Cheetahs: Smith sees the big picture
After disappointing defeats to the Rebels (14-36) in Melbourne and Reds (17-30) in Brisbane the prophets of doom were quick to dismiss the Cheetahs as also-rans.
And while Smith is not making any grandiose claims of play-off prospects, he is adamant there is progress and that he is looking at the "big picture" – not getting caught up in the emotion of a couple of defeats.
Smith, speaking to rugby365 from the team's training base Down Under, admitted they have a long, hard week of work ahead of them.
The revitalised Waratahs, who knocked over the South African conference leading Stormers last Saturday, presents arguably the Cheetahs' toughest test on tour.
"Our set pieces will be a priority," Smith said, when asked what they will focus on this week.
"We train with a specific goal each week and this week we will also work on being more in control at the breakdown.
"We have to clean and ruck much better."
The Cheetahs coach said the one area where there has been progress on a weekly basis is defence.
"Those who follow us closely will notice the improvement is there every week," Smith told rugby365, adding: "We have to keep in mind this is a young group and in this competition you get punished for every little mistake – unlike the Currie Cup and Varsity Cup, where your chances of recovery are so much better.
"People are getting impatient [with the defeats], but we knew from the outset that this is a young team.
"Now that we become more competitive, people start to expect us to win matches and I agree, there are some matches we should be winning.
"However, the mere fact that we put ourselves in a position to win games is already a compliment to the growth of this team.
"From a coaching perspective we are seeing results which will mean a lot for us down the line."
Smith said that to have a realistic chance of making the play-offs a franchise need a squad of 54 experienced players.
"To be a healthy union you need 54 quality players," he said, adding: "We don't have the luxury of being able to buy them or pay them, so we will have to 'create' them."
He said there will be some changes along the way and the closer they get to the end of the season they will blood some more players.
"That will allow us to tackle the Currie Cup with more experience.
"There is no denying that we want to move forward and give experience and opportunities to other players as well.
"The deeper we go into the competition the more important it becomes to keep your eye on the main goals.
"We have a bigger picture and a long-term plan.
"We see improvements on a daily basis and while the results are not there we do see improvements."
By Jan de Koning
@King365ed
@rugby365com
