Cheetahs can only get better
Cheetahs coach Naka Drotske labelled his team's 21-20 capitulation at home to the Lions as one of their worst-ever performances.
The hosts, who qualified for the play-offs last year, were tipped to win comfortably in Bloemfontein against an inexperienced Lions side who spent last season in the Super Rugby wilderness.
The Free State outfit dominated possession and had the majority of the opportunities, although their finishing let them down with a number of chances going begging.
They managed to outscore the visitors by two tries to nil, but the accurate boot of Lions flyhalf Marnitz Boshoff was unforgiving, with a late drop-goal handing his side an unlikely victory.
Drotske was furious after the match, after watching his team dominate the game without having the points to show for it, with ill-discipline costing them dearly.
“I am very disappointed, there is no getting around it. This was one of our worst performances to date. We had so many chances to score tries, but we never capitalised on it. It was very frustrating," he said.
Missed kicks at goal and crucial handling errors made life extremely difficult for Drotske's team, and the Cheetahs coach admitted that they have some serious work to do before facing the Bulls next week.
“I never once felt that the Lions threatened our goal line and yet we couldn't manage to beat them.
"What is needed is a huge mind shift by the players before we take on the Bulls this Friday in Bloemfontein,” he said.
SAPA
