Fantasy Aviva Premiership Round One

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Newcastle Falcons vs. Sale Sharks
Light rain, 15 degrees, 10mph winds.

Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Sgt Pooly

01. Soane Tonga'uiha	09. Ben Youngs
02. Rory Best	10. Toby Flood
03. Paul Doran-Jones
04. Brad Thorn	11. Alex Cuthbert
05. Paul O’Connell(c)	12. Sonny Bill Williams
06. Chris Robshaw	13. George Lowe
07. Heinrich Brussow	14. Tommy Bowe
08. Toby Faletau	15. Alex Goode

16. Lee Mears 17. Clement Ric 18. Alex Waller 19. Geoff Parling 20.Kelly Brown 21. Luke Burgess 22. Jaque Fourie 23. Miles Benjamin

Tactics

HOME ADVANTAGE – HIGH TEMPO, POSSESION, BIG CARRIES, PACK FOR CONDITIONS

WE’VE WON EVERY GAME AT HOME FOR OVER 2 SEASONS

Gameplan – Simple rugby, High intensity.......With the game in damp conditions we’ll be looking to control the set piece, pack and look to play in the right areas of the pitch. Flood will dictate play and will look to clear his lines from our own 22. We’ll look to put pressure on the opposition set piece throughout the game and we think we can get the upperhand in both scrum & lineout.

Defence – We’ll be deploying the rush defence looking to narrow the options for the oposition. Brussow will look to put pressure on Sexton throughout and force him to rush his game.

Set piece – Greasy conditions usually means plenty of knock ons which means plenty of scrums. We’ve went for a hefty scrummaging unit to really tear into Sale from the off. PDJ & Tonga will look to get secure a good platform and attack opposite numbers if on.

Engine room - Perfect combo for the damp conditions with both locks adding serious grunt to the scrum and massive physicality around the park. We'll look for pick and drives to punch holes in the Sale defence and tie in the oppsotion.

We’ll look for the take and drive on our own ball with Best/Thorn being the key men here. With 4 good jumpers and Paul O’Connell (one of the premier lineout locks in world rugby) pulling the strings we’ll keep things solid on our own throw whilst looking to target the opposition throw all game.

Pack – We’ve went for numerous carrying options in the pack and will look to use short pick and drives and keep things simple. Brussow & Robshaw will lead the assault and will also look to make a bit of a mess of the breakdown. With the poor conditions they’ll be plenty of opportunity to get hands in rucks and force turnover ball which will be used to force Sale retreating back.

Backs – Massive backline to help get us over the game line and punch holes in the opposition defence (SBW & Cuthbet in particular) SBW will look for flat straight simple passes from the halfbacks and get between the Sale 10/12 combo.

Goode will add a top draw tactical kicking option in the back 3 and look to hit the corners if weakness seen in the Sale lineout.

Subs – we’ll look to keep the pack refreshed and

KEY POINTS:

Front 5 - For the conditions to add physicality in the damp conditions
Carrying option - Numerous throughout side to get us over the game line
HOME RECORD - We have won every game for over two years at home
Impact bench - To see us home (Goode to cover 10 if needed)
Rolling maul - Look to use this to good effect throughout the game with our physical front 5

Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Jerome Schuster	09. Danny Care
02. Darren Dawidiuk	10. Johnny Sexton
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. Romain Millo Chluski	11. Craig Gilroy
05. Christian Day	12. Jordan Turner-Hall
06. Peter O'Mahony	13. Robbie Freuen
07. Fulgence Quedragao	14. David Strettle
08. Louis Picamoles	15. Jean-Marcellin Buttin

16. Lee Imolek 17. Tommy Taylor 18. Luc Ducalcon 19. Dave Attwood 20. Matt Kvesic 21. Ben Spencer 22. Beauden Barrett 23. Keith Earls

Attack

• We will look to play a fast paced attacking game using big carriers running of the 9/10/12 axis to get us over the gain line and generate quick ball.

• Keeping the ball alive is crucial so our carriers will be looking for support runners to hit on the offload to keep the ball moving and get us further over the gain line.

