Pre Season Friendly - Week Two

First topic message reminder :

Teamsheets; Teams to be named by - 1800hrs Saturday 14/1/12

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Predictions; Predictions in by - 1800hrs Monday 9/1/12

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ALL GAMES AT NEUTRAL VENUES

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EXETER CHIEFS vs BATH RUGBY

Conditions - Light wind, mild.

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Exeter Chiefs

Manager – Ozzy3213

01. Perry Freshwater	09. Haydn Thomas
02. Bismarck du Plessis	10. Gareth Steenson
03. Hoani Tui
04. James Horwill (c)	11. Nic Sesteret
05. James Hanks	12. Sireli Naqelevuki
06. Tom Johnson	13. Josh Tatupu
07. Steffon Armitage	14. Gonzalo Camacho
08. Ofisa Treviranus	15. Luke Arscott

16. Simon Alcott 17. Brett Sturgess 18. Craig Mitchell 19. Tommy Hayes 20. James Phillips 21. Junior Poluleuigaga 22. Ignacio Mieres 23. Jason Shoemark

Tactics

Our gameplan revolves around a high intensity attacking and defensive game. We will work as units and play a structured game (as the Chiefs and Saracens do in real life). We will put a lot of emphasis on the set piece, and look to use both as a real platform to play from, whilst not allowing our opponents to do the same. We will also look to use our big ball carriers to attack the gainline whilst having support runners on their shoulders to either take the offload or hit the ruck quickly as appropriate.

Specific Tactics

• Play in the right areas - Steenson to use his boot to ensure we play in the right half of the pitch.
  
  
• Control Possession - When in the right areas our pack, centres and full back to all carry hard and straight and look to get over the gainline and recycle.
  
  
• Slow opposition ball down - Look to legally (do not give penalties away) slow the ball at the breakdown by getting our back row over it to deny Bath any momentum.
  
  
• Take all points on offer - Steenson to take every kickable penalty at goal.
  

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Bath Rugby
Manager – Bathite

01. N.Catt	09. M.Classens
02. R.Batty	10. S.Donald
03. D.Wilson
04. S.Hooper	11. M.Banahan
05. R.Caldwell	12. F.Steyn
06. F.Louw	13. M.Carraro
07. G.Mercer	14. O.Woodburn
08. S.Taylor	15. S.Vesty

16. O.Franks 17. P.Dixon 18. C.Beech 19. D.Attwood 20. B.Skirving 21. C.Cook 22. T.Heathcote 23. K.Eastmond

GENERAL
Look to open up a bit more and play with some freedom, looking for the offload out of contact in good handling conditions, hoping to negate any work by opposition back row and causing fatigue. This week, some players are picked specifically for thier skill set, at key positions of 13 and 7. Carraro picked for defensive qualities, great tackler and leader in defence, which will help Francois in his first game for the club. Runs hard and straight in attack to give Frans an easy passing target. Mercer picked as an out and out 7, will aim to be the first to the breakdown and pressurise the man on the floor. He is given a license to attempt to terrorise and disrupt opposite 7 with his pace

TACTICS
* Use kicking options of Steyn and Vesty to vary point of attack, up and under in particular
* Solid defensive pack picked, not carrying any players in the tackle area. Carraro looks for the man and ball hit at 13 Channel
* Centres run hard and straight to allow space for Donald on wrap around to release Woodburn and back row
* At lineout time, use off the top ball outside our third, with Banahan and Carraro as crash options
* Hooper picked for his lineout prowess, we look to secure our ball first and frequently jump at 2, to encourage oppostion to throw slow, safe front jumper option and discourage off the top ball to their crash runners
* Steyn to use DG option when in opposing third, to ensure we come away with points with each visit to 22
* 12/13 to run straight and hard to draw defenders and ensure a secure base for young, mobile forwards to own the breakdown area. Happy to fight at breakdown to force penalties.
* Vesty looks to give good field position with up and under, to allow Carraro, Banahan and Woodburn to challenge for high ball, all excel at this
* Happy for Steyn and Vesty to interchange. Steyn offers physicality in attack and defence at 12, but a cannon boot
* Fresh legs of Cook and Heathcote develop ongoing partnership, coming on for last 30mins, with eastmond replacing banahan, as another pace man threat, as fatigue plays a part

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SALE SHARKS v LEICESTER TIGERS

Conditions - High winds, mild.

