They might need to get better, too, as they follow their gutsy 25-23 win over the Crusaders with the challenge of hosting the Chiefs on Saturday night.
Some of the numbers crunched from Friday’s Super Rugby season opener highlighted what the Highlanders had to do to get one over the defending champions.
The Crusaders had significantly more metres (489 to 352) and more clean breaks (10 to four), but the Highlanders harried them into 24 turnovers and scored one more try.
"We had a plan - the boys came up with a plan - and they executed it, defensively and in attack," Kidwell said yesterday.
"We had 88% tackle efficiency. That’s pretty good. I want higher. I always want higher.
"Towards the end, there were five minutes there where we had to defend and the boys said they were really calm, which is a good sign.
"We know the clarity in our roles in the defensive system, and we’re only going to get better, and we need to."
Kidwell said the Highlanders had enjoyed the win over the Crusaders, but it was time to dig deep and find a plan to protect home turf against the Chiefs.
"There’s some growth there that we need to do and the players have identified that, which is great.
"We want the players really buying into our [defence] and attack system and owning it."
The former Kiwis coach said his major focus had been on the defensive basics and stripping back the approach to get the players heading in the right direction.
Kidwell has had plenty of experience of top-level action, firstly in his rugby league playing and coaching days, then through rugby union roles with the Pumas, Japan and the Leicester Tigers.
He might be a Canterbury man, but he enjoyed watching the Highlanders get one over that province’s beloved team.
"Yeah, it was exciting. A little bit intense there.
"But the whole squad really bought into what we wanted to do and we got a good result."
The Highlanders have no fresh injury concerns following the opening game.
Kidwell, like the other coaches and players, will not be drawn into too much discussion around what the future holds if Highlanders coach Jamie Joseph joins the All Blacks.
"We can only control what we can control. Whoever the All Blacks coach is, good luck."