• Our back three will look to get involved as much as possible running support lines of the halfbacks and midfield looking for the inside ball or offload.

Set Piece

• With a powerful front 5 on show we will look to keep the scrum up and use it as a weapon. On our own feed we will look to get the wheel on and give our 8-9-10 axis as much more room as possible to attack from.

• In Falcons territory, with 5 jumping options to use, we will look to play off the top and move the ball out to Sexton and the backs.

• In our own territory, we will look to take the ball down into the maul and drive ourselves into the right areas.

Defense

• We will look to blitz aggressively, playing on the edge of the offside line and coming up at pace, looking to isolate the ball carrier and stop any Newcastle momentum before it can get going.

• Danny Care will play sweeper and cover any chips or grubbers behind the defensive line.

• We will leave two players sitting deep to cover any kicks and they will look to counter attack of any loose kicks.

Breakdown

• With the blitz in operation, we will look to be at the breakdown first hitting it hard and fast. If the ball looks available we will flood the breakdown with POM and Quedragao looking to get their hands on the ball.

• If the ball is not immediately available we will only commit 1 or 2 players to legally slow the ball down and instead look to strengthen the defensive line.

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Attack The Breakdown

• We have selected a mobile front 5 to get around the park and clear the ruck leaving our two specialist flankers, POM and Quedragao, to attack the breakdown.

2nd Half Scrums

• With the traditional front row substitutions to come on, Ducalcon will look to get at the link between Waller and Mears and really turn the screw in the final quarter.

Playing It Smart

• With no sweeper on the Falcons defense Sexton and Care will look to play it smartly and put grubbers in behind the Newcastle midfield and take advantage of the turn.

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Gloucester vs. Northampton Saints
Sunny Intervals, 17 degrees, 10mph winds.

Gloucester
Manager – Mat

01. Gurthro Steenkamp	09. Connor Murray
02. Joe Gray	10. Johan Goosen
03. Nicolas Mas
04. Tom Palmer	11. James Simpson-Daniel
05. Richie Grey	12. Juan de Jongh
06. Stephen Ferris	13. Richard Kahui
07. Alexandre Lapandry	14. Charlie Sharples
08. Imanol Harinordoqouy	15. Jonny May

16. Nick Wood 17. Jamie George 18. Rupert Harden 19. Julien Pierre 20. Jamie Heaslip 21. TJ Perenara 22. Ryan Lamb 23. Ian Balshaw

Glaws welcomes saints to our fortress. We are not in the habit of losing here and aim to maintain our proud record.

Tactics

- glaws to target scrum with mas and steenkamp huge scrummagers. Steenkamp in great form from end of last season and start of this one
- glaws to target lineout with hari gray and palmer looking to seize this as a key source of possession.
- glaws to use balk carriers to get on front foot. We aim to control the ball and our packs carrying is key to this. All are big carriers and in ferris gray hari and steenkamp we have some super dynamic ball carriers who will aim to put big dents in.
- by controlling the ball we control possession and we will be using this to get field position
- when forwards have got ball into good positon the ball will be released.
- in first half goosen will be looking to kick anything in his own half. We want to try and get at their lineout and want to either roll it in to touch or for them to kick and is gain possession.
- he will also look to send kahui down the centre channel and get forwards running around the corner to keep momentum going forward.
- as game progresses and gaps appear goosen will be looking to get our strike runners going and trying to isolate so may Guildford sharples etc can show their magic
- we will look to counter loose kicks and speed up play with quick throw ins when necessary-
-backrow will be looking to get at Phillips and gits who rarely plays ten theses days. We think his lack of length of kick will help us pressure them.
- goosen to kick at goal anywhere within 60 he has a huge boot. He will also look to occasionally take gits on as he is a great runner
- impact bench to keep the carrying measures game going.

