Masuku the magician as Cheetahs make statement in fine win over Bulls

Cynical observers will point out that there have been a few false dawns when it comes to the Cheetahs over the past few years, but there can be little doubt that their 38-25 victory over the Bulls at Loftus on Wednesday evening was a big statement.

As much as the United Rugby Championship franchises have shown - at least on paper - that they can still select strong match squads despite having to juggle concurrent tournaments, there's a distinct sense that Hawies Fourie's charges are one of the favourites for the title.

They can solely focus on the domestic competition and boast an intriguingly decent squad.

That pedigree was definitely on show in this match.

Without ever really getting out of proverbial third gear, they managed to repel and later punish a home side that was its own worst enemy, especially when it came to discipline.

The second half, in particular, would've been concerning to Bulls coach Gert Smal as his charges were, a tad surprisingly, outmuscled up front and simply couldn't find a way to stop the stream of penalties awarded against them by Paul Mente.

If those indiscretions allowed the Cheetahs to claw their way into the lead - after trailing 19-21 at the break - then the Bulls' two yellow cards within an 8-minute period was the knock-out punch.

When rookie lock Reinhardt Ludwig was sent to the bin for being blatantly and lazily off-side, the Cheetahs almost immediately drove over for hooker Louis van der Westhuizen's second try from an attacking maul.

Moments later, replacement Springbok prop Lizo Gqoboka didn't exactly contribute much in terms of his experience by cleaning out an opponent with what was effectively a mini tip tackle.

Down to 13 men, the Bulls could only watch as the Cheetahs worked their way