Southern Kings – searching for only their second win of the campaign – had their moments either side of the interval but Jasper Wiese’s try, and three scores in the final 15 minutes from Clayton Blommetjies, Rhyno Smith and Louis Fouche put gloss on the winning scoreline.

Having come away with three wins in their last four Guinness PRO14 matches, Cheetahs have seen their Final Series hopes boosted and are now just five points behind second-placed Ulster in Conference A.

Robbi Kempson’s Southern Kings remain rooted to the bottom of Conference B following their latest defeat, 16 points adrift of Benetton in sixth and with a daunting trip to Munster next up.

Adams stars as Wales cruise past Italy

Wayne Pivac secured his first Test victory in charge of Wales with a dominant 42-0 win over Italy, and Cardiff Blues’ Josh Adams stole the show with a hat-trick of tries in Cardiff.

The 24-year-old – who was the top try-scorer at the 2019 Rugby World Cup – notched a first-half double after Dan Biggar had kicked the hosts into a nine-point lead, and the defending Grand Slam champions took a healthy 21-0 advantage into the break.