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Sale Sharks
Manager – LondonIrishOllie

01. Sheridan	09. Peel
02. Ward	10. Wilkinson
03. Thomas
04. Schofield	11. Amesbury
05. Myall	12.tuitipou
06.Auva'a	13Burrel.
07.Fourie	14.Brady
08.Powell	15.Miller

16.Jones 17.Imoliek 18.Buckley 20.Gaskell 21.Seymour 22.Mathie 23.Cueto

Tactics

With a new manager the Sale players will be keen to impress. We our going to play a fairly tight game to start with, using Wilko to get us in the right areas, and Myall and Schofield to try and steal the Tigers ball, If Leiecster do kick to our back 3 they will look to run it back, as they can be devestating when they want to be. In the 2nd half we, look to use our solid set piece to get our centres involved in the game.

- We have a pack that is full of grunt. Schofield and Myall in the enginge room means we will not go backwards.

- Wilko, Tuitipou and Burrel are all very good defenders, so Leicester will struggle to get over the gain line in midfield.

-Wilko will kick all points when availiable. He is a top class kicker when using the ball used in european domestic competition.

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Leicester Tigers
Manager – Sgt_Pooly

01. Marco Ayerza	09. Ben Youngs
02. Rob Hawkins	10. Toby Flood
03. Martin Castrogiovani
04. Lewis Deacon	11. Horacio Agulla
05. Geoff Parling	12. James O’Connor
06. Tom Croft	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Sam Warburton(c)	14. Christian Wade
08. Thomas Waldroum	15. Geordan Murphy

16. Tom Youngs 17. Dan Cole 18. Boris Stankovich 19. Ed Slater 20. Luke Wallace 21. Micky Young 22. Billy Twelvetrees 23. Scott Hamilton

Tactics

Overall we'll be playing a quick tempo safe offloading game with the focus on keeping the ball alive. We'll look to play off the back off a solid set piece with Flood pulling the stings at 10. Youngs will look for the gaps and we'll look to get Waldroum to make gaps in the opposition defence with Croft supporting. We'll use Manu as the go to ball and JOC will act as second kicking option if needed. We'll put the squeeze on in the scrum and refresh midway through the 2nd half. Warburton to Marshall the breakdown and look for turnover ball for Youngs to attack with. JOC will look to float around the park and get hands on as much as possible.

- DOMINATE SCRUM THROUGHOUT
- PLAY OFF SOLID SET PIECE
- FLOOD TO GET BACKS INTO PLAY WITH MANU RUNNING LINES OFF JOC
- JOC TO LOOK FOR THE BALL & CAUSE DAMAGE IN THE LOOSE

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NEWCASTLE FALCONS v WORCESTER WARRIORS

Conditions - Moderate winds, cold

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Newcastle Falcons

Manager – Fluxy

01. Graham Shiells	09. Joel Hodgson
02. William Servat	10. Jimmy Gopperth (K)
03. Tom Mercey
04. James Hudson (C)	11. Paul Diggin
05. Tom Palmer	12. Tom May
06. Magnus Lund	13. Alex Tait
07. Hienrich Brussow	14. Seb Stegmann
08. Tom Guest	15. Jack Cuthbert

16. Euan Murray 17. Joe Graham 18. Tim Swinson 19. Will Welch 20. Jordi Pasqualin 21. Jeremy Manning 22. Luke Fielden 23. Jon Golding

tactics

• Playing the right areas and using our strengths - Using the boots of; Hodgson, Gopperth and May to get the forwards in the oppositions half. We have a very dominant front row at the scrum and at lineout time.
  
