Cheetahs coach Fourie's drive stoked from first televised Currie Cup final in 1976

Cheetahs head coach Hawies Fourie achieved a lifelong ambition when his team won the Currie Cup for a seventh time with victory over the Pumas in Bloemfontein on Saturday.

The coach, who was under pressure to deliver the trophy after they lost to the same opposition in the semifinal last year, had reason to smile after the Cheetahs won the final 25-17 in front of 33,000 fans.

“It is special and it’s something that I've dreamt about since I was a kid,” said Fourie.

The first rugby match he watched on television also happened to be the first Currie Cup final to be beamed countrywide in 1976 when Free State won the trophy for the first time with victory over Western Province. A young Fourie was hooked.

“Since then, I became a Free State supporter, so to be in this position to win the trophy as the coach of a team I've been supporting as a kid is special,” he said.

Fourie served on the coaching staff when the Cheetahs beat the Golden Lions in the 2007 final in Bloemfontein. Now, with him holding the reins, they won the title he has long coveted.

The victory would have come as huge relief to Fourie, as it didn't just atone for last year's shock semifinal exit, but for what it did for the development of the team and the franchise.

Winning the Currie Cup gives credence to the Cheetahs' argument that they deserve a regular spot in European competition.

They were part of the Pro16 before being jettisoned, but they were belatedly handed a chance to prove themselves in the Challenge Cup this season before dropping out at the hands of eventual winners Toulon.

“It has been a tough few years. Covid-19 struck and then we were booted from Pro rugby and it was a really difficult time here. We were fighting. I got here in 2019 and I don't know if I brought the bad luck,” Fourie chuckled.

He is hoping their Currie Cup win advances their case for continued Challenge Cup inclusion with two yet to be allocated spots available for next season.

“I'm pretty sure it does I'm sure we'd be there again. It meant a lot to us. We picked up a lot of experience. Hopefully they want us to play in that competition again next season,” he said.

To make a more compelling case they had to win the final and the bounce of the ball certainly went their way. Crucially though, they put themselves in a position to capitalise. Their destroyer-in-chief was 39-year-old flyhalf Ruan Pienaar who pulled all the right strings.

“I think that was one of Ruan's best games ever,” opposing coach Jimmy Stonehouse said, heaping praise on the versatile player who has been capped 88 times by the Springboks.

“That what you get from Ruan,” said Fourie. “When we played Pro Rugby he was asked when we were abroad about his BMT (big match temperament) and that was three years ago. He's still going.

“He's really professional and the hardest worker in the team, at that age. That's why he can still play at a high level. He's an unbelievable person and rugby player. We are privileged to have the experience and quality of Ruan in our squad.”

Apart from Pienaar, Fourie also lauded the efforts and calm heads shown by senior players captain Victor Sekekete, Jeandre Rudolph, Robert Ebersohn, particularly in the last 15 minutes of the game. “I didn't see any of the ghosts of last year,” said Fourie in reference to the way in which they lost to the same opposition last year.

TimesLIVE