Rebels hooker Jordan Uelese admits the club were 'embarrassed' by their thumping defeat to the Blues, eager to rectify it ahead of Sunday's clash with the Chiefs.
The Victorian-based side missed 34 tackles as they were dominated 71-28 at Eden Park, conceding 66 unanswered points in 55 minutes.
“We were really embarrassed with our performance on the weekend,” Uelese told reporters. “But we reviewed that really hard and trained today to consolidate everything that we need to do to make sure we don’t make the same mistakes.
“Our first up tackles and getting around our system and having a great overall understanding of our systems. The boys are working really hard on the paddock and getting our technique right so we nullify that for the week ahead.
“We are all adults here and we all know what we have to do. For us, our accountability is only as good as yourselves.
“I think the coaches put faces to the stats and you see your name there, you see your stats and percentages, you get put to the sword and you know yourself that you’ve got to be really accountable. For us, we have finally nailed accountability and putting a face to it.
“All the players are working hard and are trying to get those tackle stats up again.”
Uelese's return is a major boost for the club, last featuring in round eight after suffering a shoulder injury.
“I could’ve played a couple of weeks ago but unfortunately, I re-injured it again and made it worse," he added on the injury.
“The coaches and the medical staff decided for the longevity of the shoulder to just give it a few weeks. There’s no better way to come back than to play on Sunday against the Chiefs in front of our great fans."
He joins Michael Wells in the starting side, who missed the Blues defeat with a concussion.
They currently sit in ninth position, just two points behind the Highlanders, knowing how crucial a win against the fourth-placed Chiefs would be.
The great thing about being a rugby player is you get to go out there again and showcase your skills and have a chance to show up and fix the problems you had the week before," Uelese explained.
"For us, it’s about picking up where we left off against Moana (Pasifika), and what better way to do it at home. There’s not going to be any AFL this Sunday, which is great for us to try and fill out the stadium and get support behind us.
"We’ve got 3 more games to go, finals are within sight, and we want to make the Top 8. A win this week will send us forward and we are doing everything we can to get there."