  
• Compete at the breakdown - Look to give the opposition no time to settle in to plays or not to take any ruck lightly, as this will lead to mistakes from the forwards an panicked kicks and decisions from the backs. Brussow and Lund should be first to rucks.
  
  
• Defensive line - We shall look to get up as the fast as the slowest man, and then drift the line man on man, in the direction of the play. Scrum-half covers behind as a pendulum.
  
  
• Penalties - When the oppurtunity arises Gopperth shall take all kickable points within his rage.
  
  
• Substitutions - Euan Murray on for Tom Mercey at 60 minutes, likewise Golding on for Shiells at the same time. Welch on for Guest if we were losing in the second half. And finally Fielden on for Stegmann at 65 minutes.
  

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Worcester Warriors

Manager – InTheFastLane

01. Mullan	09. Arr
02. Lutui	10. Carter
03. Taumoepeau
04. Percival	11.Monye
05. Jones	12. Nonu
06. Haskell	13. Hopper
07.Fasa	14.Garvey
08.Morgan	15.Rooney

16. Shervington 17. Jones 18. Porter 19. Gulliver 20. Abbott 21. Perry 22. Goode 23. Allen

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LONDON IRISH vs NORTHAMPTON SAINTS

Conditions - Light winds, light drizzle

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London Irish
Manager – Pullthestrings

01. Alex Corbisiero	09. Darren Allinson
02. David Paice	10. Steve Shingler
03. Paulică Ion
04. Bob Casey (c)	11. Adam Thompstone
05. Nick Kennedy	12. Shontayne Hape
06. Declan Danaher	13. Jamie Noon
07. David Pocock	14. Sailosi Tagicakibau
08. Alex Gray	15. Tom Homer (k)

16. James Buckland, 17. Max Lahiff, 18. Faan Rautenbach, 19. Steve Mafi, 20. Jamie Gibson, 21. Joe Simpson, 22. Shane Geraghty, 23 Marland Yarde

Tactics

- Our pack sets the tone in everything we do today, leading from the front. We'll target the set piece to set our platform, particuarly the lineout where we feel we have the advantage.

- Casey to lead the lineout, with specialists Kenney, Casey and Harinordoquy jumping. We'll compete for the Saints ball and look to gain turnovers here.

- Use strong carriers in the loose off 9 and 10 to gain hard yards. Use the piston system of bashing it up, with Shingler behind patroling matters.

- Play rugby in their half. Shingler to pick his marks and put us in the right places.

- Hape and Noon to be strong in defence and look for the opportunity to make big tackles and put them on the back foot.

- Be competitive at the breakdown. Pocock to make a nuisance of himself and look for turnovers. Two passes away from the breakdown, we go from turnovers and try to use our counter attacking prowess.

- Homer to go for points at every opportunity. In Homer we have one of the most consistant kickers in consistent AP.

- Look to get our bench involved after 50 mins. Lahiff to come on to continue our solid scrummaging. Mafi to come on to control the lineout.

- Simpson to come on and change the tempo of the game, taking advantage of the Saints tiring pack. Identify mis matches and take advantage of them late on.

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Northampton Saints
Manager – SirJohnnyEnglish

01. Soane Tonga'uiha	09. Lee Dickson
02. Dylan Hartley	10. Johnny Sexton (k)
03. Paul Doran-Jones
04. Courtney Lawes	11. Vasily Artemiev
05. Samu Manoa	12. James Downey
06. Calum Clark	13. George Pisi
07. Tom Wood (c)	14. Chris Ashton
08. Kieran Read	15. Ben Foden

16. A.Waller 17. Haywood 18. Mujati 19. Day 20. Dowson 21. Roberts 22. Lamb 23. Clarke

General Game Plan:

We will use our strong carriers to attack gaps and half gaps in the Irish line, looking to offload in contact to support runners thus changing the point of attack and keeping our forward momentum going. Sexton will look to attack from first receiver and inject pace to the proceedings committing the Irish defence and leaving space in wider channels for our runners to exploit. If running the ball is not on our halfbacks will look to the boot to put us in the right areas

On defence, we will use a blitz defence coming up at pace looking to isolate the Irish ball carriers before they can get to the gain line stopping any momentum and allowing us to hit the breakdown harder. Lee Dickson will act as a sweeper to cover any grubbers or chips behind the line while our back three will sit deep ready to cover any kicks down the touch lines and counter attack at pace.

