Dave Wessels relieved destiny still in Rebels’ hands

Melbourne coach Dave Wessels was blunt in his assessment of Friday night’s 37-23 loss to the Reds, but optimistic to the road that leads ahead.

“Frustrated” was the key word from Melbourne Rebels coach Dave Wessels, as the Rebels commenced their preparations on the training track ahead of the Highlanders this Saturday in Dunedin.

The Rebels returned to Gosch’s Paddock following the 37-23 loss to the Queensland Reds on Friday night, knowing that destiny is still in their hands as they chase a first-ever Super Rugby play-offs appearance.

More than 48 hours after the loss, the Rebels coach was blunt in his assessment of Friday night’s performance, but optimistic to the road that leads ahead.

“I don’t think we played well at all (on Friday),” Wessels said on Monday afternoon.

“I think figuring out what’s the difference between that performance and the performance we put in the week before (against the Waratahs) is the frustrating bit.

“Credit to the Reds too because they force you into the playing the way you don’t want to do.

“I feel that we’ve got everything we need to win this weekend, it’s just recognising the gap between last week and the previous week and if we can do that and understand what we need to change, then we’re going to go good.

“The great thing is that the boys are very motivated to go well this week. There’s been some good energy this morning and we just need to carry that through the week.”

The Rebels could recall some experience in the form of captain Adam Coleman and halfback Will Genia, against a Highlanders side that has shared a similar recent path to the Rebels, with two losses on the bounce.

Wessels said that whoever runs out on Saturday will need to shoulder the responsibility of minimising errors in the Rebels’ game; ultimately what has cost them in consecutive weeks against the Waratahs and Reds.

“The fact that guys are disappointed is actually pleasing, but we’ve got to get over that because we’ve got a very winnable game this weekend,” Wessels said.

“The bigger issue is that in the game (against the Reds) we probably passed the monkey a bit. Instead of taking the responsibility of their roles at the time, (the players) moved pressure onto someone else or did things that they shouldn’t have done.

“We’ve got to understand that our attack looks a certain way and in particular our defence looks a certain way.

“Our job is to repeat that week after week with an intensity that we’re proud of. We just didn’t do that on Friday night.

“The Highlanders are a really good side with a lot of experience of winning, but I think we can beat them for sure.

“We’ve got to play our best rugby. We’ve got to play the equivalent of our 9.9 (seconds) in the 100m (race).

“If we do that, I think we’re in with a real shout.”

Wessels spoke as the club hosted its annual Little Rebels Clinic that saw nearly 400 children showcase some impressive running skills with the Rebels playing group on Gosch’s Paddock.

“One of the things we spoke about right from the start of the year is really re-engaging with the community,” he said.

“Ultimately, that’s why we’re here, we want to play for the community and we want to be a part of them and we want them to feel proud of us.

“To spend time with them like this…is excellent. There’s a couple of future Rebels there for sure.”