By Liam Cook The 2021 season ended in heartbreak for Wests. A last-minute Jason Hofmeyr conversion evaporated the Bulldog’s hopes of finally returning to a Grand Final after fifteen years in the wilderness. Twelve months on, the boys from Sylvan Road not only reached the final game of the year, they won it in resounding fashion. Contrasting the distraught scenes of that preliminary final loss to GPS with the jubilation of last Sunday’s premiership win, reveals the Bulldog’s major growth in a single year. Speaking to new head coach Elwee Prinsloo after round two of the 2022 season, he made a concerted effort to mention that his side would be leaning heavily on the mental side of the game in an attempt to improve. “There have been good Wests’ teams in the last three or four years who just can’t nail these tight games,” Prinsloo told Rugby News. “The biggest challenge is the mentality and learning how winners approach the game. It’s all between the e