With the blitz in operation we will look to be at the breakdown first hitting it fast and hard. The first two players on scene will look to ruck past the ball and clear out the Irish players providing quick counter attacking ball to be cleared and used against a disorganised defensive line. If the ball does not look available we will commit less to the ruck and look to strengthen the defensive line

Key Points:

•Scrum

We will look to contest every engagement. On our own feed we will look to get the wheel on and create extra room for our 8-9-10 axis to work in. While on Irish feeds we will disrupt the put in looking for penalties or to create rushed, poor ball for the Irish halfbacks.

We feel we have the power to cause Corbs, on current form in particular, real problems and we want to draw plenty of penalties from him

•Lineout

With 5 jumpers on our ball we will look to use the lineout as an attacking platform similar to South Africa in recent years. We will use a full compliment and play the ball off the top allowing our halfbacks to get on the ball at pace with room outside.

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LONDON WASPS vs GLOUCESTER

Conditions - Light drizzle, no wind.

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London Wasps
Manager – Stnick88

01. Tim Payne	09. Micky Young
02. George Chuter	10. Nicky Robinson
03. Nicolas Mas
04. Matt Garvey	11. Tom Varndell
05. Marco Wentzel	12. Riki Flutey
06. Jonathan Poff	13. Jonathan Joseph
07. Julien Salvi	14. Alesana Tuilagi
08. Sergio Parisse	15. Hugo Southwell

16. Zak Taulafo 17. Ben Broster 18. Tom Lindsay 19. Richard Birkett 20. Tinus Du Plessis 21. Nic Berry 22. Danny Cipriani 23. Dominic Waldouck

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Gloucester

Manager – prop_lyd

01. Nick Wood	09. Dave Lewis
02. Darren Dawiduk	10. Tim Taylor (k)
03. Adam Jones
04. Will James	11. JSD
05. Alex Brown	12. Mike Tindall
06. Brett Deacon	13. Henry Trinder
07. Aliasdair Strokosch	14. Jonny May
08. Luke Narraway (c)	15. Iain Balshaw

16. Scott Lawson 17. Dario Chistolini 18. Rupert Harden 19. Jim Hamilton 20. Matt Cox 21. Rory Lawson 22. EFS 23. Pat Lambie

Tactics
*Big pack to gain advantage in the scrums with Jones moving them up on his side,
*Dominate the lineouts,
*Strike runners off 12-13 channel,
*Mess up the breakdown and slow their ball,
*Get quick ball and Tindall to hit up midfield before releasing the dangerous backs,
*Running rugby with a mobile back row,
*Bliz banana defence to stop the ball going past Robinson,
*Sharples and JSD to go looking for ball,
*Test new combos and use Lambie at 15 so he can come on not under as much pressure and learn the lines,
*Hard play up front + exciting play in the backs=Attractive rugby and a win.

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SARACENS vs HARLEQUINS

Conditions - Light winds, chilly.

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SARCENS
Manager – Luke

01. Matt Stevens	09. Morgan Parra (k)
02. Jamie George	10. Charlie Hodgson
03. Carlos Nieto
04. Steve Borthwick (c)	11. David Strettle
05. Mouritz Botha	12. Brad Barritt
06. Kelly Brown	13. Owen Farrell
07. Andy Saull	14. Joe Maddock
08. Jackson Wray	15. Alex Goode

16. Rhys Gill 17. Schalk Brits 18. John Smit 19. Hugh Vyvyan 20. Jacques Burger 21. Ben Spencer 22. Derick Hougaard 23. James Short

Tactics

- We will work as units and play a structured game. We will use the scrum and lineout as weapons.

