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The numbers don't make pretty reading for the Chiefs.
For the second time in three years the Waikato franchise have gone winless in their opening three games - the fourth time in 14 seasons that they have started 0-3.
Hardly strangers to slow starts, they have managed to post
a winning record in their opening three matches just three times in their history. In 2004, 1998 and 1997 they went 2-1.
They have never started with three straight wins. Overall, their record in the first three rounds is a miserable 13-29 - a winning percentage of just 31. Under coach Ian Foster the number is slightly lower - five wins in 18 matches at a winning percentage of just 28.
Optimists will point to the fact that the Chiefs do tend to recover particularly well. Under Foster, from round four onwards their record is 28-12 (three draws) - a giddy 70 per cent success rate. Putting that mark in perspective, the Crusaders have won just over 66 per cent of their Super Rugby matches.
If it wasn't for their persistent inability to start well, then, the Chiefs would be up there with the best of them. Unfortunately for the Chiefs, there are no Mulligans in rugby.
Their close-but-no-cigar defeats against the Crusaders, Waratahs and Sharks will likely hang like an albatross around their necks for the rest of the competition. Because there is one other statistic they likely won't want to hear: just once in the history of Super Rugby has a team - the 2005 Bulls - recovered from an 0-3 start to make the semifinals.
"History is history," Foster said when told of the stat. "When you are in the action you are trying to make history. We have just got to start putting in that whole team performance we know we are capable of and worry about the table later."
There are signs the Chiefs are getting close to doing just that. They undoubtedly deserved better than a seven-point defeat by the Sharks last week, a result that hung on a pair of disputable TMO calls and some valiant last-ditch scrambling defence by the South African visitors.
It may have been painful, but there were significant positives to come from that defeat. Most notably, the scrum that had disintegrated against the Waratahs a week earlier held up better than expected.
After the Chiefs' rookie scrum almost held its own against the Crusaders in round one, its trouble against the Waratahs was totally unexpected, Foster said.
"It was a bit of a shock. At the time we felt there were a couple of technical areas that weren't going right. That [front row] combination hadn't had too many games together and we weren't able to solve the problem on the park. But [at training] we were able to fix it pretty well and I think we showed that against the Sharks."
There is still a feeling about the Chiefs that if they can gain parity up front they have the backline to do plenty of damage. Conversely, opponents will believe the way to beat them is to crush them up front.
There will be many more stern examinations. Foster will certainly be hoping an encouraging starting debut from tighthead James McGougan and the physicality added by hooker Aled de Malmanche prove to be more than a short-term fix.
De Malmanche, in particular, is a conundrum. His presence clearly bolstered the scrum and his bruising ball-carrying provided plenty of go-forward against the Sharks. But his lineout work remains unconvincing.
De Malmanche may be a work in progress but Foster believes he is making significant strides.
"It is not always the thrower. I think we missed a call on our goal line [against the Sharks], which did not look good and cost us three points. Overall it was a huge step up - but a step up only to the level that we kind of expect. We just have to keep growing that level now and we are certainly going to get tested there by the Force lineout."
The Chiefs will also be boosted by the return of centre Richard Kahui. A vastly superior defender to Dwayne Sweeney, Kahui's presence should also help flying wingers Sitiveni Sivivatu and Lelia Masaga, who have operated largely on scraps this season.
As for the numbers stacked against them, the Chiefs might well point out that after five games last season they had just eight competition points.
By round 10 they were in the hunt for a home semifinal, before a spate of injuries to key players saw the wheels fall off on their season-ending tour.
With their horror start behind them and the favourable part of their schedule to come, a customary mid-season revival is possible.
"In terms of the table we are not happy," Foster said. "And we certainly haven't been happy with our collective performances.
"But the handling is improving, the set piece is good and we are at a point where we know we can go out and win games of rugby."
Chiefs fans will be hoping Foster is right. No team has ever started 0-4 and gone on to make the semifinals.
