Adam Ashley-Cooper says Waratahs must make Sydney a ‘fortress’ for visiting teams

ADAM Ashley-Cooper believes Waratahs fans are finally returning to support them, and says NSW must keep Sydney as a “fortress” for visiting sides.

Adam Ashley-Cooper in action for the Waratahs against the Blues at Eden Park.

ADAM Ashley-Cooper believes long-suffering Waratahs fans are finally returning to support the team, and believes his side must keep Sydney as a “fortress” for visiting sides if they are to make the finals.

NSW is averaging less than half the crowds they used to draw just five years ago, but a revitalisation of their game under attack-minded coach Michael Cheika has been positively received by most of the Waratahs’ faithful.

Star centre Ashley-Cooper, who this Saturday resumes one of the great rivalries in rugby against fellow No. 13 genius Conrad Smith of the Hurricanes, is feeling a shift in attitude despite their poor crowds and mixed results so far in 2014.

“We’ve started to create a fortress, and we’re getting a lot of our support back,” Ashley-Cooper said.

“I feel like our fans are starting to come back.

“We need to use that and build on it so it is really difficult to travel here and win.

“In achieving our ambition of finishing in the top two or being semi-finalists we’ve got to win at home.

“With the missed opportunities we’ve had in trying to win away, including last weekend against the Blues, we’ve got to ensure we keep that home record going.”

News_Image_File: Waratahs centre Adam Ashley-Cooper is tackled by Francis Saili of the Blues at Eden Park.

Wallaby centre Ashley-Cooper has not yielded the success he wants against Smith, who has been a rock of the All Blacks backline for nearly a decade.

“He is certainly someone I respect, he is a decent bloke off the field and a decent player on it,” Ashley-Cooper said of the Hurricanes captain.

“All of the games I’ve played against Conrad have been heated clashes, not one-on-one but more in general with the rival backlines.

“He has been part of some pretty special Hurricanes backlines over the years, and part of the All Blacks backline which is the benchmark in the game.

“He is the lynchpin of the Hurricanes backline.

“Generally they are a great attacking backline, with Smith running things.

“Julian Savea is a very powerful ball-runner, we will really have to focus on limiting his influence.

“Corey Jane is a dangerous player. They are a class, attacking backline.

“We’re certainly very similar in that we like to throw the ball around and play with width. They play a similar shape and style.”

News_Rich_Media: Catch all the highlights from Eden Park where the Blues host the Waratahs.

What the sixth-placed Tahs must fix this week against the third-placed Canes is their final-pass options, which have cost them dearly in recent games including last week’s defeat to the Blues at Eden Park.

“For us, those tries come down to whether we’re executing,” Ashley-Cooper said.

“It was similar to the Force loss, there were a lot of missed opportunities and it just comes down to the fundamentals of the game; catching and passing.

“Hopefully we can rectify that through a week of training, it is really just getting the finesse.”