Challenge Cup result: Masuku strikes Cheetahs past Pau into knockouts

Cheetahs flyhalf Siya Masuku turned from villain to hero as his last gasp penalty gave his side a dramatic 9-6 (halftime 3-3) win over Section Paloise (Pau) in their Challenge Cup clash at the Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi in Parma, Italy on Sunday evening.

The final pool match for the two sides was a straight knockout match, with the winner progressing to the last 16, while the losers fell out, but a draw would also have been enough for Pau to sneak through ahead of the Cheetahs.

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It thus went down to the wire, as Cheetahs flank Friedle Olivier effected the vital turnover as the clock ran red, with Masuku then backing himself from distance and a tough angle to nail a perfect penalty to become the teams hero.

It was a great turnaround for Masuku, who although kicking three of four penalties to pick up all the points, was almost the villain of the piece having missed touch from penalties three times in the second half.

That included with just a minute left in the game after the Cheetahs had won a breakdown penalty on their 22m, needing to get up field into the Pau half and make a play for the win, only for Masuku to miss touch.

However he will be eternally grateful to Olivier for making the massive turn over with just seconds remaining to give him the chance to redeem himself, which he did in style.

The first half was an incredibly scrappy affair between two sides who seemed to be afraid to lose, and thus were unable to string together any meaningful phases as they both made a slew of errors.

The Cheetahs however managed to take the lead in the 23^rd minute as Masuka converted a penalty to put them 3-0 up, only for Pau flyhalf Thibault Debaes to relay six minutes later with one of his own to level the scores.

A yellow card to Cheetahs eighthman Jeandre Rudolph in the 37^th minute after multiple penalties then reduced them to 14-men.

Both flyhalves had a chance to claim further points in the final few minutes, but Debaes was short from the resultant penalty after the yellow, and Masuku pulled his shot at goal on the halftime whistle with the sides going in level pegging.

The second half saw Pau take the lead for the first time in the 47^th minute as Debaes slotted his second penalty.

The Cheetahs then went looking for a try as they twice set-up lineouts in the visitors 22m, but they tried a training ground move with the first which didn’t come off, while they were penalised for sealing off the maul with the second as they wasted both opportunities.

With time ticking down the next time the Cheetahs received a penalty in kicking distance they went straight for posts, with Masuku levelling the scores in the 68^th minute.

 That led to the final moments drama as the Cheetahs confirmed their place in the knockouts, having come into the competition as an invitational team.

Scorers

Cheetahs: Penalties – Siya Masuku (3)

Pau: Penalties – Thibault Debaes (2)