Levy hoping 80-minute performance is just around the corner for Western Province

Western Province coach Labeeb Levy is hoping his Currie Cup charges can kick on and become an 80-minute team after they looked like they could cause an upset in the second half of Saturday’s 40-19 away defeat to the Lions, before fading on the Highveld.

The Joburgers led 21-12 at half-time at Ellis Park and extended their lead with another try early in the second half. Province stuck to their attacking game plan and came back at the Lions.

Their third and final try of the match brought them within nine points of the home side in the 53rd minute, as they threatened to pull off a surprise result.

“I was happy at that stage of the game,” Levy said. “It was 28-19 and we were actually on the attack, but then we lost a breakdown penalty and they came back and obviously scored again.

“We just kept telling the guys: just keep going, just keep fighting. Try to get that fourth try.”

The tone for the match was set early on, with WP opting to run from their own 22.

“It was part of the plan — to be adventurous, to take the game to them, to strike first — and the boys got energy from it and obviously capitalised by scoring first. Just a few of the passes didn’t stick, a few of the conversions didn’t stick. But I’m happy for the boys,” Levy said at the post-match media conference.

“We asked them to come out fighting and they did. We scored first. We probably should have scored immediately after that, but then they scored.”

It was ultimately a match of missed opportunities for the Province mentor, who is still searching for his first point of the season after two losses. Failure to convert several 22-metre entries into points harmed their cause on Saturday afternoon.

“In the second half we weren’t as clinical as we could have been in the first. But we’re a new team, a new group — we’ve only been together for about six weeks — so I’m massively proud of the boys,” he said.

“Conversion-wise there were opportunities we did not put away, but it’s just that little bit of synergy that we’re working on — getting combos together in training in order to convert those. We need to work on being a bit more clinical.

“There are plans, and we’re hoping to keep improving until the time we can deliver a good performance for the full 80 minutes.”

Levy will be hoping that happens in Friday’s away match against Griquas, with the competition format leaving little room for further setbacks.

He will be buoyed by the marked improvement in the line-outs and scrums, compared to the opening loss to the Bulls at home, as well as the attacking intent and energy shown by his team.