Super Rugby: Waratahs players admit they have to do better against Highlanders in quarter-final

A GOOD old-fashioned dressing down from the team’s senior players has left the Waratahs under no illusions about what’s at stake in Saturday’s sudden-death quarter-final against the Highlanders.

Waratahs players (l-r) Bernard Foley, Sekope Kepu and Alex Newsome with coach Daryl Gibson on Thursday. Picture: Toby Zerna

A GOOD old-fashioned dressing down from the team’s senior players has left the Waratahs under no illusions about what’s at stake in Saturday’s sudden-death quarter-final against the Highlanders at Allianz Stadium.

Coach Daryl Gibson and his staff have had their hands full fixing all the problems from last weekend’s abominable loss to the Brumbies but one job they haven’t had to do is read the Riot Act.

The players have already done that themselves in the wake of last week’s defeat, taking full responsibility after turning in one of their flattest displays of the season.

“Obviously the senior leaders were disappointed with the team’s performance. The team was really upset with that final performance,” Gibson said.

“The technical and tactical stuff is not really much of an issue, it’s really about our mental state and how we turned up for that game.”

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The Waratahs captain Bernard Foley said the players really did not need to be reminded that their efforts last week were not up to scratch but had been completely frank with each other about what went wrong.

“I don’t think it was anything unusual after a loss like that,” Foley said.

“I didn’t think there was anything out of place. I think everyone sort of knew we were off the mark and how we had to address it.”

Waratahs players (l-r) Bernard Foley, Sekope Kepu and Alex Newsome with coach Daryl Gibson on Thursday. Picture: Toby Zerna

Gibson said all the signs from training this week were that the players had their heads back in the right place so his biggest concern now was how to plug their leaky defence.

Incredibly, the Waratahs boast the best attack of any team in Super Rugby this regular season, racking up 557 points at an average of almost 35 per game, but also have the worst defensive record of the eight teams that made the playoffs, conceding 59 tries and 445 points.

The good news for the Waratahs is that the Highlanders let in 57 tries and exactly the same number of points, setting the stage for a high-scoring encounter on Saturday night.

“The Highlanders are a very clever team, they’re always trying different stuff, they’re very exciting to watch so a lot of our preparation is how do we prevent that. We’ve got an excellent attack so for us we’ve got to make sure or defence is solid and we don’t concede tries as well,” Gibson said.

“Both teams have got x factor all over the place, littered with guys who just want to work hard. There’s a lot of no-frills about the Highlanders and our forward pack so I think it’s a really evenly matched game for both teams that like to play positive rugby.”

With both sides renowned for their attack, Foley said the team that soaks up the pressure moments the best would inevitably come out on top and he believes that’s one area the Waratahs have the edge in.

Curtis Rona (left) and Sekope Kepu after the Waratahs beat the Highlanders in Round 14.

“Finals footy is a different style, it’s a real grind and a battle of the big moments. It’s the team that’s more composed and settled when those big moments come on that will probably prevail,” he said.

“We’re very confident in terms of understanding how we want to perform in those big moments. It’s not trying to recreate the wheel or do anything different. It’s just being settled and comfortable that and believing that our style of play, both attack and defence, will prevail.”

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Originally published as Super Rugby: Waratahs players admit they have to do better against Highlanders in quarter-final