Reds score first win on the road

The Reds survived a late charge from the Cheetahs to record their first win on the road this season – a 18-17 triumph in Bloemfontein on Saturday.

The crucial score for the Reds came six minutes from time at the Free State Stadium – when a long Will Genia pass found halfback partner Nick Frisby, who calmly slotted a drop-goal.

It was the Reds' first win since their Round Two triumph over the Western Force and finally lifted them off the foot of the table – top above the Western Force and Blues and just below the Cheetahs.

With under a minute left on the clock Cheetahs flyhalf Joe Pietersen had a penalty shot at goal from 35 metres out, right in front, but saw his attempt bounce off the upright.

It was not a classic match. In fact it was error-strewn.

The game also produced a flurry of bad injuries.

Reds flank Curtis Browning suffered a knee injury in the second minute, then Heinrich Brüssow fractured his arm in the 14th minute. The Cheetahs also lost fullback Coenie van Wyk to a fractured ankle in the 25th minute and prop Coenie Oosthuizen to a knee injury just before half-time.

"I am so proud of my guys," said Reds skipper and Wallabies loosehead prop James Slipper.

"We have been waiting a long time for this victory.

"The rugby gods smiled on us at the death when the penalty struck the post, but a little luck was overdue this season.

"We did well at scrum time and that was no surprise as the guys have been putting a lot of effort into that aspect of our game.

"There has been considerable talk among us about starting each half well and those two early second-half tries ultimately made the difference."    

Cheetahs lock and skipper Francois Uys said the first-half losses of Van Wyk, Oosthuizen and Brüssow through injuries took its toll.

"We lost some key guys early on, but credit must go to the substitutes for a great effort.

"The Reds applied a lot of second-half pressure, pinning us back deep in our half, and that proved decisive."  

Pietersen kicked an early penalty and converted a scintillating try by left wing Rayno Benjamin to give the Cheetahs a 10-point advantage before Reds left wing James O'Connor narrowed the gap via a penalty.

An O'Connor break set up replacement forward Adam Korczyk to score a try and centre Samu Kerevi dotted down soon after.

O'Connor, who lost his place in the Wallaby squad due to continuous off-field indiscipline, converted the first and the Reds led 15-10 on 52 minutes.

A try by loose forward Johannes Prinsloo after a driving maul, which Pietersen converted, nudged the Cheetahs ahead again.

They retained the two-point advantage for 17 minutes until Frisby lifted the Reds off the bottom, a space now occupied by New Zealand's Blues.

Man of the match: James O'Connor showed his attacking prowess, Samu Kerevi displayed monstrous power with ball in hand, Will Genia is regaining some of his form, while Adam Thomson and Liam Gill made real nuisances of themselves. Heinrich Brüssow was great value while he was on the field, Ryno Benjamin showed his Sevens pace in scoring a great length-of-the-field try and Joe Pietersen showed his experience, although he butchered a sitter of a penalty which would have won the game for his team. However, Cheetahs No.8 Willie Britz was the most energetic of all the players and as effective as any of the other – winning our award.

Scorers:

For the Cheetahs:

Tries: Benjamin, Prinsloo

Cons: Pietersen 2

Pen: Pietersen

For the Reds:

Tries: Korczyk, Kerevi

Con: O'Connor

Pen: O'Connor

DG: Frisby

Teams:

Cheetahs: 15 Coenie van Wyk, 14 Cornal Hendricks, 13 Johann Sadie, 12 Francois Venter, 11 Ryno Benjamin, 10 Joe Pietersen, 9 Sarel Pretorius, 8 Willie Britz, 7 Johannes Prinsloo, 6 Heinrich Brüssow, 5 Francois Uys (captain), 4 Carl Wegner, 3 Coenie Oosthuizen, 2 Torsten van Jaarsveld, 1 Burrie Uys.

Replacements: 16 Stephan Coetzee, 17 Danie Mienie, 18 Nicolaas van Dyk, 19 Steven Sykes, 20 Tienie Burger, 21 Tian Meyer, 22 Willie du Plessis, 23 Michael van der Spuy.

Reds: 15 Karmichael Hunt, 14 Lachie Turner, 13 Chris Feauai-Sautia, 12 Samu Kerevi, 11 James O'Connor, 10 Nick Frisby, 9 Will Genia, 8 Adam Thomson, 7 Liam Gill, 6 Curtis Browning, 5 James Horwill, 4 Rob Simmons, 3 Greg Holmes, 2 James Hanson, 1 James Slipper (captain).

Replacements: 16 Andrew Ready, 17 Ben Daley, 18 Sam Talakai, 19 Marco Kotze, 20 Adam Korczyk, 21 Anthony Fainga'a, 22 Campbell Magnay, 23 Chris Kuridrani.

Referee: Jaco van Heerden

Assistant referees: Quinton Immelman, Lourens van der Merwe

TMO: Shaun Veldsman