Huddersfield Giants winger Jermaine McGillvary knows if his side sticks together the Super League tide will begin to turn.
Huddersfield’s tough start to the 2014 campaign continued with last Thursday’s 30-6 defeat at Hull FC.
That made it one win in the last eight games for the winners of last season’s Super League Leaders’ Shield.
But McGillvary knows that with the quality of the squad at the Giants disposal it won’t take much for his side to get back on the winning track.
“This is obviously a really tough time for us,” conceded the 25-year-old.
“And because everything went so well for us last season I think it’s hitting us harder than ever.
“The key at a time like this is for the squad to stick together, and that’s exactly what we’re doing.
“It can be easy when things aren’t going well for everyone to start pointing the finger at each other, but you definitely won’t see that with this group.
“If anyone sees us training, they’d see how we’re continuing to work for each other and what a close-knit group we are.
“There’s still good banter between us and we enjoy each other’s company as much as ever. If anyone thought there’d be any falling out over the way the results have been going, they couldn’t be further from the truth.
“We win together and we lose together, although we hope the losing part comes to an end as quickly as possible!”
But McGillvary admits a weekend away from rugby league was just what the squad needed right now.
“The coaching staff gave us the weekend off, and I’m confident that will have done everyone a power of good, particularly after last week’s short turnaround from Sunday to Thursday,” he added.
“It meant we were able to spend some quality time with our families and try and forget about the recent tough times we’ve been experiencing.
“Something like this helps freshen you up, both mentally and physically, and that’ll hopefully put an extra spring in our step for Friday’s game at Salford.
“That promises to be another tough test for us, but if we get over the knocks a lot of us our carrying then I know we can go there and do a good job.
“But I think the key is ‘belief’.
“We’ve got to keep believing in each other and what we’re doing, and also believing the tide will turn.
“It’s only a few months ago we were celebrating winning the Super League Leaders’ Shield, which proved to everyone what a quality side we are and what a hard team we are to beat when we play to our potential.
“No-one at the club should lose sight of that fact.
“Yes, it is tough, although not quite as tough as it was when I joined the club about half-a-dozen years ago.
“At the moment, we’re only showing our true form in patches. The time has now come to make sure those patches in games become a lot longer and are far more effective.”
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