THE Berry Magpies got their 2015 Group 7 rugby league campaign off to a slow start at home last week.
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The Magpies lost their home opener 36-20 to a determined Gerringong Lions outfit last Saturday.
But Magpies captain/coach Nathan Benney said his team will learn a lot from last weekend’s loss.
“During the first 20 to 30 minutes last week, Gerringong were far too good for us,” he said.
“We weren’t able to dominate the ruck liked we had hoped and the game was way too fast for us.
“It played right into the Lions hands, by playing the ball quickly and not allowing our defensive line to get set.
“The rolling fast pace took the steam out of us and we struggled to get back in the game after that.
“We worked extensively on our defence at Tuesday’s training session, which will hopefully see us turn it around this weekend.
“A week is a long time in football and we hope to turn around our fortunes this week.”
Benney hopes the more time his team spend on the paddock together will continue to build their cohesion.
“Although we have a similar backline to last year, we have a new look forward pack and halves combination,” he said.
“As such, we were caught out over running the ball on a couple of occasions.
“One thing we can control though is doing the little things right.
“Winning the ruck, minimising turnovers and penalties and having strong kick chases can go a long way to winning a game of footy.”
Two players in particular caught Benney’s eye in his team's round one loss.
“Mitchell Liddicoat had a big game for us in the second row last week and I have high expectations for him for the rest of the year,” Benney said.
“There is no reason he can’t be one of our standouts all year.
“I’ll also be looking to bench front rower James Dinnie to have another strong impact for us going forward.
“All the boys are determined to not drop our first two games of the season and we are confident we can avoid that happening this weekend against Jamberoo.”