cheetahs were forced by their coaches to stay on the field at the break. In the cold!

QUOTE

"I don't think Coenie Oosthuizen's got a role as a tighthead prop in South African rugby,"says Nick Mallett.

TWEET

Wonder how long it will be before one of the big spending provinces snap up Jaco Kriel? - Brenden Nel

FIRST HALF STATS

Metres run: Lions 236-231 Cheetahs
Carries: Lions 52-55 Cheetahs
Defenders beaten: Lions 16-6 Cheetahs
Clean breaks: Lions 6-2 Cheetahs
Tackles made: Lions 47-41 Cheetahs
Tackles missed: Lions 6-16 Cheetahs
Turnovers won: Lions 2-4 Cheetahs
Kicks in play: Lions 14-6 Cheetahs
Rucks won: Lions 30-34 Cheetahs
Mauls won: Lions 5-0 Cheetahs
Lineouts won: Lions 11-4 Cheetah
Lineouts lost: Lions 0-1 Cheetahs
Scrums won: Lions 2-4 Cheetahs
Scrums lost: Lions 0-1 Cheetahs
Penalties conceded: Lions 6-6 Cheetahs

HALF-TIME: Lions 27-13 Cheetahs

The Cheetahs butcher a scoring chance when Le Roux's cross-kick to Rhule is too far and goes out...

40'- YELLOW CARD

Jantjies is sent to the sin-bin after cynically throwing the ball away following a penalty...

40'- One last attacking chance for the Cheetahs inside the red zone as the half-time siren sounds.

They win a penalty and Pretorius takes a quick tap...

38' - Lions flank Jaco Kriel is having a superb game here today! He's all over the park. Running, kicking, tackling, passing...

36'- Van der Walt is now back from the sin-bin for the Cheetahs, by the way...

35' - The Lions run it back from deep inside their own half. Almost another try, but Hollenbach's knock-on saves the Cheetahs.

34'- CONVERSION by Jantjies.

Lions 27-13 Cheetahs

33'- TRY to the Lions!

Mapoe gets his second try after the Lions ran from deep inside their own half. They are running the Cheetahs ragged here! I'm not sure how many Lions players touched the ball in that move. Perhaps the whole team?

32'- CONVERSION by Jantjies.

Lions 20-13 Cheetahs

31'- TRY to the Lions!

Scrumhalf Ross Cronje darts through the Cheetahs forwards to score under the posts. It started after a concerted period of attack by the hosts...

30'- Lions flank Jaco Kriel almost over in the corner after a sneaky chip over the Cheetahs defence. But Willie le Roux saves the day for the Free Staters...

29'- Jeepers, this Cheetahs scrum is under immense pressure!

28'- A knock on ends a promising Lions attack in the red zone...

26'- PENALTY by Goosen to level matters.

Lions 13-13 Cheetahs

25'- The Cheetahs get a chance to hit right back when Hollenbach is penalised for not rolling away. Goosen to line up from in front, about 30m out...

23'- CONVERSION by Jantjies.

Lions 13-10 Cheetahs

22'- TRY AWARDED to the Lions!

Mapoe is credited with the try after the TMO correctly rules no obstruction. There was some brilliant running and vision on display from Jantjies and also some slick hands by Hanekom and Volmink to put Mapoe away.

22'- YELLOW CARD

Phillip Van Der Walt of the Cheetahs is also off for 10 minutes. He pulled a Lions driving maul down just prior to the move...

22'- TRY OR NO TRY?

Lionel Mapoe goes over for the Lions after some slick handling from their backs. But the TMO is called into play for potential obstruction...

21'- Coenie Oosthuizen concedes his 3rd penalty of the game. And this time it's not even at scrum time... but for not rolling away after making a tackle.

19'- PENALTY slotted by Jantjies.

Lions 6-10 Cheetahs

19'- Cheetahs backline caught off-side and Jantjies will line up from about 30m out in the middle of the field...

17'- CONVERSION by Goosen

Lions 3-10 Cheetahs

16'- TRY to the Cheetahs!

