The Highlanders enter their bye week on the back of a 29-14 loss to the Hurricanes on Saturday night that snapped their three-game winning run in Super Rugby Pacific but did not squash the feeling they have made genuine improvements since their difficult start.
Teams often say byes come at opportune moments, and that is genuinely the case for the Highlanders, who should be able to get some more injured players back on deck before they head for a two-game Australian tour.
"It’s a good time for us," Dermody said.
"Hopefully we get a few players back in a couple of weeks.
"We start on Sunday, because we head to Perth Tuesday. And the Force are always good at home, so that will be in the front of the mind during the week."
The news could be bad for exciting rookie Cam Millar, who made an unexpected first start in the No 10 jersey against the Hurricanes.
Millar was helped from the field with an apparent ankle injury late in the game and the initial feeling was that he could be sidelined for a while.
It has temporarily left the Highlanders without a single fit specialist first five, though Mitch Hunt’s abdominal strain is considered minor.
The likes of Josh Timu, Jona Nareki and Fabian Holland could all be back in contention after the bye, while star halfback Aaron Smith will presumably be available after missing the Hurricanes game due to a family illness.
While the Highlanders were badly exposed by New Zealand teams in the first three rounds — and this latest loss makes it 14 straight against Kiwi sides — they were much more competitive against the Hurricanes.
"It was a funny game to watch, I reckon," Dermody said.
"It was pretty stop-start. I think both teams potentially struggled with the interpretations from the referee, and probably weren’t that fast to adapt to the different style of an Australian ref.
"Ultimately, I think we were better, but not quite there yet."
There were big moments in the game that cost the Highlanders, Dermody said.
"We had the Hurricanes under penalty pressure in the first half and couldn’t quite execute off the back of the scrum.
"A pass sort of went behind Jonah [Lowe], which was probably a walk-in try if that goes in front, so then you get scoreboard pressure.
"Then the intercept try was a real kick in the guts for the boys."
That intercept try was the result of sharp work from Hurricanes halfback Cam Roigard, but also a bad error from Highlanders opposite Folau Fakatava, whose flashy reverse pass was snaffled.
Dermody had no issue with the dangerous Fakatava trying some things.
"That’s his game. I’d probably question the decision-making there. But you’ve seen the stuff he can do, and we definitely wouldn’t stop him doing that."
With only eight teams playing at the weekend, the Highlanders remained sixth in the table.
The Hurricanes joined the Chiefs at the top on 27 points, setting the scene for a tasty derby in Wellington this Saturday.
