Chiefs comeback runs down Cheetahs (+pics)

Rugbyheaven

The Chiefs have staged a desperate second half fightback to claim a vital 22-20 win over the Cheetahs in Hamilton that has got their rollercoaster Super 14 campaign back on track.

Down 0-17 at halftime the Chiefs scored three second half tries to claim their second win of the championship and leave the Cheetahs still searching for their first victory after four rounds.

The Chiefs will be delighted with the result although there won't be total delight in the way it was achieved nor the way another potential bonus point eluded them.

In the end Stephen Donald had to step up to calmly land a sideline penalty for victory and defy the poor goalkicking form that has dogged him this year.

Chiefs captain Mils Muliaina was pleased with the fighting spirit shown by his side.

"The boys gutsed it out tonight," the All Blacks fullback said.

"They (Cheetahs) were very physical and they showed at 17-0 that we were out for a fight. I'm just glad we got there in the end."

Muliaina said coach Ian Foster remained composed during the halftime break.

"It was pretty tame from Fozzie, he said just be patient.

"We felt going into halftime that if we built some more pressure and scored first, it could go a long way towards getting a result tonight."

Muliaina said the hard-hitting Levave was proving himself as a player with a big future.

"Very strong. He's a young kid with a very good head.

"He's living with me so I'll get my wife to feed him a bit of steak tonight."

If ever there was a performance of two halves this year then this was it. The Chiefs were simply awful in the first half to trail 17-nil. But they patiently upped their accuracy and the rewards came in a satisfying second half.

They will be hoping this springboards them into action as they have another three home matches and a real chance to push on.

They have uncovered a young blindside of real potential in Faifili Levave. The draft player from Wellington had a rollicking match and outplayed his All Blacks team mate Sione Lauaki in terms of punishing running and accuracy at the breakdowns.

Hooker Tom Willis was the pick of the tight forwards for energy and effectiveness and slowly but surely his non-stop attitude started to rub off on those around him with locks Toby Lynn and Kevin O'Neill not far behind.

Brendon Leonard's return certainly provided some spark to the Chiefs attack although it once again took them a long time to find any sort of rhythm.

The Chiefs lost three of their own lineout throws in the opening 10 minutes in a worrying sign. From there they dropped passes, missed tackles and kicked aimlessly in another forgettable half full of inaccuracy.

Donald didn't help matters with his goalkicking blues continuing with two missed penalties from reasonably handy positions.

The Cheetahs were content to play simple rugby, going up the middle when the tough yards needed to be gained and then spinning the ball wide where centre JW Jonker had plenty of speed to work with outside him.

Jonker was the centre of attention himself at one stage when he was flipped upside down by a loose tackle from Sitiveni Sivivatu that may yet be revisited. In the meantime the Cheetahs managed to nail 10 points in the All Blacks' absence to add to his punishment.

There had been an early flash of magic when Sivivatu produced a trademark scything run to get within sight of the tryline. But his offload was dropped and that was the story for the Chiefs in the first spell.

They had to wait to the dying stages of the half before they even got close again and this time All Blacks halfback Leonard came up about one centimetre short with his lunge at the line.

In between the Cheetahs looked sharp. They were solid with their own possession and always dangerous with the frequent turnovers handed to them by the Chiefs.

They worked the ball from one side of the field to frequently stretch the Chiefs' defence and their reward was two good tries to wings Eddie Fredericks and Jonge Nokwe.

Conrad Barnard added the extras and goaled a penalty as well to give the visitors a 17-nil lead at the break.

Leonard made amends three minutes after the restart with another powerful surge at the line saw him helped over by flanker Tom Harding for a try that needed the TMO's confirmation. Donald goaled the conversion to give himself and everyone around him a much-needed boost.

You could sense the momentum starting to swing, especially with a question mark always hanging over the Cheetahs because of their demanding travel schedule.

They started running out of legs as the Chiefs started to fling the ball around. A sweeping movement involving hooker Tom Willis, wing Sosene Anesi and Sivivatu saw the flying Fijian nail a payback try. Donald closed the gap to 14-17.

Barnard landed a long-range penalty in the 52^nd minute to give the Cheetahs some breathing space.

But as time wore on it was the Cheetahs who started to lose their composure and with it the shape of their attack.

The Chiefs regathered and kept coming at them with new skipper Mils Muliaina at the heart of the revival as he moved forward from fullback to centre to increase his influence of his team and the match.

Some desperate Cheetahs defence repelled several attacks from the Chiefs but Callum Bruce managed to squeeze over with 13 minutes left to get the home side to within one point.

The bonus point try and the win were begging for the Chiefs. It was just a question of whether they had the cool heads to achieve it.

Replacement wing Lelia Masaga looked to be heading for that fourth try before he was cut down by a dangerously high tackle from Fredricks just metres short in the right corner. The South African was sent to the sin-bin and there were justifiable claims from the Chiefs for a penalty try.

But they were only awarded a penalty and no-one would have felt comfortable as the ball was handed to Donald for the attempt from the touchline.

But he stepped up to calmly defy his creaky form and land it to give his side the lead for the first time at 22-20.

Sadly they weren't able to get back into field position to push for the extra championship point.

But in reality they will simply be relieved to be back on track. Traditionally slow starters they aren't doing it easy again. But they do have eight points on the table and a chance to keep moving in the right direction, starting next Friday when they host the Stormers in Hamilton.

The Cheetahs will be bitterly disappointed. They knew they had to make a fast start and they managed that with some enterprising play. But fatigue - and a resurgent Chiefs outfit - looked to have caught up with them.

They now face the difficult assignment of taking on the Crusaders in Christchurch next Saturday night.

-with NZPA