Willie le Roux scores under the posts for the Cheetahs. It started after a brilliant run down the wing from Rhule, who passed back in-field to Le Roux. Amazingly, that move started after a Cheetahs scrum was put under severe pressure on halfway, but some slick handling from the Cheetahs backs made up for it...

TWEET

Coenie Oosthuizen really struggling at scrum time - Jan de Koning

13'- Yet another Lions penalty at scrum time. Again Coenie is penalised. Getting the blood removed clearly did not help his cause...

12'- Before the scrum can take place, some blood must be removed from Coenie Oosthuizen's face...

11'- But another Cheetahs knock-on brings relief for the home side.

10' - Cheetahs back in the red zone after Francois Uys charges down Ross Cronje's kick.

Cronje not the quickest scrumhalf around...

9'- Jantjies has now scored 250 points in Super Rugby.

8'- PENALTY slotted by Jantjies.

Lions 3-3 Cheetahs

7' - But the Lions get a penalty mere moments later. Jantjies to line up a relatively easy kick...

6'- Oh dear, from the ensuing kick-off, the Cheetahs' Francois Uys drops it cold. They are lucky not to give away a penalty though as Coenie Oosthuizen was caught catching it in front of Uys...

5'- PENALTY slotted by Goosen.

Lions 0-3 Cheetahs

5'- The Cheetahs win a kickable penalty about 35m out. Goosen to line up...

Lions skipper Whiteley the man penalised for falling over at a ruck...

3'- The first penalty of the game goes to the Lions after the Cheetahs are pinged at scrum time. Again, it's the struggling Coenie Oosthuizen...

2'- A knock-on from Willie le Roux halts the Cheetahs' charge, but the Lions then also lose it as they try to run it out from deep...

1'- An early chance for the Cheetahs who attack in the red zone...

TWEET

Head to head (since 2006): Lions won 5, Toyota Cheetahs won 5. Lions 197 points, Cheetahs 297; Lions 16 tries, Cheetahs 29 - SA Rugby

17:06 - And we're underway as Cheetahs flyhalf Johan Goosen gets play started!

The Cheetahs are in their predominantly white attire, with the Lions in red and a little bit of white.

The Lions' Lionel Mapoe and Elton Jantjies both play their 50th Super Rugby game, while the Cheetahs Johann Sadie also reaches a half century of games.

LATE CHANGE FOR CHEETAHS

The Cheetahs will be without Springbok prop Trevor Nyakane after he was ruled out with flu.

He will be replaced in the starting line-up by Caylib Oosthuizen with Kevin Stevens coming on to the bench.

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OFFICIALS

Referee: Marius van der Westhuizen
Assistant referees: Stuart Berry and Jaco van Heerden
TMO: Shaun Veldsman

TEAMS

Lions

15. Andries Coetzee, 14. Lionel Mapoe, 13. Stokkies Hanekom, 12. Alwyn Hollenbach, 11. Anthony Volmink, 10. Elton Jantjies, 9. Ross Cronjé, 8. Warren Whiteley, 7. Warwick Tecklenburg, 6. Jaco Kriel, 5. Franco van der Merwe, 4. Franco Mostert, 3. Julian Redelinghuys, 2. Robbie Coetzee, 1. Schalk van der Merwe

Substitutes: 16. Armand van der Merwe, 17. Corné Fourie, 18. Ruan Dreyer, 19. Willie Britz, 20. Derick Minnie, 21. Faf de Klerk, 22. Marnitz Boshoff, 23. Courtnall Skosan

Cheetahs

15 Willie le Roux, 14 Cornal Hendricks, 13 Johann Sadie, 12 Ryno Benjamin, 11 Raymond Rhule, 10 Johan Goosen, 9 Sarel Pretorius, 8 Philip van der Walt, 7 Teboho Mohoje, 6 Torsten van Jaarsveld, 5 Francois Uys, 4 Lood de Jager, 3 Coenie Oosthuizen, 2 Adriaan Strauss (captain), 1 Caylib Oosthuizen

Substitutes: 16 Kevin Stevens, 17 Luan de Bruin, 18 Carl Wegner, 19 Jean Cook, 20 Henco Venter, 21 Shaun Venter, 22 Elgar Watts, 23 Hennie Daniller

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