With reinforcements arriving from Japan in the form of seasoned veterans Ned Hanigan and Paddy Ryan, the Waratahs say a home final is “critical” to their Super Rugby Pacific title ambitions.
Wallabies forward Hanigan and NSW centurion prop Ryan have finished their overseas campaigns and returned to add some vital experience to the young Waratahs.
Spending two seasons in Japan, Hanigan has 21 test caps and can play in the back row or at lock, while Ryan last played for NSW in 2018.
Hosting the Hurricanes at Leichhardt Oval on Saturday night, the Waratahs are chasing a third successive victory.
NSW prop Angus Bell said 27-year-old Hanigan and Ryan, 33, had already made an impact at training.
“It just adds to the standard of training – as soon as they came in they had an immediate impact,” Bell said on Tuesday.
“You could just feel the competition within the squad and also the intensity just lift again.
“It’s been nothing but positive and plus those two are just top blokes … it’s great to have them both in the squad.”
The Waratahs have matches against the Highlanders in Dunedin and Blues back at Leichhardt to come before the eight-team finals series.
Sitting in fifth on points differential, the test prop said that they desperately wanted a home quarter-final.
“I think it’s critical to our season,” Bell said.
“We started this year with a mentality of looking down the ladder but now we’re of the mentality that we’re looking up, we want to see how far we can go, how deep we can get in this competition – we want to win it.
“And we think through getting the home final at Leichhardt or somewhere in Sydney would be the best opportunity to do that so we’re really pushing hard for that top four spot.”
