But Otago coach Mark Brown said it was not as simple as that.
They would need to do more than just hog the pill if they are going to upset Wellington in Porirua tomorrow afternoon.
Hawke’s Bay dominated possession for the opening 25 minutes against Otago at Forsyth Barr Stadium last weekend and built a 17-0 lead.
The home team got back into the contest with two tries late in the half, but succumbed 27-21.
The headline read too little, too late. The underlying sentiment was Otago needed to spend more time in possession.
"Yeah, look, I suppose it’s just as much about starting well as it is holding on to the ball," Brown responded.
"[Possession] can be a bit of a double-edged sword if you’ve got too much ball.
"It’s more where you’ve got the ball and we need to start better and keep the discipline in check.
"I think we had eight penalties in the first half and then only one in the second half.
"I think that reflects the quality of the performance."
That lack of discipline gifted Hawke’s Bay an armchair ride deep into their half.
"If they get invited into your 22, they invariably turn that into points."
Brown has made four changes to the starting XV. Three of them are in the pack.
He is expecting a brawny challenge up front.
All Black Christian Lio-Willie returns from a week off. The No 8 had a sterling match against Southland in the season-opener and he will team up with Lucas Casey in the loose.
Casey, who was the Dunedin division 1 club player of the year, brings a potent attacking game and he has been preferred ahead of Harry Taylor on the openside.
Former All Black Liam Coltman has been promoted from the bench and will start at hooker.
Exciting New Zealand under-20 halfback Dylan Pledger will start in the No 9 jersey ahead of Nathan Hastie.
"It’s no slight on Nathan. Nathan’s been very good for us.
"It’s more just sort of the type of game we want to take up to Wellington, which suits what Pledger offers."
Pledger clears the rucks quickly and he helped spark the Otago side when he came off the bench against Hawke’s Bay.
Casey forced his way into the starting side off the back of two strong performances from the bench.
"[Casey is] probably just a little bit more explosive in what he does, whereas Harry’s accurate and workmanlike, so he’s an important part of the full pack and leads our defensive group as well.
"With the full pack that we’re rolling out this week, we can sort of afford to have Lucas bring in that power game,"
Brown said.
Coltman’s inclusion is to counter the Wellington set piece, and he is also really strong at the breakdown, so Brown is hoping he can snaffle some ball for Otago.
All Black hooker Asafo Aumua is a notable inclusion in the Wellington squad.
He has been sidelined with a hamstring complaint for the past 10 weeks and will make his return from the bench.
NPC
Porirua Park, tomorrow, 2.05pm
Otago: Sam Gilbert (captain), Jae Broomfield, Josh Timu, Thomas Umaga-Jensen, Jona Nareki, Cameron Millar, Dylan Pledger, Christian Lio-Willie, Lucas Casey, Will Stodart, Joseva Tamani, Will Tucker, Saula Ma’u, Liam Coltman, Abraham Pole. Reserves: Henry Bell, Ben Lopas, Rohan Wingham, Oliver Haig, Harry Taylor, Nathan Hastie, Jake Te Hiwi, Sam Nemec-Vial.
Wellington: Callum Harkin, Tom Maiava, Matt Proctor, Julian Savea, Tjay Clarke, Jackson Garden-Bachop, Esi Komaisavai, Brad Shields (captain), Sione Halalilo, Caleb Delany, Akira Ieremia, Hugo Plummer, PJ Sheck, James O’Reilly, Xavier Numia. Reserves: Asafo Aumua, Kenshi Yamamoto, Siala Lauaki, Matolu Petaia, Dominic Ropeti, Mitch McLeod, Losilosivale Filipo, Stanley Solomon.
