While the Cheetahs returned to winning ways after a five-match losing streak, it was a game that supporters from both teams would like to forget about as soon as possible, and neither side looked like they belong in the Pro14.

The scoring was opened in the 5th minute of the game in rather uncharacteristic fashion when the Cheetahs flyhalf, Tian Schoeman, slotted a penalty.

After missing an initial shot on goal from 50m out, Lewis Jones managed to level the matters with a penalty for the Dragons in the 30th minute of the game.

The Cheetahs scored the first try of the game on the stroke of half time when the eight-man, Henco Venter, crashed over the line from a lineout drive which came from a penalty. This saw the hosts leading 10-3 at the break.

Taine Basham leveled matters four minutes into the second stanza after relentless pressure on the Cheetahs line.  This was also the best passage of play from the visitors.

A scrum infringement in the 58th minute saw the Cheetahs replacement tighthead prop, Aranos Coetzee, being sin-binned for ten minutes, and the resulting penalty was sent through the uprights by Lewis, to hand the Dragons the lead for the first time in the game.

The lead was short-lived as Shaun Venter managed to work his way over the line four minute later to put the Cheetahs ahead again by four points.

The death blow for the Dragons came with seven minutes remaining on the clock when, Schoeman, weaved his way through the defence to cross the white-wash. He managed to convert his own try to retain a 100% kicking record for the evening.

Louis Fouché scored in the 78th minute, and it could have so easily have been Rabz Maxwane to score, and that would have seen the winger equalling Tim Visser’s record of 14 tries in a single season.

He did, however, gets his try a minute later to equal the record, and rub salt into the wounds of the visitors.

With the amount of possession and territory, the Cheetahs enjoyed in the first forty minutes of the game the Cheetahs can kick themselves for not having rolled the Dragons over by more than fifty points. While the Cheetahs looked good in the last 10 minutes, they will have to play a lot better next week if they want to stand any chance of retaining their unbeaten record over the Southern Kings.

Scorers:

Toyota Cheetahs: Tries - Henco Venter, Shaun Venter, Tian Schoeman, Louis Fouché, Rabz Maxwane Conv. – Tian Schoeman 5 Pen. – Schoeman 1

Dragons: Tries – Taine Basham Conv. – Josh Lewis 1 Pen. – Lewis 2

@MorganPiek OFM Sport