The Toyota Cheetahs claimed their first win of the Toyota Challenge by beating the Griffons in Bloemfontein on Sunday.

The young and fairly inexperienced Cheetahs team was in control of the game from start to finish as they managed to run in for seven tries in the 45-21 win against their provincial rivals.

The pleasing aspect of the game was that a lot of players who had been recovering from lengthy injuries made their return to the field and they included the likes of the captain Neels Volschenk, the winger Prince Nkabinde and hooker Marko Janse van Rensburg.

Franco Smith Jr on debut for the Cheetahs. Photo: Morgan Piek

The winger, Prince Nkabinde, marked his return from the injury he picked up against the Griffons in Welkom during the Currie Cup, with a brace of tries, while he could have easily scored one or two more.

The win did, however, come at a high cost with the hooker Vernon Paulo sustaining a suspected fracture in his foot or leg, while Litha Nkula is out with a concussion.

The match also allowed the non-first choice players to stake a claim at playing in Wednesday night’s game against the Emerging Ireland team.

The Cheetahs’ coach, Izak van der Westhuizen, told OFM Sport that he is happy with the performance of the young team.

“A lot of the guys had injuries, such as Neels and Prince, while Franco (Smith) just came in,” said Van der Westhuizen.

“It’s been an up-and-down year with injuries and it’s been difficult to get the younger guys on the field. That’s why today was a really good day for them to get out there, and I think that they really did well with the limited time we had.

Prince Nkabinde. Photo: Morgan Piek

“There’s definitely one or two that will be in the mix on Wednesday, and there were unfortunately one of two injuries that we didn’t expect either.”

Meanwhile, earlier on Sunday the Emerging Ireland team made it two-from-two in Bloemfontein as they held on for a 29-24 win against the Western Force. The Irish started like a house on fire, however, the Perth-based Australian team clawed their way back and came close to earning a late win.

Mac Grealy (Western Force) and Seán O'Brien (Emerging Ireland). Photo: Morgan Piek

The Cheetahs and Irish will battle it out on Wednesday night in the last game of the Toyota Stadium. For the Cheetahs this will be their last game of the season, and they will go on their mandatory eight-week break before assembling to prepare for the EPCR Challenge Cup in Europe.

Scores:

Cheetahs: Tries - Ulrich Stander, Marko Janse van Rensburg, Prince Nkabinde 2, Sisonke Vumazonke, Vernon Paulo, Rewan Kruger Conv. - Andell Loubser 5

Griffons: Tries - Cheslin Arendse, Willem van den Hever, Jandré de Beer Conv. - Duan Pretorius 3

OFM Sport/Morgan Piek cg