By PETER JESSUP
Morale at the St George Illawarra Dragons is not as low as some might think, according to skipper and Kiwi prop Craig Smith.
All that is missing is the confidence to throw try-scoring passes.
"We're still lacking a bit in terms of confidence, wondering if those passes are going to stick," Smith said. "But I thought we had a decent team commitment against the Tigers last week and I don't reckon we're that far away from coming good."
Smith, a 28-year-old hard-man from Kaitaia now resident at Sandon Pt, Wollongong, is relaxed. He has just had his second surf of the day, stopping to feed partner Nicole's horse on the way back.
The Dragons, like Auckland, have had a horror start in the NRL with one win from six games and one crushing defeat, to Melbourne the same weekend the Warriors were thrashed in Canberra..
"We're a side that play well on confidence. Our confidence and morale is down due to that hiding - had our confidence been up we would have beaten the Tigers," Smith said.
"We're just a couple of passes away from a win and it may well happen on Saturday. We've been second-guessing each other too much. Blokes went out to redeem themselves last weekend and as individuals they did. Now we need to put it together as a team."
Smith said it was another step up to face Auckland in Auckland - "and it's a greater challenge that we need."
He discounted talk of rifts within the side, of players at each other's throats over selection and other issues.
"There's nothing wrong in the club. The only thing missing is a couple of wins. The critics have been writing us off and sure, that all adds up to pressure. We have to respond."
The pressure included around 40 telephone calls from friends after the 10-70 slump in Melbourne asking what went wrong.
Coach David Waite handled the crisis well, Smith said, without shouting and screaming at the team.
"It wouldn't have done anyone any good to rant and rave. He gave us the plan to get back up - not easy after you're beaten by 60 points. We've still got the belief we can push into the top eight."
Smith wants good form and no repeats of the two-game suspension he earned early in the season as he works to impress Kiwi coach Frank Endacott ahead of the Anzac test and World Cup.
"We felt we did enough to win the tri-series. We know we can bring the World Cup home. Losing the tri-series was a lesson well learned - the Aussies never say die until it's all over," he said.
"We take a lot of confidence from that, we're backing ourselves."
Endacott had done a great job moulding a team long-term with the Cup in mind and there was pressure on for places, he said.
And Smith had no concerns about the Kiwis' ability to be competitive in the Anzac game on April 21 despite a three-day preparation. "We're not going in thinking we can compete - we're going in thinking we will win."
Auckland Warriors: Cliff Beverley, Shontayne Hape, David Myles, Nigel Vagana, Lee Oudenryn, John Simon (c), Ben Lythe, Terry Hermansson, Robert Mears, Talite Liavaa, Logan Swann, Tony Tuimavave, Jason Death; interchange Scott Pethybridge, Monty Betham, Ali Lautiiti, Joe Vagana, Paul Whatuira (one to be omitted).
St George Illawarra Dragons: Luke Patten, Nathan Blacklock, Matt Cooper, Shaun Timmins, Jamie Ainscough, Anthony Mundine, Trent Barrett, Craig Smith (c), Nathan Brown, Luke Bailey, Lance Thompson, Darren Treacey, Andrew Hart; interchange Daniel Heckenberg, Terry Larney, Wayne Bartrim, Jason Hooper.
Referee: Mark Oaten. Kickoff: 4.30pm.
Rugby League: Smith - Dragons still dangerous
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