Cheetahs chasing a hot start to Toyota Challenge

The Toyota Challenge is here – bigger and bolder, with three international rugby matches in one stadium on one match day.

On Friday the Airlink Pumas take on Black Lion from Georgia at 1.30pm in the opening match of the tournament, followed by a game between the Suzuki Griquas and Romania A at 3.30pm and at 6pm the Toyota Cheetahs take on Cartrack Lusitanos from Portugal. Gates open at 12.30pm. All the games will be live on SuperSport.

The first leg of the Toyota Challenge will take place at Toyota Stadium in Bloemfontein on 5, 10 and 14 June, before the second leg moves to Tbilisi, Georgia, in October.

Every match day will feature exciting fan activations and prizes, creating a full-day experience for supporters of all ages. Design and bring an eye-catching poster or banner to the game, and you could win R5 000 or guess the score correctly and walk away with R4 000 in cash. You can only win if you are at Toyota Stadium!

Fans can also look forward to a brand-new food court experience, with a wide variety of food and new beverage options that promise to offer something for every taste.

To make the event accessible to as many supporters as possible, ticket prices have been designed with families in mind. Early bird specials start from just R20 for primary school children and younger, R50 for adults on the open stand and R70 for the main stand, with one ticket giving supporters access to all three matches on a single day. Tickets are availible from the ticket office in Toyota Stadium or online at Ticketpro.

Toyota Cheetahs starting XV: 15 Clayton Blommetjies, 14 Prince Nkabinde, 13 Carel Jan Coetzee, 12 Jooste Nel, 11 Michael Annies; 10 Jaco van der Walt, 9 Rewan Kruger; 8 Sisonke Vumazonke, 7 Neels Volschenk (capt), 6 Ramon Uys; 5 Victor Sekekete, 4 Carl Wegner; 3 Aranos Coetzee, 2 Chucky van der Westhuizen, 1 Tielman Niewoudt. Replacements: 16 Juan Smal, 17 Dux Manyama, 18 Tebogo Nkosi, 19 Curtly Thomas, 20 Daniel Maartens, 21 Gideon van der Merwe, 22 Marco Jansen van Vuren, 23 Ethan Wentzel.

FIXTURES

Friday

Airlink Pumas v Black Lion (Georgia) @ Toyota Stadium, Bloemfontein (1.30pm)

Referee: Christopher Allison

Assistant Referees: Local

Television Match Official: Stephan Geldenhuys

Suzuki Griquas v Romania A @ Toyota Stadium, Bloemfontein (3.30pm)

Referee: Griffin Colby

Assistant Referees: Local

Television Match Official: Stephan Geldenhuys

Toyota Cheetahs v Cartrack Lusitanos (Portugal) @ Toyota Stadium, Bloemfontein (6pm)

Referee: Hanru van Rooyen

Assistant Referees: Local

Television Match Official: Stephan Geldenhuys