VIDEO: Tahs have problem 'between the ears'

REACTION: Waratahs head coach Daryl Gibson has urged his side to complete one mission at a time after their defeat to the Brumbies on Saturday.

The Waratahs’ 31-40 loss to the Brumbies means that they finished the round-robin phase third on the overall log.

With a playoff spot already in the bag, the Waratahs seem to found the fixture a bit of an additional unnecessary chore instead of an opportunity to cement themselves in second-place on the overall log.

The Waratahs now have to take on the Highlanders in a quarterfinal match in Sydney.

“The defeat didn’t hurt our confidence. It probably shows us that if we don’t turn up with the right attitude and intent, you’re going to get beat,” Gibson told reported after the defeat to the Brumbies.

“What you saw [on Satuday] was a team that was not focused on the job at hand and getting ahead of itself in terms of already being in next week.

“As a coach, that’s disappointing because it’s my responsibility to ensure we’re focused on the job at hand,”

When asked if Michael Hooper’s absence played a part in side’s defeat, Gibson said:  “[Michael Hooper not playing] wasn’t the factor, the referee wasn’t the factor… the factor was 15 men not turning up to be urgent.

“I think there are some soft efforts there.

“We’ll look at some of that tape and be disappointed with some of the effort there, particularly in the tackle and then post the tackle in terms of our urgency, to find our line again.

“Plenty to work on but I think a lot of that work’s between our ears,”

In terms of injury concerns, the Waratahs will again be without regular captain Hooper when they take on Highlanders.

While centre Kurtley Beale was taken off early after an illness-affected week, and Cam Clark is also under an injury cloud with a possible hip injury.

@rugby365com