- Attack the lineout as much as we can using the tactical kicking of Parra, Hodgson and Farrell. Borthwick to lead, supported by Botha, Brown, Saull and Wray.

- Call for scrums when we can if we are getting the advantage we expect to. Wray to control from the base.

- Look to all of our forwards to give us real go-forward with their carrying.

- Mix-up the first reciever options between Hodgson, Barritt and Farrell. All of our midfield are interchangable.

- Saull is the man charged with reaching the breakdown first, securing first phase possession for us and pilfering the possession of the opposition.

- Hodgson is given license to play the game as he sees it. We do ask that he uses our lineout ability to put pressure on the opposition, so a kicking game will be employed, but if he sees an opportunity to attack out wide - that is his call.

- Our back three are encouraged to do what they do best - counter attacking and running the ball back. All have good boots to rely on if it isn't on or they are isolated, but the counter is what we ask them to look for.

- Early on Parra to kick all penalites within range, but we won't necessarily go for the 3 points as the game progresses. Borthwick to make the call dependant on the success of the lineout.

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Harlequins

Manager – Driver

01.Joe Marler	09.Danny Care
02.Chris Brooker	10.Nick Evans
03.James Johnstone
04.Ollie Kohn	11.Adam Ashley-Cooper
05.George Robson	12.Jordan Turner Hall
06.Matt Kvesic	13.Tom Casson
07.Will Skinner	14.Miles Benjiman
08.Nick Easter (c)	15.Greg Goosen

16.Matt Cairns 17.Tim Fairbrother 18.Mark Lambert 19.Charlie Matthews 20.Chris Robshaw 21.Karl Dickson 22.Rory Clegg 23.George Lowe


Tactics

- In what is predicted to be a sunny day in Watford Quins have picked a team designed to play at a high tempo and move the ball.
- Evans will look to spread the ball along the line and give Casson , AAC , Benjiman and Goosen time on the ball.
- Plenty of Carrys in the tight from Marler , Brooker , Johnstone , Kohn , Kvesic and Easter to generate quick ball for Danny Care to test Sarries with making snipes , kicks and hitting Evans out wide.
- Plenty of offloads in the opposition half we want to play fast and furious and put them on the back foot.
- Goosen to move the ball on kicks and look to attack holes in the Sarries chase.
- Skinner to target the break down and look to disrupt Saracens ball.

Sale 12 - 19 Tigers
Tigers have a big lead in the pack here, but Sale win a couple of scrums against the head, pressurising Hawkins on his own put in. Sale defend doggedly and Wilko kicks points, but there isn't enough flair in the backs to supply a try. JOC looked a bit out of sorts in his first game in the NH, but it was his delayed pass that released gas man Wade for the game's only try.

Falcons 14 - 17 Worcestor
I have the Falcons winning the battle of the forwards. Some great players for the set piece game and tactics support this. Broussouw gets some space to disrupt and really pressurises the opposite 9, who lacks experience. Although set up well defensively, Nonu and Carter run riot against the drift defense. Nonu cuts back on the angle, drawing defenders. Morgan and Haskell help secure the breakdown and off quick ball, worcestor have a touch more out wide

Irish 15 - 26 Saints
Saints have a big advantage at the pack, some big carriers. Some monumental collisions in midfield, but the links in key positions are much better for the Saints. Irish have some talent on the wings, but Homer struggles for pace against his opposite numbers. Hape and Noon really stifle the options in midfield and I think there are enough big names to creat turnovers here, which gives quick ball to the danger men

Wasps 13 - 19 Gloucester
Wasps suffer from a real lack of direction here and it is difficult for all their new signings to gel. There is promise though and with the right coaching, they could have sneaked a win. Gloucester have so much form and pace in the backs, they are clinical when in opposition 22. Half backs get a real going over from Parisse and Salvi and against better teams, would have been punished by a lack of physicaltiy and dynamism 8 through 9 10. Really like the Tindall Trinder partnership though and look forward to Lambie moving to 10 in the future.

