Cheetahs maintain perfect Currie Cup start after bruising WP battle in Bloem

The Cheetahs maintained their perfect start to the Currie Cup season, beating Western Province 24-17 in a frantic and scrappy affair in Bloemfontein on Wednesday night.

SCOREBOARD | Cheetahs 24-17 WP

The result means that the men from the Free State have now won all five of their fixtures in this year's tournament, solidifying their spot at the top of the log. 

WP, meanwhile, stay fifth, outside of the playoff places. 

This match was an arm wrestle for large periods and far from comfortable for the Cheetahs, who had been the form side in the competition heading into the contest having thrashed the Lions 66-14 in their last outing. 

Western Province, however, were up for this from the very beginning and their defence, in particular, was impressive. 

There was no shortage of intent from the sides in the opening period, but a combination of two clinical defensive systems and an inability to hold onto the ball at key moments meant there was nothing in the way of try-scoring opportunities in the first half. 

It took a 58-meter penalty from Kade Wolhuter in the 16th minute to break the deadlock, and that contribution from the flyhalf was the only score in the first 40 minutes as WP went into the break 3-0 up. 

Wolhuter then missed a penalty from about 50m out shortly after the restart, but the game got the spark it needed just a couple of minutes later when Frans Steyn received a kick and went charging up the field with a strong run. 

The Springbok veteran drew the penalty from the WP forwards on the ground, and the Cheetahs opted against a shot at goal and instead set up an attacking lineout. 

A smart, well-worked dummy maul off the lineout saw hooker Marnus van der Merwe go over. Ruan Pienaar converted expertly from the left