'Nothing less than home semi,' says adamant Fourie

NEWS: Cheetahs coach Hawies Fourie says he will not be happy with anything less than four points in the bag when his team faces the Pumas in Nelspruit on Saturday.

Although the Cheetahs were held to a draw by Griquas, they are still only two log points behind the Sharks with two rounds to play, and still in the hunt for a home semi-final.

The Pumas are with their backs against the wall a bit after suffering a 24-17 loss to the Bulls last weekend.

While the defending champions are still third on the log, five log points behind the second-placed Cheetahs, it seems a grudge match is on the cards..

The Cheetahs head coach was adamant that he wants a home semifinal for the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein.

“I feel we need to get a home semifinal. We are good enough to do that. That’s the mission for this weekend. We need at least four points out of the game because that will secure a home semifinal and we won’t be satisfied with anything less,” the Cheetahs coach said.

Last year the Cheetahs lost the Currie Cup semifinal against the men from Nelspruit in the Mbombela stadium and Fourie says he has had nightmares about that game.

“That game haunted me for long, maybe too long.”

He agrees that his side has been struggling to find its form this season, making too many unforced errors at crucial times.

“Our error rate is too high. If we can cut down on the unforced errors, we will be more efficient and play to our potential.”

Five teams are still in contention to reach the final four with the Sharks (43) and Cheetahs (41) in prime position to end up in the top two spots and most certainly in the top four placings.

However, with the rest of the field so congested, and surprise results a weekly occurrence, no-one can afford any slip ups at this stage.