GOOD FORM: King Country halfback Kane Tamou came off the bench in last weekend’s loss to Horowhenua Kapiti. PHOTO SOFIA WOOD
RUGBY is a funny game. One week you can be on song and the next week, completely off. Some skills will be on, and others will be off, while the next week it can be the other way round and that’s what the King Country Rams have been finding this season. Once again, they found themselves on the wrong side of the score sheet with a 25-18 loss to Horowhenua Kapiti in Levin.
SUPERB LINEOUT Their lineout was superb, while their scrum which has served them well this season was exposed, leaving coach Craig Jeffries with plenty to ponder. King Country led 7-6 at halftime and scored again shortly after the break but let the home side back into it with penalties and soon found themselves chasing the game. It was one game coach Jeffries certainly deemed winnable and one you could almost say got away from the visitors.
OUTSCORED “We outscored them two tries to one and then I think we had at least three opportunities to score where we were held up over the line. “We’re just not quite finishing off our opportunities and maybe it’s a case of us not being ruthless enough but whatever it is we need to fix it fast. “We could easily be 3-1 and sitting up near the top instead we’re 1-3 and down near the bottom. They say winning becomes a habit and it’s looking like close losses are for us.” Jeffries said penalties at the wrong time ruined any chance of a victory.
POSITIVE PERIODS “We were getting into good field position or producing positive periods of play and then we’d get penalised, and it would relieve all the pressure off them. “There were far too many we gave away that were kickable and at this level, if you infringe, they showed you get punished, so we’ve got plenty to work on.” He was full of praise for their defensive lineout and some attacking play. “At times we look very good, other times we make silly errors and they cost us.”
DEFENDED WELL “We defended the lineout drive incredibly well in the weekend and hopefully can continue that. “However, our scrum was found wanting a bit and we will have to go back to the drawing board and sort the issue this week.” Again, the side came through relatively unscathed injury wise with only Dan Ross unavailable this weekend due to work commitments for the trip to Ashburton.
LOOKING AHEAD “Other than Dan we think the rest of the squad is good to go. We will have to sit down and decide who we take and what squad is best to combat Mid Canterbury. “They’re an incredibly good side at starting well and they have all season, where we’ve been the opposite of that so we need to make sure we get down there and start well or it could be a long day.” Jeffries admits that the top four and Meads Cup are probably out of the question now, but the side could still claim fifth spot and the Lochore Cup. “We will need a lot of results to go our way. The focus now is probably making sure we get in that fifth to eighth position and make sure we’re playing play off rugby.” He said the side had been training well and needed to translate that into Saturday’s game. Last weekend they introduced former Taranaki Bulls midfield back Lukas Hall and Jeffries was impressed. “He went well. He’s a big strong carrier and impressive. He will play a big part for us going forward. Meanwhile, before last weekend’s round, first five Quinn Collard led the Ian Kirkpatrick Medal race with six points.”
