Umaga steers clear of bemoaning ref

Umaga agreed that there were a few key calls in the match and that his side had expected things to be difficult for them.

"I'm not allowed to answer questions about refereeing decisions," Umaga said when questioned about his feelings on the way referee Jaco van Heerden performed.

"We have a process we go through for that and we will definitely do that to make sure something is done about that. There were some key calls, you saw how difficult it is to play with 14-men. We spoke about that beforehand and it wasn't like we didn't expect it but that's the way it goes."

The result now means that the Blues will need to rely on other results going their way while they pick up maximum points from their remaining matches to have a chance to qualify for the playoffs.

"It's tough for us now, we had to win all our games [prior to the Stormers defeat] to have a chance to make the playoffs. We still have two games before the break where we want to finish really well.

"We can't dwell too long [on this defeat]. The competition is set up the way it is, it is not ideal [to have more points than other teams but not qualify for the playoffs] but we know that we need to score enough points and win games against crucial teams from this point," he added.

Despite them possibly missing out on a playoff spot, Umaga remains upbeat about the progress his players have made since he took over the head coaching role.

"The growth of our team and players has been great to see but in the end, we all judged on results. We want our players to grow and progress but we are not getting the points on the tournament board.

"There is no pressure for my position, at east I don't feel it. There are only two kinds of coaches in this game. Those who have been sacked and those who are about to be sacked. So if you live by that mantra, it makes it a bit easier. 

"Those things are out of my hands. I have to prepare the guys the best way I can and get the results that we need, which I haven't so far," he added.

Blues captain James Parsons echoed his coach's sentiments.

"We progressed well as a group and if we can put the last three games to bed, we will give ourselves a chance [of qualifying for the playoffs] if [other] results can go our way," Parsons said.

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