NSW could potentially go to the top of the Super Rugby Australian Conference this weekend, but coach Michael Foley isn’t satisfied the Waratahs are playing like a ladder-leading side.
If the Tahs account for Melbourne at Allianz Stadium on Saturday night as expected, and the Brumbies and Queensland falter against their highly-ranked South African opponents, NSW will likely lead the Australian teams at the halfway point of the season.
However, Foley warned the last thing the Waratahs can afford is to get distracted by their position on the table.
Foley is encouraged that things are slowly coming together, but said the consistency that’s required to win Super Rugby still eludes them.
“We haven’t talked about it (the ladder) at all. We’re really chasing an 80-minute performance … not what’s going on with the table,” said Foley at the Waratahs’ captain’s run on Friday.
“There’s been some good things in the last two games … there’s always times in a game where you make mistakes, but you shouldn’t allow the opposition to gain control for long periods of time.
“Certainly the longer we go the better we’ll get. Obviously each week we look to identify things that are holding us back and we need to keep chasing those things.”
Waratahs captain Benn Robinson said his side is focused on continuing the momentum from last week’s win over the Western Force for the Rebels meeting and then into next week’s crucial clash with the Crusaders.
Robinson said the ladder wasn’t relevant.
“That’s been our issue in recent weeks, we have a win and then a loss. If we can cut that out and string some wins together then it’s happy days for us,” he said.
“As a team you want that consistent performance all the time and even last week there were patches where we didn’t play our best rugby.
“If we can cut out that … that’s where the momentum is … and we’ll have more of an idea where the team is sitting.”
The Waratahs are still yet to finalise their bench, however it’s expected Rocky Elsom will take his place to make his return from a hamstring injury.
Medical staff will give their final assessment on the former Wallabies captain on the morning of the match, but Foley is confident.
“If we put him on the bench we’re backing him to come on at any stage of the game,” he said.
“I’m sure there will be periods of the game where he’s blowing, but he’s an experienced player and he knows the job he’s got to do and the role that he’s playing.”
Much of the talk pre-match has surrounded Rebels fullback Kurtley Beale’s first trip back to Moore Park to face his former team.
The struggling Rebels are winless against the Waratahs in three starts.
“We’ve got a fair bit of confidence, but they’re a great side, they’ve got some really quality players out there in James O’Connor, Beale and Mark Gerrard,” he said.
“They’re all seasoned-campaigners, even up in the front row with Rodney Blake and Nic Henderson as well.”
AAP bh/
