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March 16, 2008 - 12:33PM
After ejecting another monkey off the back, the Western Force believe their ability to outlast opponents is becoming the cornerstone of their ascension to the status of Super 14 contenders.
First came a first win, then a first win at home and the final frontier - a win in New Zealand - arrived on Saturday in the comeback 27-17 win over the Blues in Albany.
And with competition legitimacy long since assured, a nightmare draw of five away games in the first six matches now appears to be setting up the Perth outfit for a tilt at the top four.
Fullback Cameron Shepherd, whose first-half try kept the Force afloat after an early Blues onslaught, said he believes the team's fitness is becoming a key factor in 2008.
"We worked so hard in pre-season on our fitness and on being able to go hard and really run other teams into the ground," Shepherd said.
"We came in at halftime, we knew we were not feeling that tired, we just had to play down their end and get some quality ball.
"I know personally in that last 20 minutes I started getting fresher and fresher, and so excited as the momentum built.
"When we got that, we converted it into points."
The loss of playmaker Nick Evans after half an hour severely dented the Blues' attacking options, which were further weakened when Joe Rokocoko departed just after halftime.
And skipper Nathan Sharpe said the loss of two main backline threats exacerbated the second-half comeback by the visitors.
"When guys like him (Evans) go off, a little bit of control was lost and with the fatigue the Blues lost their way," Sharpe said.
"Our team is a pretty fit team and we know that at the back-end of games we will be there competing."
And competing in New Zealand against a Blues side who had started the season on fire gave Shepherd another reason to be excited about what lay ahead.
"Leaving from Perth, I was still a little bit down about the Crusaders result (29-24 loss last week), and I knew we had to step up," Shepherd said.
"And never winning in New Zealand was something that was on our minds, getting that game out of the way is a huge boost."
Just a point outside the top four, the Force will travel to Queenstown to take on the Highlanders next week, with a great chance of returning to Perth inside the top four for three successive games.
"It is getting exciting but we are trying not to get ahead of ourselves ... the last thing we want to do is go in with the attitude that we beat the Blues so this is going to be a walk in the park," Shepherd said.
"It is obviously not going to be. But we are building a lot of momentum, we are playing good football and we are dangerous every time we get the ball in hand.
"As long as we play for 80 minutes, I really don't see too many sides that will be able to stop us."
© 2008 AAP
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Originally Posted by travelling_gerry
