Cardiff captain Josh Turnbull says his side showed glimpses of their ability during Saturday’s United Rugby Championship encounter against Ospreys, but admits it wasn’t enough as the hosts edged a tense affair in Swansea.
Josh Adams and Owen Lane both crossed the whitewash for the Blue and Blacks, but 18 points from the boot of Gareth Anscombe secured victory for Toby Booth’s side in the second round of league action.
Turnbull says a lack of discipline ultimately cost his side but insists there’s no cause for over-reaction.
“It was a bit of an arm-wrestle at times, but when you give away 18 penalties to six you’re not really going to get into the game,” said the skipper.
“Half of them were from the set piece and it’s frustrating when you give someone like Gareth Anscombe the opportunity to kick them from the halfway line.
“That’s going to make it a tough day at the office. But to be fair, the Cardiff boys showed some real endeavour early in the second half to come back into it.
“But we didn’t get enough opportunities in the 22 to make it count.
“We’re not a million miles away and we’re in a pretty good place, especially after the games against Harlequins, Bath and Connacht heading into this one.
When we get the ball, and we keep it for long periods of time, we can cause team problems. That’s what Matt Sherratt has brought to us this season.
“In the second half we did put pressure on and came away with points. We then go up their end of the field again but put a couple of penalties away and they up in our 22.
“Our set piece, in terms of the line-out, went well and when we did have a platform to play off, we gave the backs some good opportunities.”
Cardiff prepare to welcome Vodacom Bulls and Cell C Sharks to the Arms Park over the next fortnight.
Turnbull is expecting another physical challenge against the South African sides but remains confident his side can return to their best in front of the Arms Park faithful.
The Welsh international added: “We know that South African teams pride themselves on the forwards battle and the Bulls will be no different when they come over next week.
“We’ll do our analysis and prepare ourselves but we’ll know the tempo and speed we want to play the game at.
“If we can manage that, no many teams in this league can live with us.”