RUGBY LEAGUE:
Every Opportunity Counts: Potter
Vodafone Fijian Bati coach Mick Potter is not carried away with their 4-2 win over New Zealand in the Rugby League World Cup quarterfinal on Saturday night.
Speaking to SUNsports yesterday Potter said there is a much bigger challenge when they face Australia in the semifinal on Friday night at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, Australia. The former Wests Tigers head coach indicated that they need to work on their defence and finishing as well.
“I see this as something paramount,” Potter said after a tryless quarterfinal clash.
The Bati team created history by securing their semifinal berth for the third time in a row.
The Fijians lost to Australia 51-0 and 64-0 in the 2008 and 2013 RLWC semifinals respectively.
“We will be focussing big on our defence as we need to defend well and stop them in the right places. Our attacks need to improve and we will be working on that as well.”
The Bati twice threatened the Kiwi tryline and camped in their half majority of the match but were not able to score tries due to wrong options, drop balls and passes failing to connect to the supporting players.
“We created a lot of opportunities but we did not capitalise as we did not finish it off. There were a lot of opportunities out there but we just needed to finish them and take our chances.”
Potter said they should be aiming at capitalising on every given scoring opportunities and chances against the Aussies after their big 46-0 win over Samoa in the first quarterfinal in Darwin.
“It’s paramount and it is so important that we do not miss them because Australia don’t give you many opportunities and when it comes you need to take them and score points.” Potter confirmed that some of the players suffered a few bruises but they would be reviewing their conditions later on in the week. The side are now in Brisbane awaiting Friday’s showdown.