Sarries 24 - 23 Harlequins
A really hard one to judge, with both teams using squad players. The game was disjointed and it was difficult for the WC halfbacks on both sides to get this one going. Sarries dominated the lineout, Botha and Borth showing complimenting skills sets and with Nieto at scrum time giving his opposite man a lesson. George looked nervy early on and did over throw a few times, but Saull was alert to tidy up.

EXETER CHIEFS 16-19 BATH RUGBY

Chiefs can get an edge at the set piece with a great front 5 on show. In the back row Chiefs with a quality set of flankers just edging it for me. In the backs Camacho and Naqa give some quality to Chiefs but Bath stronger throughout really with Steyn a great signing. On the bench Franks and Attwood can stabilize the set piece somewhat.

Chiefs will keep Bath away from the ball for long periods but Bath will do a lot more with it when in possession and should see more ball late on with the subs on so pick up a tight win. (If home advantage was a factor this would possibly be looking at a draw for me)


SALE SHARKS 15-24 LEICESTER TIGERS

Edge at the set piece for Tigers here. Lack of form for Sheridan see Sale marked down in the front 5 somewhat. A good scrummaging TH is needed for Sale. Tigers with an edge in the back row as well with a good unit. Sale flanks a good combo but Powell not been great at 8 for me. Sale edge the halfbacks though with a top unit. Good back three’s from both sides but Tigers with some real quality in midfield. Some good options for Tigers to bring in from the bench (Sale a man short).

Tigers see more ball with a quality pack on show and have the danger men in the backs to pick up a good win.


NEWCASTLE FALCONS 9-16 WORCESTER WARRIORS

Falcons with an edge at the scrum in this one but lineout is fairly even. Quality 2nd row for Falcons sees their front 5 do more around the park. Falcons will poach a few turnovers from the flankers but some serious carrying ability for Worcester and Fasa will do a lot of unseen work. Back 3’s even but Carter and Nonu give Worcester an extra class in the backs. Wouldn’t consider Tait a 13 and Newcastle marked down for this. Benches fairly even but Goode and Allen can help Worcester edge out the game.

Both sides can see some good front foot ball in this one and Warriors just have more in the 10-12 axis in this one.


LONDON WASPS 20-24 GLOUCESTER

Set piece battle is fairly even here. Glaws scrum could get on top if Big Jim was on. Wasps with an edge in the back row with some great dealing done and will do well at the breakdown. Both back lines are strong but Balshaw at fullback could be got at with a good kicking game and Taylor/Tindall axis slows the attacking play a bit for Glaws. Bit more on the bench for Glaws with Lambie, Hamilton and EFS the main impact.

Wasps with a game plan would have picked up the win here with a quality side but no tactics sees a resilient Glaws side get a good win.


SARACENS 26-23 HARLEQUINS

Edge to Sarries at the set piece. They can get on top at scrum time and should poach a few line outs in Quins territory. Stronger flanks from Sarries but Easter the better 8 on show. Neither side will get a real advantage from the back row. Two quality sets of halfbacks on show. Sarries edge the midfield while both back 3s have quality. AAC the star man on show but good overall combo from Sarries. Sarries can get on top in the pack when the benches empty.

Sarries with a little more quality in the front 5 and midfield just edge what would be a very entertaining game.

Exeter 20-15 Bath
Think Exeter will dominate the forwards although Bath have some great talent on the bench.

Sale 14-21 Tigers
Tigers have just built an amazing team better in all areas imo.

Irish 21-27 Saints
Once again Saints have one of the best platforms to build off and have added well so Irish don’t have enough to beat them.

