John Mulvihill admits Cardiff Blues were not clinical enough to secure the win against Connacht on Saturday.
Tries from Owen Lane, Josh Turnbull and Jason Harries earned Wales’ Capital Region a bonus point at the Sportsground, but a win was enough for the Galway-based province to secure a top three finish in Conference A.
Head coach Mulvihill believes his side struggled to build momentum due to the weather conditions and was quick to wish Connacht all the best in the Finals Series.
“We’re disappointed not to come out of this game with the result, but both teams turned up physically to play today and there were some good skills on show out there,” said the Australian.
“Connacht were a little bit hungrier and won those 50-50s on the ground and stopped us getting momentum in certain periods of the game.
“It was difficult to get out of your own end when playing into that breeze and is probably something I haven’t seen in a long time.
“We played in similar conditions in Glasgow, and had a good first half today like we did there, but then struggled to deal with basic stuff like catching kick offs.
“We’re disappointed with a couple of decision and once again we’ll send some clips through to the referees’ boss, but at the end of the day Connacht wanted it a little bit more, were clinical out there and deserved to win.
“They’ve gone under the radar this season and hopefully they can go in deeper into the Finals Series.”
Cardiff Blues will take on Ospreys in the final fixture of the campaign, with a Heineken Champions Cup qualification play-off on the line for the sides.
Mulvihill is aware of Ospreys’ recent run of form but is excited for a memorable occasion at Judgement Day.
Mulvihill said: “Ospreys have hit some really good form in recent weeks and destroyed the Kings in the first half last night.
“They’ll come to Cardiff to use the ball, move us around and keep the ball up because of our jackals.
“We have to make sure we turn it around in time for Judgement Day.
“We’ve won every derby so far this season except one, and that was against the Ospreys, and if we can get five out of six wins in the derbies then we’ll finish the season happy and in the play-off for the Heineken Champions Cup.
“It would be good to have Ospreys at the Arms Park, because we’re a different beast there, but the roof will be closed, it will be fast and furious and the crowd should have a good spectacle.”