- we will go wide when we have earned the right to
- HOME ADVANTAGE IS HUGE

Northampton Saints
Manager - Dammit Chris

01. Sona Taumalolo	09. Mike Phillips
02. Dylan Hartley	10. Matt Giteau
03. Carl Hayman
04. Bradley Davies	11. Leigh Halfpenny (k)
05. Courtney Lawes	12. Weslie Fofana
06. Dan Lydiate	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Julian Salvi	14. Chris Ashton
08. Sergio Parisse (c)	15. Ben Foden

16. Rob Webber 17. Thomas Domingo 18. Henry Thomas 19. Joe Launchbury 20. Julien Bonnaire 21. Joe Simpson 22. Danny Cipriani 23. Siti Siviatu

Overall

Saints to play an expansive, powerful game with a view of putting Gloucester on the backfoot and providing our backs with opportunities to attack space. Salvi, Lawes and Tuilagi all picked to get good turnover ball to turn into attack.

Aggressive defence to force Gloucester into mistakes and seek turnovers.

Get our forwards to work through the phases, tie in the Gloucester pack and use Fofana and Tuilagi to punch holes in the midfield to create space for our backthree to exploit.

Bench picked so can up the tempo in the final twenty minutes if needed.

Offence

The team remains virtually unchanged from the team that scored over 40 tries in the final ten games of last season – the only addition is Sona Taumalolo who is another try scorer. Will look for the forwards to get us over the gainline (Taumalolo, Lawes, Davies and Parisse) and the backs to up the tempo of the game and create chances.

Saints backline has been picked to play attacking rugby and take the game to Gloucester. Giteau is in very good form for Toulon (2tries at the weekend) and has been picked ahead of Cips and Ford because of the link up play he will bring with Fofana and Tuilagi.

Salvi picked as no7 to provide the link between forwards and backs – with the whole backline showing good form at the end of last season (Ashton also got a hattrick versus Stade Francais last week).

Defence

Stopping Gloucester gainline breakers is key – Lydiate to marshall Richie Gray from the off and just knock him down each time he gets the ball.

Look to put in an aggressive, controlled defence with Lawes, Lydiate the main force in the pack and Fofana and Tuilagi creating a wall in the midfield. Aim to pressurise Gloucester and push for handling errors and seek turnovers to attack from.

Set Piece

Really strong scrum, improved on last season – try and put a lot of pressure on Joe Grey here and use the scrum as an attacking platform for Parisse and Phillips.

Lineout is very functional and will hold its own, but we have picked Bonnaire on the bench to come on if Gloucester’s lineout gains an edge, but should be even due to difference in Joe Grey and Dylan Hartley’s experience at hooker.

Key Points

- Very settled team, only one new addition to the starting lineup from last season.

- Look to see whether we can exploit Joe Grey as hooker for Gloucester with experience of Hartley and then Rob Webber from the bench.

- Aim to dominate the breakdown with Salvi and with Lawes, Lydiate and Tuilagi clearing out the Gloucester players and play aggressively trying to force mistakes.

- Use big ball carriers to get us over the gainline and then get the ball to our backline, each player is a potential match winner from 9-15 and conditions will suit us very well.

- Take all points on offer with Halfpenny’s boot from halfway line.

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London Welsh vs. Leicester Tigers
Sunny Intervals, 16 degrees, 10mph winds.

London Welsh
Manager – Ozzy3213

01. Alex Corbisiero	09. Morgan Parra
02. Bismarck du Plessis	10. Owen Farrell
03. Adam Jones
04. Dean Schofield	11. Luke Fitzgerald
05. George Skivington	12. Jonathan Davies
06. Thierry Dusautoir ©	13. Darren Cave
07. Maurie Fa’asavalu	14. Andrew Trimble
08. Duane Vermeulen	15. Tom Homer

16. Chris Whitehead 17. Brett Sturgess 18. David Wilson 19. Rynhardt Elstadt 20. Tom Johnson 21. Tomas O’Leary 22. Gavin Henson 23. Ross Chisholm

Tactics

Basic Game Plan

Basic tactical premise for us to control possession and be solid defensively. Focus will be on winning the gainline collisons in both attack and defence. In order to do this we have picked a very big pack to try to physically dominate this area of the game. We will look to apply pressure to Tigers by keeping the ball for long periods and wearing them down defensively, and also by maintaining a solid defence and denying them opportunities to get on the score board. Pressure forces mistakes, and we will look to capitalise on any that Leicester make.