Wasps 19-23 Gloucester
Quite a close game, think a better bench for Gloucester nicks it

Sarries 26-26 Quins
Can’t separate the two sides, brilliant teams on show

Exeter 24 Bath 17

Exeter have a very strong pack, and i prefer their front 5 to Bath's. Exeter will dominate but will not score a try, instead they will get their points from penalties gained from their strong set piece and better territory. I think the breakdown will be evenly contested. Bath will score tries, due to their exciting backling and i fell Steyn and Vesty can target the Exeter 12 defensively. Exeter will dominate further when Bath change their halfbacks at the 60 min mark and will close out the game well.

Falcons 15 Worcester 20
With Gopperth at 10, Newcastle will always have very limited oppurtunities to score trys. I expect them to edge the forward battle, and i see Lund and Brussouw having a good day at the breakdown, but i don't the level of forward domination they will achieve will be anywhere near enough to stop the world class 10-12 axis that Worcester possess, and i expect them to have too much to close out the game. Agree with SJE not convinced with Tait at 13. And this will be exploited by Nonu and co.


Saints 25 Irish 18

Saints for me are superior all over the park, apart from the backrow, however the difference here isn't enough to change the course of the game. Shingler at 10 is a mistake IMO. All of his good form came in the centres. Up against Sexton he will struggle. The irish centres are very limited, which will limit the ball Losi will get. I think although Irish are good defensively they are not good enough to hold this saints team for 80 mins and when Mujati comes on for PDJ i expect Saints to get more of a handle on the set piece. Saints will socre trys and with Shingler kciking ball, it means Foden, Ashton and Artimiyev will have alot of ball to work with. Pococks ability to win penaties and Homer's boot keep Irish in this one.

Wasps 19 Glaws 25

I think Wasps will struggle due to the high number of new signings they have, meaning Glaws will play with greater fluency. Glaws have EFS and Lambie on bench who can change the game when they come on, so this leads to a Glaws win.

Sarries 26 Quins 20

I think Sarries have the advantage up front, and this will ultimately be the difference between the teams. Not overly convinced by Stevens at LH, but Nieto will destroy Marler in the scrum from TH. I like the ploy of playing two opensides in Kvesic and Skinner for Quins, as it will definetly slow Sarries ball down, but looking at Saints half backs i beleive the will be able to deal with this. The fact the 10/12/13 combo is proven was also anothe rreason i expect Sarries to win.

Can I do my predictions tonight?

Exeter 18-20 Bath
Sale 15-19 Tigers
Irish 23-27 Saints
Sarries 22-20 Quins
Newcastle 15-16 Worcester

6pm cut off mate

I should get them in for 5 like

I will aim to get mine in at lunchtime....may not be able to do explanaitions but feel free to message me questions. Had a manic weekend and i've got my student with me in work all day so need to act professionally!!

Ignore that she's just rung up sounding awful so she's in Thursday instead....will get them done soonish

Sale Sharks 15 Leicester Tigers 21
Lack of real life form for Sheridan and fourie cost Sale in the pack for me, where I see Leicester getting the upper hand and controlling the game, which gives them the paltform for their backs to play some decent rugby.

Newcastle Falcons 13 Worcester Warriors 19
Two fairly even packs, but just see more from Worcester in the backs which will see them win. Good side that ITFL has put together, could be a real outside contender for the play offs.

London Irish 15 Northampton Saints 24
Both sides have quality players, the major difference here for me is form, where Saints have players in form, and Irish have a lot of really out of form players and I can actually see this being a pretty one side match up as a result.

London Wasps 21 Gloucester 20
Very even game here, with nothing in it really across most of the field, but I give Wasps a very slight edge in the pack, in particular in the engine room of the second row, where I think they have great balance and that sees them win with the smallest margin.

Saracens 22 Harlequins 19
For me Saracens will get the edge in the set piece where I can see Nieto seriously getting on top of Marler. They have the players to use that platform and I can see Quins being denied enough attacking ball to hurt their opponents.

