Warriors legend Tony Windo says every man in the Sixways dressing room knows they’re playing for their supporters, as well as each other, as they step up the fight for vital Guinness Premiership points.
The veteran prop, who’s nearing a return to action after back surgery, tells Rugby Club’s Dewi Morris tonight that the players are shouldering their responsibility and will turn the season around.
“We’re open and honest,” the 36-year-old says. “It’s not the start we were looking for, but we’re taking the view that there’s still 14 games to go. There’s enough time to turn it around. The only pressure is that we need to do it sooner rather than later.”
He admits that a losing run causes individuals and the team to start questioning everything they do.
“We’ve got to calm down and literally do the things we know we can do well. I think we’re in a situation now where we need to take a step back and get the self-belief going and pull all the stops out.”
The Sky cameras were rolling during warm-up for an upbeat and high-intensity training session involving defensive coach Phil Larder, who’s joined the Warriors staff in a consultative role.
“If we have a weakness, we’re looking at every avenue to correct it,” Reg tells Morris. “Fresh ideas are always good when you’ve got yourself into a situation like this. Billy (McGinty) will have more of a vocal input in training, and I know from experience that all the players have the utmost respect for John and everything he’s doing.”
He has a word for the supporters who’ve weathered the disappointment alongside the players.
“They focus their week on coming down here on a Saturday afternoon and cheering the boys on, which we appreciate massively. We’re not just affecting our lives, we’re affecting the lives of the supporters, the back-up staff and everyone at the club. We’re aware of the situation and we’re taking it on our shoulders.”
And he had a message for them as the Saracens match beckons.
“Don’t push the panic button. We realise that we’re all in it together. It’s easy to cheer on a side that’s winning every week, but the time when you really need your supporters to support is when you’re down. It’s an old saying that you could be the 16th man. If they can cheer a little bit louder, we might pull something out of the bag.”
To watch Dewi’s full report from his visit to Sixways, tune in to Sky Sports 3 at 7pm tonight (Thursday).