Cheetahs aware they have their backs to the wall

The Cheetahs are well aware that their goal of reaching the last 16 of the European Challenge Cup hangs in the balance.

A second half surge from the Cheetahs was not enough to overcome the Scarlets on Saturday and left the men from Bloemfontein needing wins in their next two fixtures.

Cheetahs backed into a corner

Cheetahs coach Hawies Fouries insists they aren’t in the competition to make up the numbers.

“We are not in the competition to watch rugby and merely compete, we want to go through to the final 16,” Fourie told reporters after the match according to Rugby365.

“But in order for us to do that, we have no choice but to win our next two games, which include another encounter with the Scarlets.

“We were lucky that the weather played along, but it will be a different story in Llanelli.

“We have to fix the mistakes we made, especially in the first half. At times I thought we did well, but we made too many mistakes. The Scarlets have an excellent kicking game and they put our backs under a lot of pressure. There is a lot we can learn from Saturday’s game.

“We played into their hands and were too slow at the breakdown. I also think the intercept try did not help us. But the team showed character to claw their way back into the game by scoring three tries and claiming a bonus point.”

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Strange calls

While the Cheetahs let the game get away from them, Fourie believes some strange refereeing calls hampered his side’s bid for a grandstand finish.

A late call to reset a scrum when the Cheetahs looked to have the edge was questioned.

“We pushed them back and Jeandre [Rudolph] would have scored, but the referee called a reset.

“I thought that was a strange call,” Fourie said.

The Cheetahs take on the Scarlets again in Wales in what will be a must-win match for them next up.