Exeter 15-12 Bath

Hooker and engine room just nick it for Exeter but Bath are kept in it with Donald and Vesty's kicking.

Sharks 20-24 Tigers

Fantastic battle with points galore, see the Tigers backline as more dangerous though but I love Sharks' 9-10.

Falcons 9-12 Worcester

Kicking duel here but with lack of tactics Warriors struggle to pull away. Servat will help Falcons come scrum-time.

Irish 14-20 Saints

Think the Saints back line will have a field day here.

Sarries 18-22 Quins

Saull will win the breakdown but Quins have the more potent back line here.

Exeter Chiefs 18 - 13 Bath

I can't see Bath getting a sniff in the front five, as the Exeter boys will dominate them here. This will provide a good source of ball for the efficient Steenson who then provides the backs. However Donald kicks Bath into useful situations, and Steyn provides good momentum through the backs.

Sale Sharks 15 - 26 Leicester Tigers

Ollie doesn't have much time to get in quality and find the combinations, but he has made a very good start. However it was unfortunate to come up against the Leicester juggernaut who look to be favourites this early on. The domination of the Tigers pack allows them to dictate the game.

London Irish 19 - 24 Northampton Saints

A close game, with both teams having great squads. The Irish have parity with the Saints in the pack, with lineouts and scrums being closely contested. But the backs of the Saints just edge with the control of Dickson and the creativity of Sexton and Pisi putting their runners through the holes.

London Wasps 20 - 24 Gloucester

Lack of tactics hurt Wasps, as they have a very good considering. The Cherry and Whites backline is exciting and scores them points. But the Wasps backline is also quite talented. But the already formed combinations just steal this one.

Saracens 23 - 21 Harlequins

Both squads are well rounded, but I can imagine Saracens just having enough to nick the result. The front as mentioned would benefit Sarries, but the balance to the Quins back-row and combining with the half-backs keep the Quins in tow of the Saracens.

Think I rested too many stars in the pack this week! Oops, ah well, only pre season

First game against the best team out their at the moment. Pooly is annoyingly very good at these games. And managed to build Newcastle up from an average team, to one of the best teams in the other games.

Only naming 7 on the bench as well

Exeter Chiefs 15 Bath 15
Sale Sharks 12 Leicester Tigers 20
Falcons 9 Worcester 10
London Irish 30 Northampton Saints 34
London Wasps 16 Gloucester 22

Won the AP last year with Falcons Oll....don't say anything to Pete though, he's still not talking to me lol

15 mins to go... Aaaaaah

Exeter 15 - 17 Bath

Exeter back row is rampant and makes it a tough day for Bath. Bath hold their own in the scrum and get good lineout ball. Lack of options behind the scrum for Exeter make them predictable though, and Bath take advantage of counter attack ball.

Sale 12 - 24 Leicester

See Leicester as dominating the set piece, and Warburton is a great buy who will get about the park and cause problems at the breakdown. A bit of spark in the back line also make this one comfortable for the Tigers.

Newcastle 23 - 15 Worcester

Lack of game plan from Worcester hinders them, especially away from home. The boot of Carter is just not enough. Newcastle have a strong pack and dominate the breakdown area, making useful ball for the Newcastle back line to use.

London Wasps 25 - 21 Gloucester

Difficult to separate these sides. Pretty even in the pack, but I feel Wasps have more in the back line to capitalise on their opportunities.

Saracens 19 - 13 Harlequins

Mature performance from Sarries. They deal with Quins threats adequately and Parra keeps the scoreboard ticking over. Skinner and Robson unlucky to be on the losing side.

Sorry mate...just missed it

Pooly, can you double check the score in my game please mate, I have it as different to what you have.

Missed Drivers scores Pete...think that should be right

Are pulls predictions counted?

Aye, let him off lol

I did think you was being a bit harsh with it only beiong one minute over!

You both know I so wouldnt of allowed them!!