Not even a bonus-point win over last season’s league champions, Durham, was enough to crack open the champagne, coming as it did a week after defeating arch-rivals Cardiff met for the first time.
“We are feeling good, there is a great buzz around the team, but we remain very grounded,” said Pollock.
“The general feeling after we beat Durham was that we could have done better and that was reinforced by the rather brutal review of the game last weekend. The win over Cardiff Met was very significant for us because it got rid of a mental block from last year.
“We’d gone so close to beating them so often, but this time we got over the line – even with a load of mistakes. We are still making too many mistakes and that means we haven’t reached our full potential.”
The Round 4 challenge is a home clash on their new 4G pitch at Llanrumney against former champions Hartpury, who they managed to beat twice last season. Pollock won’t be taking anything for granted, but a fourth win would be the perfect ending to their first block of matches.
“We planned everything for our first four games, and then we will set some new goals after that. We’ve got a few changes in personnel this week, but we’ve got much greater depth in our squad this season,” added Pollock.
“We’ve grown together over the past three years and there is a feeling within the squad that this could be our time, out year.”
Two back row men will be missing due to international calls. No 8 Geroge Shaw is involved in Ireland U20 training, while flanker Greg Ramage is set to join Hong Kong for their World Cup repechage tournament camp.
Cardiff Met head across the Severn Bridge to face second place Bath, who were Cardiff Uni’s first victims of the campaign, for a game that needs to be won. With two defeats in their opening three matches, last season’s semi-finalists need to start picking up some points.
The top two teams at the club, the BUCS side and the WRU Championship XV, have won only twice between them in eight games to date this season. The last five games have been lost in a row across the two XVs.
“Last week against the reigning champions Exeter was a difficult game and we didn’t get the performance we are capable of. We want to show what we can really do after two disappointing performances,” said acting skipper, Barny Langton.
“We will need to display our skill and physicality at Bath if we want to come out on top. It is going to be another tough day.”
Swansea University picked up their first win of the season at Leeds Beckett Uni last week and will be full of confidence for the visit of Loughborough to Ste Helen’s in Round 4.
Cardiff Uni: TBC
Cardiff Met: Oliver Gibbon; Jake Thomas, Joe Westwood, Bingo Ivanisevic, Roma Zheng; Brad Roderick-Evans, Rory Morgan; Ben Murphy, Tyler Olding, Math I-Scott, Brandon Harvey, Barny Langton (captain), Jack Wickham, Ewan Guy, Bertie Taylor
Reps: Connor Chapman, Joe Cowell, Eliot Salt, Barnaby Wadell, Jake Bond, Ali Stacey, Brad Morgan, Ewan Bowden
Swansea Uni: George Stephens; Llien Morgan, Kian Abraham, Rory Case, Cameron Taylor; Bernardo Nogeura, Rhodri Lewis; Max Marshall, Garin Lloyd, Louis Fletcher, Chris Thompson, Peter Vickers, Ben Gregory (captain), Will Barraclough, Cai Davies
Reps: James Phillips, Jake Frost, Tom Furtado-Mills, Bob Bray, David Francis, Dafydd Land, Brad Roderick, Gabe Lacey