Attacking specifics

• Play off 9. Parra to pull the strings and get big carriers hitting the gainline at pace.
  
• Carriers to look to hit gaps and keep the ball alive by offloading to support runners.
  
• Support runners to ruck past the ball quickly if the carrier goes to ground in order to secure quick ball to go again.
  
• All opportunities for points with the boot to be taken by Parra, Farrell or Homer as appropriate (penalties or drop goals).
  
• If at any time we feel that we are in danger of conceding a turnover then Parra or Farrell will use their boot to kick for touch deep in Tigers territory.
  

Defensive specifics

• Darren Cave will be defensive captain (he fulfils this role for Ulster)
  
• We will look to play a blitz defence with quick line speed to hit the ball carrier before he gets to the gainline and knock him back even further.
  
• We will not overcommit to the breakdown. If a turnover is on, we will go for it, otherwise we will legally slow the ball and maintain a solid defensive line to blitz from.
  
• Maintain discipline and do not give away penalties.
  
• We will look to get our forwards who are defending the fringes through onto Yachvili and Wilkinson quickly to pressurize them into mistakes.
  

Set Piece specifics

• Dean Schofield to pack down behind Adam Jones to provide a solid base.
  
• George Skivington to call the lineout and look to vary it up calling short ones in attacking areas with big runners coming into midfield.
  

Key Points

• Home advantage. I cannot stress this enough. It would be a big day for the club and that in itself tends to raise performance levels a few percent from players.
  
• We have a massive, but mobile pack in order to effect our gameplan of controlling the gainline.
  
• We have a backline that is extremely solid defensively in the belief that if we can stop the opposition from scoring points it will build pressure on them which causes mistakes that we can capitalise on.
  
• We have less star names than Tigers, but rugby is not always about star names, it's about honest hard work and cohesive units, which we have across the board.
  
• Our defensive system at the breakdown allows us to be strong around the fringes and get through quickly to pressurise Yachvili and Wilkinson, neither of whom offer a particular running threat these days. If we can do this and force Wilkinson to sit deep away from the gainline, then it negates a lot of the attacking threat from the Tigers backline, who all thrive playing outside of a 10 that sits flat and creates space for them.
  
• By our tactics we are in effect turning this into a big physical battle, which we believe we have the players to win.
  
• If we are going well, we will not just unload our bench for the sake of it. Fresh legs will be brought on if required, or replacements would be tactical. If we are on top we want to maintain continuity rather than risk losing the flow of the game by making changes.
  
• I know people will highlight two areas as weakensses, the engine room and lack of attacking threat out wide. Clearly you will make up your own minds on that, but I will just say this. Schofield and Skivington are not glamourous, but they are very good players. Skivington has 3 Premiership and 2 Heineken Cup winners medals, and this engine room has grunt and lineout ability and will do the dirty work all day long. Trimble and Fitzgerald out wide, whilst not as pacy or flashy as people like Bryan Habana or Cory Jane, can, and do score tries and are experienced international wingers. Defensively they are also both fantastic and have the ability to negate their opposite numbers attacking threat.
  

Leicester Tigers
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

01. Gethin Jenkins	09. Dimitri Yachvili
02. Sebastien Bruno	10. Jonny Wilkinson (k)
03. Dan Cole
04. Pascal Pape	11. Ugo Monye
05. James Horwill (c)	12. Maxime Mermoz
06. Tom Croft	13. Brian O'Driscoll
07. Sean O'Brien	14. Vincent Clerc
08. Thomas Waldrom	15. Isa Nacewa

16. Andrew Sheridan 17. Tom Youngs 18. Brian Mujati 19. Simon Shaw 20. Francois Louw 21. Micky Young 22. Billy Twelvetrees 23. Rene Ranger

Tactics:

We will play to our strengths and play a game built around our intelligent HB's moving us into the right areas and the strength of our lineout in an effort to get our electric backline into space

- Attack the scrum as a weapon - Cole and Bruno to really look to get the shove on against Corbs and BdP.

