"Resilience and Grit" - Michael Cheika reveals Leicester's mentality ahead of Premiership final against Bath

Tigers head coach Michael Cheika knows how to win finals, and while he hasn’t got a Premiership title on his CV yet, this does represent a chance to win silverware in his first season in England. He could also make history by becoming only the second head coach to win the United Rugby Championship and the Premiership, with Mark McCall the only person to have done so at present.

For Cheika, being in the final isn’t the objective in itself. It’s the process leading up to the match that matters most.

"It's a different challenge every week, but as far as the fact that we get a shot at it, we're still here, that's a good place to be and that isn't the objective,” Cheika said. “The objective is to get us into the frame of mind where we go into the game with a strong belief that we've got a good plan and to deliver that."

This approach has been a hallmark of Cheika’s season with Leicester. Tigers have developed a reputation for their resilience, and the head coach sees that as the result of hard work on the mental side of the game. His team’s consistency in difficult moments hasn’t come by accident.

"We've improved our mental preparation and the mental side of our game, the resilience and grit that we've got in games,” he said. “You need quality. It's more just about being able to balance out what is the emotional part and what is the technical part and have both of those clearly defined as to what the use is."

Cheika doesn’t pretend that this kind of preparation is ever complete. The mental side is a constant work in progress.

"It's never just one thing, building up mentally is important and it is consistent, you've never arrived at the place you've got to be at because every time you meet another challenge you've got to delve into that."

This weekend’s final is one of the biggest tests Leicester have faced all season. Bath have been top of the table for almost the entire season and have done the double over Tigers in the regular season.

Cheika’s time at Leicester has been short but intense. On a one-year contract that this game is set to mark the end of, he’s had to make sharp decisions, some of which he admits worked and others less so.

"I've had to do some things different than I may have done otherwise, some things worked, some things didn't and I'm still trying,” he said. “There's still five days to prepare correctly and put the right messages in and give the right content in order for them to have the tools they need in this match, because this match is different from the last one."

That willingness to adapt has been central to his work with the group. Cheika’s not just concerned with systems and gameplans, but with developing players and maintaining their engagement across a long season.

"You've still got to create a logical argument or a logical discussion,” he said. “If you don't give them something that they can learn from or grow individually or as a group, it's like anything, they'll lose interest. It's a reciprocal arrangement because you learn about yourself through them, but it's their relationships with you that can change over the season. You've got to be able to judge people and you've got to treat people a different way, but I value them all the same."

Part of Cheika’s adaptation has been understanding the nuances of the Premiership itself. Having coached around the world but never in England before now, he’s found the diversity of playing styles in the league challenging.

"The standard is very good, it surprised me a fair bit on the variations of play, with some teams being extremely expansive in their play and you're playing against different opponents with very different styles,” he said. “To a point where you have to make adjustments to your defensive system because it is so different. It's been good, it's been challenging for me."

That variation will likely be seen again on Saturday, as Bath pose a different kind of threat than Leicester’s previous playoff opponent Sale Sharks.

While different opponents, the way Leicester fronted up against a physical Sale side will put them in good stead for another physical battle against the 'Bomb Squad' that Bath possesses.

Cheika isn’t counting on individual brilliance to win it for Tigers, even with big names across the pitch. The final, in his view, will come down to cohesion.

"It's how we work as a team together,” he said. “The quality of how connected we are on both sides of the ball that allows players to show their quality on the day. Bath isn't going to be won with just individual brilliance, you need to have the whole team connected together to allow those top end players to make their mark."

That team-first mentality extends beyond the matchday 23. Cheika highlighted the importance of the wider squad and the contributions made by those who aren’t selected.

"There's a really good vibe around the players who don't get selected, how they help with the team's preparation."