Fearn offers tips on leaky defence

When the man offers and has done the time - you accept what he says.
A defence that's leaked five tries in the past two matches has been the focus of the Wanganui Meads Cup rugby team's preparation this week, with former Western Force S14 defence coach Tommy Fearn offering advice and his thoughts on how to strengthen Wanganui's defensive line going into today's first Meads Cup match with Poverty Bay at Cooks Gardens.
As Wanganui captain Matt Gilbert puts it: "We've given away those five in the past two matches and we're going into three matches against teams with much better attacks than those guys."
Fearn, now coaching with Honda in Japan and stationed in the motor-racing city of Suzuka, was visiting family last weekend and - not surprisingly for someone who played 47 matches for Wanganui in the early 1980s - found his way to Cooks Gardens to watch the Wanganui-Thames Valley match.
It seems that after the match, with the aid of various glasses, salt and pepper shakers etc in a place where people meet to chat and spill the odd drop, that Fearn, Wanganui coach Guy Lennox and manager Chris Back spent an hour or three sorting out systems - and the end result was having Fearn run the players through them on Thursday night.
"It's all about setting the defensive line quicker," said Fearn. On Saturday they were probably a little slow to get off the line, and at getting a connection between the inside and outside defenders.
"There was not enough communication - it's about getting the line set quicker so it can be more effective in the tackle, which will then create a slower tackle contest," said Fearn.
Got that sorted out?
Gilbert says they have.
"Thursday night was a little bit flat all round because we had a lot of talking to do with that new defence stuff - but I thought we finished quite well. That team run was sharp considering it was hosing down.
"Giving away the five tries was the concern, and to be honest these next three teams are among the better attacking teams in the competition. We've been leaking tries, not because they're putting pressure on us but because we're making mistakes."
Last word to Fearn.
He says it's still a matter of head space in rugby. "It's all about skill. You can have all the patterns in the world but if you don't have the basic skills, but it may just have been one of those days.
"They were a different group in the last 20 minutes and they just didn't learn that at halftime.
"Then they were a cut above Thames Valley, and I don't think it had much to do with the personnel change either - they started to run better lines, kept the ball for longer and that built pressure in defence."
And that last 20 minutes is what Wanganui has to do from the start today.