Cheetahs coach Frans Steyn says he needs to “sort some stuff out” after Friday night’s defeat to Black Lion in Bloemfontein.
The hosts scored two late tries through Marko Janse van Rensburg and Prince Nkabinde to set up a dramatic finish, but Cohen Jasper’s missed touchline conversion handed the visitors a 39-38 victory.
“We can’t keep on saying the same things every time,” Steyn said. “I’m taking this one on the chin. I need to sort some stuff out, and we need to do it very quickly. I don’t feel we’re getting better, and we have to make some changes in how we do things during the week.”
While the Cheetahs showed glimpses of quality, Steyn said they failed to turn those positives into a complete performance.
“It’s a team sport. Whatever decision the guys take, I’ll back them 100%. I don’t mind going for the corner or whatever option is on. I think we had it in us to win and to put in a good performance. But we didn’t do that tonight. We need to figure out how to get what we do at training onto the field on game day.”
REPORT: Cheetahs edged by Black Lion in Bloem thriller
Steyn pointed to soft moments on defence and costly errors as decisive.
“When we get something positive, we need to fight harder to keep them out. If everyone makes a mistake, that’s 15 or 23 errors in a game – it’s too much. Our mistakes cost us, and they turned them into points.”
The former Springbok back admitted he felt a personal responsibility to help turn things around.
“I’m letting the team and the fans down. I’ll sort it out this week, and hopefully next week we’ll give a better performance. We have to. We keep getting these opportunities to show why we should play in the URC – we can’t keep wasting them.”
