Rugby Super Series: Cheetahs claw Buffaloes to kick off tourney on a high

Cheetahs' Samson Onsumo serve ball from the scrum against Buffaloes during the Rugby Super Series 2024 match at RFUEA. May 4, 2024. [Jonah Onyango, Standard]

Cheetahs sent warning shots to their rivals on Saturday after kicking off the 2024 Rugby Super Series with an important wis at the muddy waters of the RFUEA Grounds.

Two tries, two penalties, and a conversion were enough for the Cheetahs to dispatch the Buffaloes in the opening fixture which they won 15-5.

Quinto Ongo slotted in two penalties and one conversion to complement the two tries dotted down by Clinton Juma and Celestine Mboi.

Collins Indeche scored the sole try for the Buffaloes. 

Speaking after the game, coach Lawrence Buyachi praised his side’s resilience and execution, saying that whatever they worked on during training came through for his side.

“The game was good, it was what we were targeting, and it feels good to win. The conditions were tough too, we could not play according to our plan, so we had to switch things up a bit and we are happy we got the result,” said Buyachi.

Buffaloes head coach Maxwell Adaka blamed inexperience and unforced errors for their loss.

“Tough luck for us, we had a lot of errors. That coupled with the condition of the pitch means that we have a lot to work on in the next training sessions,” said Adaka. 

 “We have very young guys. Our aim is to give young players a chance to showcase what they can do. They actually did very well but at the end of the day, it was just tough luck for them. In Nakuru we will be much better,” concludes Adaka.