The Free State Cheetahs kept their semifinal hunt on track by grabbing a valuable bonus point via a 60-17 drubbing of the Leopards in Bloemfontein on Friday.

A Currie Cup rugby match is played over 80 minutes, not 44 minutes, but it would be easy to believe that those 44 minutes in which the Free State so overwhelmed the Leopards were the whole match.

True it was the heart of the match, the real meaning of the match the bearing that the match would have on the 2009 Currie Cup.

Free State were not flattered by the score. Such was their dominance in those 44 minutes that it could have been a lot, lot more. In those 44 minutes Free State scored 54 points but it took them half an hour to get into the lead after a good start by the Leopards in rainy Bloemfontein.

It is spring in the City of Roses and so the rains have started. It affected the game, but not as much as it affected the crowd. You could have had a "find the spectator" competition. The rain fell on Bloemfontein, great for farmers but not for rugby players and yet to the credit of both teams the way they played suggested that it was a fine evening. The television can lie and make gloom look bright and rain look fine, but the truth is that it rained on Friday night.

The Leopards simply took over the start of the match. Tewis de Bruyn, usually so ponderous, may just have played his best game of the night but he was the first man penalised - for kicking the ball in a scrum. Jean Tiedt goaled. That did not seem unlikely but he then went on to miss his next three penalty attempts, the last one from slap in front. The early missed pair did much to debilitate the Leopards.

Just after the penalty Cecil Dumond kicked a short grubber which Deon van Rensburg grabbed and set off on a weaving run. He was brought down but the Leopards kept the ball alive and bashed. Eventually it was the same Van Rensburg who burst over at close quarters for a try. Tiedt converted. 10-0 after 7 minutes.

But then Free State started muscling in on the game. They went on to do everything better than the Leopards. They outhandled them, outran them., outscrummed them and outlineouted them and they were the ones who won turnovers aplenty. The match was theirs.

First Jacques-Louis Potgieter kicked two penalties and then they scored. Outscrumming the Leopards produced the try as Riaan Swanepoel tried to play to Tiedt off a crumbling scrum and Frans Viljoen intercepted the pass at the base. The Free State attacked. Potgieter was effectively involved twice and his side bashed. Lionel Mapoe was close, WP Nel closer and then Potgieter darted at the posts. Tackled short he reached out and scored. In the scoring of the try he was injured and left, apparently for precautionary reasons, and was replaced by Louis Strydom. De Bruyn converted the try and Free State were ahead 13-10 after 31 minutes. That is how long it took Free State to get into the lead.

From a line-out on their right Free State attacked. Corne Uys broke, Hennie Daniller carried it on and then suddenly Ashley Johnson cut back, ran over Berndt Theissinger and scored. 20-10 after 35 minutes.

Now Free State were in search of a bonus point. They tapped a free kick and ran. The siren went and they were give a simple penalty but the cry went up "Speel, speel." They tapped and went but had to go into the changing room without further points. Still 14 in 9 minutes was good profit for energy expended.

A penalty gave Free State a five-metre line-out. They mauled and then Hendro Scholtz broke free to score. 27-10 after 44 minutes.

At this stage the Leopards were making horrid errors and Tiedt missed from in front.

Free State attacked wide going left. Johnson was powerful and clever, turning the ball inside to Viljoen who was knocked down by Theissinger but not held and was up to plunge over far out. 34-10 and a bonus point was in the bag. There was more to come.

Free State battered and bashed and Nel managed to squeeze over for a try. 41-10 after 57 minutes.

Jongi Nokwe was on and made his presence felt as he sped down the left. Only Dumond's diving tackle denied him a score. Then Daniller dummied and set Nokwe running but Danie Dames caught him.

Free State destroyed a Leopard scrum, taking a tighthead.. Johnson picked up going to the open side and gave to Strydom who, when he was tackled, gave to Meyer Bosman who lunged over. 46-10 after 64.

Even though they were pinned in their own territory the Leopards tried to move the ball but with nothing like the enthusiasm they had showed against the Sharks the week before.

The Leopards lost the ball near the half-way line, which was the furthest they had been from their own line in the second half, and the Free State attacked. JP Joubert threw in quickly from touch and there was tall, elegant Nokwe swerving out of a tackle for an easy try. He scores only easy tries. Perhaps it is because he makes scoring tries so easy. He has after all scored more tries in the Currie Cup this year than anybody else. De Bruyn was off at this stage and Strydom converted., 53-10 with 10 minutes to play.

A penalty turned into a line-out which turned into a maul and Free State were bashing again till Nico Breedt thrust himself over for a try. Afterwards he explained that everybody was so tired at that stage that anybody who could run could score. 60-10 with six minutes left.

Uys was over but had put a left foot into touch and then came the best try of the night.

Free State knocked on and Leopards, in their own 22, started to spin the ball wide. It came to Dames who moved out of Nokwe's range and sped down the field. Confronted by Daniller he chipped over the tall man, gathered a kind bounce and scored some 80 metres down the field from where he had got the ball. Niell Jacobs converted.

There was a little time left. The siren went and still Free State played on in search of yet another score.

Man of the Match: When they needed somebody to go forward, he was there. When they need a fullback, he was there. When a tackle needed to be made, he made it. When there was a chance of a try from clever placing and handling, he laid it on. When power was called for, he was powerful. All, it seems, that he cannot do is kick. And he does it all with a smile. Mind you his father, Archie, a sturdy Western Province League prop in his day, played with a smile. Archie must be so proud of Ashley Johnson, our Man of the Match, busby and all.

The Scorers:

For Cheetahs
Tries: Potgieter, Johnson, Scholtz, Nel, Viljoen, Bosman, Nokwe, Breedt
Cons: De Bruyn 5, Strydom 2
Pens: Potgieter 2

For Leopards
Tries: Van Rensburg, Dames
Cons: Tiedt, Jacobs
Pen: Tiedt

Teams:

Free State Cheetahs: 15 Hennie Daniller, 14 Lionel Mapoe, 13 Corne Uys, 12 Meyer Bosman, 11 Fabian Juries, 10 Jacques-Louis Potgieter, 9 Tewis de Bruyn, 8 Ashley Johnson, 7 Frans Viljoen, 6 Hendro Scholtz, 5 David de Villiers, 4 Nico Breedt (captain), 3 WP Nel, 2 Richardt Strauss, 1 Wian du Preez.
Replacements: 16 Coenie Oosthuizen, 17 Izak van der Westhuizen, 18 Lucas Floors, 19 JP Joubert, 20 Louis Strydom, 21 JW Jonker, 22 Jongi Nokwe.

Leopards: 15 Danie Dames, 14 Jovan Bowles, 13 Deon van Rensburg, 12 Berndt Theissinger, 11 Shuaib Samaai, 10 Cecil Dumont, 9 Jean Tiedt, 8 Riaan Swanepoel, 7 Bennie Adams, 6 Andre Swanepoel (captain), 5 Edrich Linde, 4 Bradley Mockford, 3 Barend van der Walt, 2 Marthinus van der Westhuizen, 1 Divan Kotze
Replacements: 16 Gavin Williamson, 17 Nardus Lombard, 18 Christo van Niekerk, 19 Wilhelm Koch, 20 Micheal Bondesio, 21 Niell Jacobs, 22 Nicky Kritzinger.

Referee: Mark Lawrence
Assistant referees: Archie Sehlako Fakumile Yamile
Television match official: Shaun Veldsman
Assessor: Dennis Immelman