A fingernail away from ending Australia's Super Rugby drought over the past two weeks, the NSW Waratahs are preparing to turn the Highlanders' own game against them on Saturday in Sydney.
It will be the third-successive tussle with Kiwi opposition for the Australian conference leaders, after a three-point home loss to the Blues and an agonising two-point away defeat to the Crusaders.
Although the Highlanders are third in the stacked New Zealand conference, their 7-3 record is better than any Australian side.
They are coming off a win over South African conference pacesetters the Lions, who tanned the Tahs 29-0 last month in Sydney.
In their recent clashes, the Highlanders have had plenty of success against NSW with strategic kicking, and Tahs centre Kurtley Beale said that had been the main focus of their review on Tuesday.
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"They are a team that kicks a lot, so it's important that we organise our back three and make sure that we are catching those contestables," Beale said.
"Then applying pressure back on the Highlanders wherever we can from the back-field.
"It's a matter of holding onto the ball and, if the defence is pretty set, then make sure that we are turning the pressure on them and trying to ping corners and try and play their game on them until we can unravel them."
Beale and his colleagues are refusing to dwell on the negatives of giving up a 29-0 lead to the Crusaders.
"It was a great learning experience in Christchurch," Beale said.
"As a squad, I think two weeks in a row, we've been a fingernail away from two good victories.
"There's a lot of character been shown in the group - a lot of improvements from last year's team."
He said the main lesson from the last two weeks was the Tahs couldn't take the pressure off.
The likely favourite for the Wallabies' No.12 jersey in next month's three-Test series against Six Nations champions Ireland, Beale wasn't that impressed by his form.
"It's a little up and down," he said.