- Target the lineout all game. Our lineout is led by Horwill, using Croft as our banker ball, and with Pape and SOB as our other options.
With Yachvili and Wilkinson, we will look to get the ball deep in Welsh territory and contest all lineouts.

- Use the massive line-breakers we have to tire down the Welsh defence.
The likes of Waldrom and SOB used off the shoulder at pace off 9/10 crashing through the Welsh defence.

- In general attacking play, we will play off 9 with Yachvili our general pulling the strings. We want Yach and Wilko to control the game, mixing up the point of our attack and looking for where the gaps are.

- Look to play attacking rugby in the backs. Mermoz to use his razor sharp running to pick holes. We want to give BOD time on the ball to release Nacewa, Clerc and Monye into space.
Croft to look to link with our backs and get into space to cause trouble out wide.

- Unload our powerful bench to impact the game in the last 20/30 minutes.

- Wilkinson to kick all penalites.


Key Points:

Lineout:

With two of the best tactical HB's around in Yachvili and Wilkinson, we will tirelessly target the lineout throughout the game. Croft is one of the best banker balls in world rugby, and we have a true lineout leader in Horwill that Welsh significantly lack.

Home advantage:

This usually counts for some points in my eyes. But today Welsh are playing their first game at the Kassam Stadium, so there is no familiarity to the surroundings for the Welsh players. One end of the stadium is open, and this extra wind will take time to get used to.

Continuity and familiarity:

London Welsh have just undergone a huge overhaul, with countless new players and a new manager. And a new stadium. In all honesty this sort of transition takes time, and the players will need a while to settle into their team and their environment. Our side sees just 3 changes to one that could have played last season.

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Saracens vs. London Irish
Cloudy, 18 degrees, 9mph winds.

Saracens
Manager – Driver

01.Matt Mullen	09.Paul Hodgson
02.George Chuter	10.Paddy Jackson (K)
03.Ben Tameifuna
04.Lionel Nallet	11.Tim Visser
05.Ali Williams	12.Yannick Jauzion
06.Allesandro Zanni	13.Henry Trinder
07.Ross Rennie	14.Mark Cueto
08.Joe Van Nikirk (c)	15.Rory Lamount

16.John Smit 17.Max Lahiff 18.Hoani Tui 18.Phil Dowson 19.Luke Narraway 20.Lloyd Williams 21.Tom Catterick 22.Chris Bell

Tactics

Saracens will play an aggresive game with a experienced front 5 with plenty of power coming from the back 5 in the scrum and a front row with plenty of nouse. Our game will be build around a high intensity carrying game with Mullen , Chuter , Big Ben , Nallet , Zanni , Rennie and JVN all strong ball carriers and will look to carry off Hodgson at the base of rucks and force Irish to defend the fringes and give Hodgson and Jackson time on the ball to make the right decision whether to bring his backs into play or punt the ball for territory.

• In the contact we will look to ruck past the ball instead of going for the typical fetcher at 7 to allow Rennie to focus on his carrying game and work in the loose.
  
  
• Ali Williams is widely recognized as one of the best lineout operators in the world with JVN and Zanni pretty handy in the air and will look to put plenty of pressure on Muller in the Irish lineout with Elsom the other jumper having no real life form to speak of.
  
  
• drift defence with Jauzion leading this with the fringe defense forcing the attack wide and the ball to there wingers in narrow space and surrounded by defenders

London Irish
Manager – stnick88

01. Matt Stevens	09. Julien Dupuy
02. Tom Lindsay	10. Nick Evans
03. Martin Castrogiovanni
04. Matt Garvey	11. Sailosi Tagicakibau
05. Johann Muller	12. Luke McAllister
06. Rocky Elsom	13. Conrad Smith
07. Steffon Armitage	14. JP Pieterson
08. Pierre Spies	15. Delon Armitage

16. Grant Shiells 17. James Buckland 18. WP Nel 19. Nick Kennedy 20. Hendrie Fourie 21. Neal De Kock 22. Shane Geraghty 23. Sireli Naqalevuki

Tactics

- Play a fast paced, attacking game

- Get as much good ball to our backs and get them running at Saracens.

