Cheetahs upset Hurricanes

SYDNEY – South African newcomers Central Cheetahs knocked the Wellington Hurricanes off the top of rugby’s Super 14 with a stirring second-half comeback this weekend.

The Hurricanes relinquished their unbeaten start to the southern hemisphere provincial tournament and top spot to fellow New Zealanders Canterbury Crusaders after the Cheetahs claimed a thrilling 27-25 victory in Bloemfontein Saturday. The Cheetahs, admitted along with Australia’s Western Force to this season’s expanded competition, trailed by 15 points midway through the second half but produced 17 unanswered points to claim their second win in four games.Canterbury, the defending champions and five-time winners, took advantage of the Hurricanes’ slip with a clinical execution of fellow Kiwis Auckland Blues 39-10 in Christchurch on Saturday.The competition favourites retained their unbeaten season record with 39 unanswered points once they clicked into gear after trailing after nine minutes.Australia’s ACT Brumbies maintained third place, four points behind the Crusaders, with a 28-7 win over South Africa’s Golden Cats in Canberra on Friday.The NSW Waratahs welcomed back Wallaby back Mat Rogers as downed South Africa’s Coastal Sharks 31-16 in Sydney Saturday to climb to fourth spot.New Zealand’s Otago Highlanders posted their second win in South Africa this campaign after downing Western Stormers 30-15 and claim fifth spot in Cape Town Saturday.Waikato Chiefs compounded the early season misery of the Queensland Reds with a 35-17 victory in Hamilton Friday to move into sixth as the Australians slumped to their fourth straight loss.South Africa’s Northern Bulls dropped from fourth to seventh after having the weekend off along with bottom team Western Force.The Cheetahs’ success brought some cheer to South African rugby followers after heavy weekend losses by the Cats and Sharks in Australia and Stormers at home.The Hurricanes suffered a huge early blow when former All Blacks captain and centre Tana Umaga limped off.Stand-in captain and hooker Andrew Hore said: “The loss of Tana so early hit us hard, but at least we got a point out of the game.We have two more matches in South Africa and must regroup and rethink our strategy.”The Crusaders underlined their title claims with an impressive dismantling of Auckland, who began brightly but were strangled by the remorseless Canterbury pressure.Chris Jack and Brad Mika controlled the lineouts and the well-timed entries into the backline by fullback Leon MacDonald exposed defensive weaknesses in the Blues’ midfield.The tournament’s leading scorer Daniel Carter kicked six penalties in a match haul of 22 points and inspirational All Blacks’ open-side flanker Richie McCaw scored two tries.ACT looked set to polish off the Cats after leading 25-0 at half-time, but their anticipated fourth try for a bonus point never happened as the South Africans took the second half 7-3.Mat Rogers, who missed the opening three rounds as he grieved the sudden death of his father and former rugby league great Steve Rogers, came off the reserves bench after 50 minutes and made an immediate impact for the Waratahs.Otago showed greater composure and patience at the back as they built on a 17-10 half-time lead to claim victory over the Stormers at Newlands.The Waikato Chiefs’ victory over the injury-hit Reds put their season back on track after securing just one win from their first three games.-Nampa-AFPThe Cheetahs, admitted along with Australia’s Western Force to this season’s expanded competition, trailed by 15 points midway through the second half but produced 17 unanswered points to claim their second win in four games.Canterbury, the defending champions and five-time winners, took advantage of the Hurricanes’ slip with a clinical execution of fellow Kiwis Auckland Blues 39-10 in Christchurch on Saturday.The competition favourites retained their unbeaten season record with 39 unanswered points once they clicked into gear after trailing after nine minutes.Australia’s ACT Brumbies maintained third place, four points behind the Crusaders, with a 28-7 win over South Africa’s Golden Cats in Canberra on Friday.The NSW Waratahs welcomed back Wallaby back Mat Rogers as downed South Africa’s Coastal Sharks 31-16 in Sydney Saturday to climb to fourth spot.New Zealand’s Otago Highlanders posted their second win in South Africa this campaign after downing Western Stormers 30-15 and claim fifth spot in Cape Town Saturday.Waikato Chiefs compounded the early season misery of the Queensland Reds with a 35-17 victory in Hamilton Friday to move into sixth as the Australians slumped to their fourth straight loss.South Africa’s Northern Bulls dropped from fourth to seventh after having the weekend off along with bottom team Western Force.The Cheetahs’ success brought some cheer to South African rugby followers after heavy weekend losses by the Cats and Sharks in Australia and Stormers at home.The Hurricanes suffered a huge early blow when former All Blacks captain and centre Tana Umaga limped off.Stand-in captain and hooker Andrew Hore said: “The loss of Tana so early hit us hard, but at least we got a point out of the game.We have two more matches in South Africa and must regroup and rethink our strategy.”The Crusaders underlined their title claims with an impressive dismantling of Auckland, who began brightly but were strangled by the remorseless Canterbury pressure.Chris Jack and Brad Mika controlled the lineouts and the well-timed entries into the backline by fullback Leon MacDonald exposed defensive weaknesses in the Blues’ midfield.The tournament’s leading scorer Daniel Carter kicked six penalties in a match haul of 22 points and inspirational All Blacks’ open-side flanker Richie McCaw scored two tries.ACT looked set to polish off the Cats after leading 25-0 at half-time, but their anticipated fourth try for a bonus point never happened as the South Africans took the second half 7-3.Mat Rogers, who missed the opening three rounds as he grieved the sudden death of his father and former rugby league great Steve Rogers, came off the reserves bench after 50 minutes and made an immediate impact for the Waratahs.Otago showed greater composure and patience at the back as they built on a 17-10 half-time lead to claim victory over the Stormers at Newlands.The Waikato Chiefs’ victory over the injury-hit Reds put their season back on track after securing just one win from their first three games.-Nampa-AFP