Waratahs coach Michael Cheika aiming to create a winning dynasty at the Super Rugby outfit

WARATAHS coach Michael Cheika is determined to create a long-lasting dynasty of success and attacking rugby at the club.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - JULY 28: Waratahs coach Michael Cheika looks on during a Waratahs Super Rugby training session at Moore Park on July 28, 2014 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images)

WINNING the grand final is not enough.

Waratahs coach Michael Cheika is determined to create a long-lasting dynasty of success and attacking rugby at the club that will outlive whatever they do on Saturday night in the Super Rugby decider against the Crusaders.

“For me as the coach, the things that will come in the I was I look at, it will be later,” Cheika said.

“If I can sit the grandstand in 10 years’ time and watch the team playing, and they’re still playing the same way with the same competitive spirit and I can say ‘I was a part of building that’, that is more the reward that I’m looking for.

“The short-term success is great as well, if you can get those it’s always a great night and a great thing for our supporters, and of course I want to win it, but it’s what happens after, for a coach.”

Long-suffering NSW fans are desperate to see their team hoist the trophy for the first time in the 19-year history of the competition -flooding ticket sales which puts this game on course to be the highest attended Super Rugby game in history (the record s 55,000 in the 2009 final in Pretoria, South Africa).

But Cheika has always had his eye on the longer term vision of what he is working towards at the perennially underperforming franchise.

“We need to go through another couple of years of being competitive and strong and laying that foundation, so our young players in our under-20s are seeing the sacrifices you have to make the hard work that goes into playing for the Waratahs going forward,” Cheika said,

“We’ve got to go out there on Saturday and make sure people see who we are, and we’re very clear with our identity, and play our style of game.

“We’re still very much a work in progress.

“It’s great if we win the grand final, but we’re still laying the foundations to put some real substance here at Waratahs for the short term and also for the longer term.

“The game is going to go on long after we’re gone, and our supporters are still going to be supporting the team.

“What we need to do is make sure those foundations are really well set in stone, really clear.

“What’s happened this year gives us a lot more self-confidence around what we’re doing. The fact we were able to finish in the top two, like we said we were going to do, would give us a lot of self-belief.”

Nearly 40,000 tickets for the final at ANZ Stadium have already been sold, with public tickets put on sale on Tuesday, and the game is generating enormous hype beyond traditional rugby fans.

NSW has not beaten the star-studded Crusaders in 10 years, but they aren’t frightened of that history.

“It was never my forte at school, history,” Cheika said. “Maybe the Ancient Greeks or something like that. No, I don’t think so. Really what’s the relevance?

“It’s not even worth addressing last week at this stage because that’s over.

“You’ve got to stop taking the pats on the back and reading all the good things, even though they’re nice, and just focus on the challenge that’s coming up on Saturday night.

“I’d be lying if I said we’re not really looking forward to it.

“Part of history has tended to lead (people) to that conclusion that we won’t deliver on the day.

“I suppose we’ve been told now for a while .... everyone thought we’d fall over at some stage.

“We’ll just go out there and play as we have all season, the best we possibly can.

“We’ll try and play really attacking football and see if we can cause them some trouble.”