Waratahs complete first step of Mission: Improbable
ByReuters
Published 14/06/2015 at 01:21 GMT
New South Wales Waratahs coach Michael Cheika has urged his players to remain firmly focused on their bid to become the first Australian team to win back-to-back Super Rugby titles over the two weeks until the semi-finals.
Eurosport
Image credit: Eurosport
The Waratahs ensured they would skip the first round of playoffs with a 31-5 victory over the Queensland Reds on Saturday to earn second place in the final regular season standings behind the Wellington Hurricanes.
Their form has been less impressive this year than last, however, and they only retained the Australian conference title when the ACT Brumbies lost to the Canterbury Crusaders in Saturday's first match.
"It was always going to be more difficult for us this year, we knew that from the start, we probably had to earn it more," Cheika told reporters after the match at Sydney Football Stadium.
"That's only the first step, though, and now we've got to take the opportunity we have and do our best."
Last season, the Waratahs finished top of the standings, winning the Australian conference by 13 points before beating the Brumbies and Crusaders in Sydney to lift their first title.
This year, a trip to New Zealand to face the Hurricanes looms if both sides get through their semi-finals and Cheika said now was no time to take the foot off the gas.
"We're not going to have a week off, or anything like that," he added. "We'll stayed focused on footy, there's no need to have a holiday now.
"We know we've got to be prepared because it's improbable, no Australian team has gone back-to-back.
"It's there for the Hurricanes because they finished first, it's improbable for us because no one else has done it.
"So it's about staying very focused on how we approach that first match and nothing else."
The extra week off means the Waratahs will get Wallabies winger Rob Horne and hooker Tolu Latu back from suspension for their last four clash, while Cheika was confident centre Kurtley Beale would recover from a strained quadriceps.
"He did it having a kick at goal, it's a little strain," he said. "Could we have pushed? I don't know, maybe. He'll work hard to get fit for the next game."
Scan me
Related Topics
Share this article
Advertisement
Advertisement