Director of Rugby Phil Davies insists Cardiff Blues must find consistency in performance if they are to get the winning habit as they prepare to face champions Leinster in the RaboDirect PRO12 at the Arms Park on Thursday night (kick-off 8.05pm).
Blues face the powerful Irish province – who sit second in the league table – on home soil keen to bounce back immediately from the late defeat to Glasgow Warriors last weekend.
Davies admits there was been a huge sense of frustration for players and coaches alike after the manner of the loss to Glasgow.
But there is no better challenge to face than Leinster at home as Blues look to produce an 80-minute performance to fire the bid for a top six finish this season.
“The enthusiasm during the week from the players is fantastic and the enthusiasm during the game is excellent, but we can’t quite get that winning habit yet,” he said.
“We have a lot of young players, but we can’t use that as an excuse. There have been a few changes as well due to injuries too, but we have not spoken a lot about that either.
“We have just tried to get better week in week out and build the wins. These experiences aren’t pleasant, but the amount of work that is going in from the players and the coaches will bring success.
“I hope within the next 18 months we will have a bit of settled period with the coaches. Dale (McIntosh) has been our third Defence Coach and Paul (John) has been our second Attack Coach in 18 months, so hopefully now we can settle down and get that consistency.
“The top six has been our aim for the last few weeks. We have talked about it and now the players have to cope with that expectation, go on the field and make sure we win,” he added.
“We picked up a bonus point against Glasgow, which is better than nothing, but it’s a small consolation because if we had got the four points we would have been close to the Scarlets.
“We will keep going until the end of the season and this week our aim against the champions, who are a quality team, is to perform well for 80 minutes and come away with a win.”
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