‘Not perfect yet’ admits WP coach

WESTERN PROVINCE assistant coach Norman Laker says defence will be the difference when they square off with the Blue Bulls in their Currie Cup semi-final meeting on Saturday.

Province downed the Bulls 34-7 in extreme conditions at Loftus at the weekend and scored four tries in 40 minutes to cement their spot at the top of the standings.

The match was called off after half-time due to the threat of lightning.

They conceded only one try against the Bulls in the wet match, and their defence, in general, have not let them down. So it isn’t an area WP should be too worried about, as they’ve conceded fewer points on defence (113) than all the other teams this season.

And while defence will be a priority, Laker also said they won’t change their attacking approach.

“We will continue with how we play. It is who we are and what we stand for,” he said.

“Obviously, the other part is that we must make sure our defence is perfect in these types of games. If the opposition does get an opportunity, we must make sure they do not score. That will be the difference,” he said.

“We pride ourselves on our defence. I must compliment the guys about how hard they work on and off the field. We are not perfect yet. We still conceded one try this past weekend so we still have quite a few things that we have to improve before Saturday.”

And while getting four tries in 40 minutes – especially in those conditions – would be a big confidence boost for any team, the WP defence coach needed no reminding that this is finals rugby.

“The big takeout is that we only conceded the one try in the 40 minutes.

“If we can keep that up for 80 minutes, I will be a happy man. It is going to be tough because a semifinal is never the same as a league game,” Laker said yesterday.

“It is a wonderful opportunity that you get. You only get one opportunity to play and you must make full use of it. There are no second chances in this game.”