WP rely on their system
WP have been rocked with numerous injuries in key positions, none more so than at fullback which has seen them lose Cheslin Kolbe to injury while Justin Geduldt and Seabelo Senatla are at the SA Sevens training camp.
Despite these key players being unavailable for at least the next match, WP assistant coach, Robbie Fleck has placed full confidence in the system they have implemented and not on individual brilliance.
"It's been a massive team effort and we haven't played like a bunch of individuals which has contributed to our success. The players coming in have the pace to expose defences in broken play.
"The mindset of counter attacks will never change, that's one thing we got right. Whether Kolbe is at the back or not, the mindset of the team will remain the same," he said.
It seems highly likely that Kolbe's boots will be filled by Dillyn Leyds, who signed from the Western Force a few months ago.
"Dillyn is a class footballer who knows the guys very well. He has slotted in easily and we are grateful that he has played a handful of games in Perth.
"He comes to us fit and healthy and the fact that he got some Super Rugby exposure is also great as he brings experience to our a young backline," he added.
WP have scored 19 of their 34 tries from unstructured play which has been a weakness of theirs during Super Rugby.
"We worked extremely hard on our counter-attacking during the pre-season, so we are obviously very chuffed with the improvement in that aspect of our game.
"We getting into the business end of the competition now and the mindset of the teams and gameplans will change.
"So we need to keep focussing on what's been working for us but also need to take into account that teams are going to approach the games a little differently now," he stated.
Despite the looming possibility of teams changing their style of play as the playoffs approach, Fleck is confident they would stick to what has been working as it has already brought them success.
"We can't move away from what's been successful thus far. It's important to not move away from that, but we will bear in mind that having a tight defence and a good kicking game is massively important in playoff stages," he stated.
By Tauriq Ebrahim
