Coaching Insider: Round 6

Wests Tigers Coach Michael Maguire said he's pleased with the lift in attitude and application from his side throughout the week as they prepare for Saturday's clash against the North Queensland Cowboys.

But the coach was quick to emphasise that despite a positive week of training and morale, Saturday's performance will be the determining factor for success.

Having gone down in disappointing fashion to the Gold Coast Titans in Round 4, Maguire's post-match comments about needing to improve the standards and culture around Wests Tigers were cause for much discussion during the ensuring week — which also saw a sharp improvement in a tight loss to the Raiders.

For Maguire, and Wests Tigers as a whole, those improvements will come down to the way the side executes against the Cowboys on Saturday night.

"I thought the character of the team was where want to be consistently," Maguire reflected on last week's performance.

"Our defence went through quite long periods of time where we had to get stuck in to the arm wrestle and we were able to handle that well.

"The way we defended for long periods of time is what I've been talking about and that's the expectations around things we want at the club.

"I think the attitude around the place has been very good," Maguire said.

"The thing for us is that it's been ebbing and flowing in our performances — that's been the thing I've been trying to challenge the team on. Being able to do it consistently in the 80 minutes is what counts; that's the most important part of the week.

"How you turn up and the attitude of how you perform is built throughout the week and in your preparation. We're looking at how we can be better in that area, but it's on the individuals too that when they're out there, they're doing their job the best they can for their teammates in the best way they can."

With Josh Reynolds again set to partner Luke Brooks in the halves, Maguire said he was pleased overall with the way his playmakers have been playing but urged both Luke and Josh to be as involved as possible in the contest.

"I think Luke has been really strong defensively," Maguire enthused.

"With the ball, Brooksy is definitely a runner of the ball and he's a major threat when he's doing that. Each player is looking at doing the things they need to deliver each week and Brooksy is no different there. When he gets his hands on the ball he's going to put the opposition under pressure and that's what we're looking for.

"It's known around our club that we can score points. That's never something I've had concerns at with this club.

"It's more around our defence and being strong defensively, and that comes back to the attitude week-in and week-out.

"We're about making sure that we deliver performance we had against Canberra every week. And when you're doing that, you fall to the right side which is a win we're all chasing."