Poor discipline left the Isuzu Southern Kings in the lurch and cost them momentum when they lost their opening Guinness PRO14 match against Zebre, head coach Deon Davids said.
A frustrated Davids was left to lament the 15 penalties his team gave away against the Italian outfit in a scrappy match which the Italians won 32-16.
In contrast, Zebre only conceded four penalties as they launched their campaign with a bonus-point victory.
Apart from the heavy penalty count, the Kings also had Andisa Ntsila (70th minute) and Bobby de Wee (78th minute) yellow carded by Scottish referee Mike Adamson.
“One aspect of the game that needs attention was the number of penalties we conceded.
“Our discipline let us down and that swung the momentum we had back to the opposition.
“It allowed them back into our half and gave Zebre easy points,” Davids said.
“That is something we will have to sort out as soon as possible.
“On defence, there were some good efforts, especially in the last minutes when we had to defend in our own 22 after two players were yellow carded. “That was an excellent effort from the boys.
“Decision-making and fundamental skills will improve as the players get match fit and used to applying their skills under pressure.
“Our maul defence will also have to improve and we will have to do some trimming around our own scrums.”
Davids does not have much time to fix his team’s shortcomings – the Kings are in action against the Dragons in Wales on Saturday.
Last season the Kings could win only one of their 21 matches, with the victory coming against the Dragons in Port Elizabeth.
In that game, Luzuko Vulindlu scored a try in each half as the Kings finally claimed a first PRO14 win with a 45-13 drubbing of the Dragons.
It will be interesting to see whether Davids includes former Springbok wing Bjorn Basson after leaving him out for the Zebre game.
Basson joined the Kings from French team Oyonnax and will give Davids strong options at fullback and wing.
Basson, who played 11 Tests for the Springboks, is a widely travelled player who has valuable experience of playing in European conditions.
He has been on the sidelines for some time since his last match for Oyonnax, and his fitness levels may be of some concern to Davids.
Another new signing, former Bulls centre Ulrich Beyers, made his debut for the Kings when he came on in the 72nd minute to replace Berton Klaasen.
Both teams ended up on the losing side on the opening weekend of the competition, and will be desperate to get on the winning track.
The Welsh side recruited heavily during the off season, but coach Bernard Jackman was still unable to come up with a winning recipe.
Last season was the worst in the Dragons’ 15-year history, and they could only win twice in 21 outings.