Cheetahs on the chopping block as SA Rugby plots the way forward

With the future of the Free State side hanging in the balance, D-Day has arrived for the Cheetahs, who have been thrown at the mercy of the role players in SA Rugby.

The national federation’s general council is set to meet on Tuesday to vote on the future of the country’s elite franchises, with a potential move on the cards to increase the number of SA teams in the Pro14 competition, and the Cheetahs are believed to be in the firing line along with the embattled Kings.

Unable to pay players and staff, the Kings are already facing extinction after recently announcing they had begun the liquidation process.

And it is believed that a majority of 75% is required in order for SA’s four Super Rugby franchises – the Sharks, Bulls, Stormers and Lions – to join the European competition at the expense of the Cheetahs.

Refusing to go down without a fight, a protest march was held by Cheetahs supporters in Bloemfontein on Monday, which they called “Orange Monday” in support of the Free State side’s status as a top-flight franchise.

In their own defence, the Cheetahs feel they have every right to be annoyed with the prospect of losing as much as R30 million in television rights and sponsorships.

Apparently one of the requirements of the team’s main sponsor, Toyota, is that they should participate in an international competition.

It is also believed the Cheetahs could face a mass exodus of players should they lose their status.

The franchise has argued, however, that it has contractual rights to compete in the Pro14 until 2023, with the Cheetahs already feeling aggrieved after being kicked out of the Super Rugby competition in 2017 along with the Kings.

According to Media24 reports, the Cheetahs could follow the legal route if they are voted out of an expanded Pro16 and have appointed advocate Wim Trengove to assist them should they take SA Rugby to court.

Despite the protestations from Free State stakeholders, during the last meeting of SA Rugby’s general council in late August it was agreed in principle that the four Super Rugby franchises would make the move north and join an expanded Pro16 series, with the Cheetahs joining the Kings on the sidelines.

While the decision was not yet set in stone, however, the formal voting process was expected to make it official.

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