John Mulvihill insists his side are ready to "front-up" ahead of Friday's crucial Guinness PRO14 clash against Munster at Cardiff Arms Park. (KO 7.35pm)
Wales’ Capital Region have began the campaign with three consecutive defeats, which have all occurred in the dying seconds of the games.
Mulvihill revealed that his side have been brutally honest with each other following last week’s loss against Zebre, and says they are determined to rectify the situation when they welcome the Irish province to Cardiff on Friday.
“These guys will front up. Take them out there and they’re ready to fight. That’s what we want, we need it every week and I’m sure we’ll get it tomorrow night,” said Mulvihill.
“The review was pretty tough. It wasn’t for the faint-hearted. Coming out of that preview, they absolutely ripped into each other in training.
“It’s still ok to talk about it, but it’s the actions that count. And certainly what we’ve witnessed in training this week are the actions on-field.
“There’s no problem with honesty here and that’s something we said at the start of the season. There’s been a lot of truth in these meetings.
“The boys love playing at the Arms Park. They grow an arm and a leg here. They play with a lot more intensity.
“We played some really good rugby at times, but probably let ourselves down, physically, in both contests in Italy.
“That’s something we need to rectify. It’s not something that comes from the coach, or from the week of preparation. It internally comes out on the night. We’re looking to make sure we bring that physicality and intensity tomorrow night.”
Munster head into the side following last week’s thrashing of Ospreys at Irish Independent Park.
Mulvihill admits his side will have to be at their very best to compete with the three-times PRO14 champions, but says they will look to continue to play an expansive, attacking style of rugby.
The head coach said: “We’re playing against a team where we have to be at our best to win. The six-day turnaround will help with that because we haven’t had long to dwell on or review last week. We just have to get on with it.
“Munster were good last week but probably weren’t as good a couple of weeks ago, when they played Glasgow.
"We know they’ll bring the physicality, which is something we’ve lacked over the last couple of weeks, but something we’ll have to bring tomorrow night. Otherwise, it’s going to be a tough night for us.
“They have made some changes, but for us it’s about who turns up at the Arms Park tomorrow night.
“We’re not going to read too much into their team. They’ve got great players, but we’ve got really good ones in our squad too.
“It’s up to us to not stop playing during games. We had to keep going. When we get to 21-points, our next target should be 26-points.
“When there’s 10 minutes left and only four points in it, and you slow the game down and bring big, physical teams into it, then they’ll beat you through their experience.
“It’s up to us to keep the tempo in the game and keep the ball moving. Dependent on what the weather will be like tomorrow night, we’d still like to think we’ll be able to keep the ball moving and play with that tempo.”
Tickets are still available for Cardiff Blues' crucial Guinness PRO14 clash against Munster on Friday, September 21. Come down to Cardiff Arms Park and get behind the boys!