BLOEMFONTEIN – The Free State Cheetahs camp has emphasised maintaining discipline all-round in their forthcoming fixtures, including the upcoming match against the Bulls on Sunday in pursuit of Currie Cup Premier Division glory. They meet at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria in Round 5 of the tournament. Kick-off is at 15:00.
At a media briefing yesterday, Cheetahs head coach Frans Steyn indicated that there was room for improvement in all departments and stressed the need to guard against complacency, while captain Neels Volschenk underscored the importance of building mental strength and maintaining positivity. The camp warned of the hefty price of not mastering the basics and becoming complacent against the rock-bottom Bulls in the upcoming match. Sitting near the top of the table, the Steyn-led charges will look to continue their winning run while the Bulls aim to bounce back at home after a tough run of results in the Premier Division.
The Cheetahs produced a dramatic late finish to claim a 31-26 bonus-point victory over the Stormers in Cape Town on Sunday, with Springbok scrumhalf Faf de Klerk scoring the decisive try in the closing moments. The Cheetahs fought gallantly in the second half with Volschenk having his name on the scoresheet.
“It is crucial for us to secure extra points if we want a home semi-final or final,” said Volschenk. He pointed out that mental strength was crucial as the team fought to secure a vital win at the death. “We want to be better each match we play. Against the Stormers we were not as good as we were against the Griquas, to whom we lost. We do not want to be naïve about how poor we were during the game. Even in the lead-up to winning the game, there was a lot of work that needed to be done to improve as a team,” said Volschenk.
According to the youthful skipper, four matches played thus far have served as the yardstick for the team this season. “The nice thing about the team is that it shows how far we have come,” said Volschenk.
Coach Steyn believes his warriors are yet to reach their full potential, amid good results and recovery after losing to table-toppers Griquas. “After four matches played, tied at the top, we are happy but we are not at the level we want to be,” said Steyn. Both the Cheetahs and Griquas are tied on 16 points at the summit with the Northern Cape side topping based on a superior points difference.
