Yass Magpies coach Cam Hardy knows his side has the right ingredients to challenge any of the top sides in the Canberra Raiders Cup, it is just a matter of finding the right mixture.
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After a tough 16-28 loss to the Tuggeranong Bushrangers last weekend at Walker Park, Hardy said the Magpies were their own worst enemies on the field.
"We're constantly making errors and the errors lead to points," Hardy said.
"If you're going to make the errors and you can't defend them, you've got a long 80 minutes ahead of you. That's been the name of the story so far."
The match against Tuggeranong began in a one-sided fashion, as the visitors leapt to a 6-24 lead after 60 minutes of play.
That was not to be the end of the game, as Yass scored two tries in quick succession to pull the score to 16-24.
However, two more Magpies tries were disallowed in the dying stages of the game, and the Bushrangers scored one more to secure a well-earned victory.
While the result was disappointing for Hardy, he praised his side for their determination to fight back in the second half.
"We played well, we did play well in the second 40," he said.
"I can't fault the effort in the second half."
The Magpies are now last on the Canberra Raiders Cup ladder, with one win and six losses from their seven matches so far.
When a side hits a losing streak akin to the one Yass is currently experiencing, it can be difficult to snap.
"We've just got to get out of the rut we're in, and the only way we're going to get out is to play some better footy and stop making silly mistakes," Hardy said.
Errors can be a difficult topic for coaches to address, as they are often caused by a myriad of issues.
"It's drummed in, it's shown in DVD, in review, in preview, they're going to hurt you if we make mistakes," Hardy said.
"If we don't make mistakes and complete our sets, we put ourselves right in the game.
"We have been doing a lot on defence, I don't think our attack's much of a problem. We just don't give ourselves the opportunity to attack, that's the issue."
Although the team is going through a tough period, Hardy said that his players remain "upbeat".
"They know where we're sitting and they know how we are and how we're looking and how we're perceived.
"I just tell them every week, the only people that can get us out of this is us, and the harder we work, the closer we will be. And they're working hard."
The Magpies next take on the West Belconnen Warriors on Saturday June 15 at Raiders Belconnen.