- Target the breakdown, get Armitage in there quickly to snaffle opposition ball and secure our own ball

- Use Muller as our main lineout jumper, supported by Garvey and Spies. Muller to disrupt as much opposition ball as possible.

- Stevens has been selected for his mobility round the park. We dont expect too many scrums in good conditions so we want to be lively in the loose and use big carriers like Stevens, Lindsay, Elsom, Spies, Armitage to smash over the gain line.

- Evans to pull the strings and use Mac as a 2nd playmaker.

- Evans to kick all in range pens for goal to keep score board ticking over.

- Put pressure on young Jackson. We will look to put pressure on him and try and force him in to mistakes to disrupt Sarries rhythm.

- Look to spread the ball out wide and get our back 3 involved. We want to get JP, Tagi and Delon 1 on 1 v there opposing numbers as we have the pace and finishing abilities to score tries.

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London Wasps vs. Harlequins
Cloudy, 16 degrees, 7mph winds.

London Wasps
Manager – ‘Arry

01. Ben Daley	09. Mike Blair
02. Sean Cronin	10. Rhys Preistland (k)
03. Carlos Nieto
04. Mouritz Botha	11. Matt Banahan
05. Marco Wentzel (c)	12. Brad Barritt
06. Steve Mafi	13. George Pisi
07. Dewald Potgieter	14. Topsy Ojo
08. Roger Wilson	15. Mike Brown

16. Nathan Morris 17. Charlie Beech 18. CJ Van Der Linde 19. Samu Manoa 20. Jonathan Poff 21. Haydn Thomas 22. Steven Myler 23. Dan Hipkiss

Tactics
In attack we will look to our forwards to carry hard, attacking gaps in the Quins defensive line, getting us over the gain line and onto the front foot. We will ensure our carriers have plenty of support to offload to, so we can continue our attacks and keep Quins working in defence. We will look to hit the contact area hard and win the collisions, we intend to carry with plenty of intensity and have high physicality levels so we can get onto the front foot and set out a platform for our backs to build from.

Line speed and aggression is key for us in defence, we will try and prevent Quins from having time on the ball by having quick line speed and tackling their carriers before they reach the gain line, knocking them back and forcing them into mistakes, where we can try and get turnovers and exert pressure on them. If the ball looks like it is there to be won, we will look to get good numbers to the breakdown, with the first few players rucking past the ball to clear out the Quins players. Barritt and Pisi will be the focal point in defence looking to quell the Quins attacks by knocking them backwards.

We will look to use the set piece as a platform to build from, on our own ball we will look to turn the scrum legally to erase the Quins back row from helping out in defence before starting our own attacks. We will look to exert pressure on the Quins scrum on their ball and look to win penalties. At the lineout Wentzel will be our main go to man, we will also look to use Mafi at the tail of the lineout where we can launch attacks from and get our big centers running down the Quins fly half channel.

We will look to control possession and be patient, recycling the ball through several phases with Blair controlling our play. If there is space behind the Quins wingers we will look to kick in behind them and put pressure on them with a good chase game. Barritt will look to take contact and give us potential line breaking options with Pisi running good outside lines, we will attack gaps and half gaps in the Quins defensive line with Banahan coming in off his wing as a second crash ball option, looking to suck in Quins defenders to open up gaps elsewhere for our backs to exploit.

Harlequins
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Joe Marler	09. Lee Dickson
02. Schalk Brits	10. Greg Laidlaw (k)
03. John Afoa
04. Bakkies Botha	11. Yoann Huget
05. Steve Borthwick	12. Jamie Roberts
06. Tom Wood	13. