NSW Waratahs lead Aussie Super Rugby conference as crucial games loom
LEADING the Australian conference halfway through the season, the Waratahs insist they will remain “hungry and humble” as they approach their season-defining run of games.
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LEADING the Australian conference halfway through the season, the Waratahs insist they will remain “hungry and humble” as they approach their season-defining run of games.
NSW leapfrogged Melbourne to the top of the Aussie Super Rugby standings last Saturday after their bonus-point win over Queensland, but in reality they’ve only played well in sporadic patches in all five of their wins this year.
Now, they face a quick turnaround before taking on South African leaders the Lions on Friday at Allianz Stadium, before a bye is followed by four New Zealand teams in a row.
However pretty the Tahs are sitting now, these next five games will make clear whether they’re genuine title contenders.
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“I looked at our squad in pre-season and I’m an optimist, I always thought that this group had huge potential,” Tahs hooker Damien Fitzpatrick said.
“We’re a work in progress. While there is still potential, we’ve got to unlock it by continuing to work hard, to stay hungry, stay humble, and make sure we’re doing the little things each week to get the results.
“We fought our way out of a pretty dark place when Queensland put good pressure on us. This group; we’ve got some really good, young talent.”
Fitzpatrick says the Tahs squad won’t get carried away by their winning streak, now at four, or that they’ve beaten all four of their Aussie conference rivals after the 37-16 win over the Reds at the SCG.
“There might be some bum taps in the next week or two but we’ve got to understand that by all means wasn’t a perfect performance and the guys are really keen to come in on Monday and strive to improve again next Friday,” Fitzpatrick said.
“While it’s nice to get those confidence wins - and we realise it’s important to top your conference and get those wins in order to progress later in the season - we’re not getting too ahead of ourselves because we understand that wasn’t perfect.
“We’re still striving for that 80-minute performance. We obviously are getting something right which is pleasing.”
The Lions, beaten grand finalists in the past two seasons and runaway South African leaders again this year, will test NSW in the set-piece.
“I think the Lions play very similar to the Reds,” said Fitzpatrick, who alongside lock Rob Simmons and forwards coach Simon Cron has ensured the Tahs lineout has become a key strength.
“I think they’ve got a really good lineout, some really big guys there.
“I know Simon, Rob and the other lineout leaders have been working overtime to make sure that each week we’ve got the right product for the team we’re playing and it’s pleasing to know that’s an area that we’ve improved on a lot because we realise it wasn’t up to scratch last year.
“We probably realise that because of that, teams are going to come after us and at the moment we’re managing to get the job done.”
Originally published as NSW Waratahs lead Aussie Super Rugby conference as crucial games loom
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