By LIZ MOORE

After a ‘heartbreaking’ 49-47 loss to Brothers on the weekend, Wests captain Rob Puli’uvea is focused on his team’s defence for their match against Sunnybank this week.

Despite going into half-time with an air of confidence that came from being up by nearly 20 points at Sylvan Road on the weekend, the Bulldogs could not maintain what would have been their first win of the season.

“It was obviously quite disappointing for us as a team. Even though they scored on half-time to bring it to 40-21, we were still really confident and energised throughout really the whole game.

“I think we had a few slips of concentration and gave away a few easy tries and yeah, just like any good Brothers team, they’ll take those opportunities, and they certainly did.

“They came back and pipped us at the end, which is heartbreaking.”

Puli’uvea said his team was learning from the loss with a continued focus on defence.

“I think defence will be the number-one thing on our minds this week,” he said of their upcoming match against Sunnybank.

“We know we are capable of scoring points, and we’ve got a number of exciting players in our squad who are certainly capable of crossing the line. 

“What we’ve been working on and really focussing on the last couple of weeks is our mental attitude and awareness around our defence and defensive structures.”

The 30-year-old lock said alongside head coach Carl Marshall, another of their trainers is ex-Special Forces in the Australian Defence Force and has been focused on strengthening the mindset they need in defence.

“I think there’s certainly another chapter to our story for this season. We’ve got the next three games at home that are certainly winnable games, and we’ll just take each week as it comes.”

Captaining the Bulldogs for the first time this year, Puli’uvea is no stranger to top-grade rugby. After starting his Premier grade career at Norths, the lock played professionally in France a few years ago before returning to play at Wests and NRC for Queensland Country and Brisbane City.

Despite his young side, Puli’uvea said they have a very strong leadership pool in his team.

“There are some young guys that have got really good heads on their shoulders. Connor Anderson’s a tremendous leader within the group, and really well-respected. Carter Gordon, even as a young flyhalf, having that experience in a Super Rugby environment, he’s really a leader as well.

“Everyone’s eager to learn, and there’s a lot of excitement and energy throughout the group. I think we balance it well with the small number of older players that do have a bit of experience and older heads. We’re able to contain that youthful exuberance in a good way.”

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