DHL Western Province Head Coach John Dobson was pleased with the positive strides his team made in their comprehensive 57-14 victory against the Toyota Free State Cheetahs at DHL Newlands on Saturday.
The home side got back to winning ways with a nine-try victory which saw them climb to third place on the Currie Cup standings.
Dobson said that it was particularly pleasing to see progress in a number of areas that the team has been focusing on over the last two weeks.
“What was nice was the stuff we have been working on we saw a bit more of. The intensity in contact and getting through more phases, I thought our game management was much better as well.
“We were disappointed to concede two tries at the end, but the fact that we kept them from scoring so late in the game was good.
“The danger in that game with a 36-0 lead at half-time was that we would lose shape. It might not have been what the crowd wanted to see, but we wanted to shut it out.
“The way we pushed them back in defence in contact was very important for us and game management was also very important because those are probably the two areas where we let ourselves down against the Sharks,” said Dobson.
DHL Western Province captain Chris van Zyl said that committed defence had been the catalyst for the impressive attacking display.
“One thing that I have seen from this team is that I think we get a lot of confidence from our defence and when we defend well we get a lot of rhythm and confidence from that.
“I think in general the guys are running good support lines, which we have been doing all season, it is just nice to see that we were able to build on what we have been working on.
“I was pleased with the way the guys stuck to structure and built on what we have been working on, but we are not getting carried away,” said Van Zyl.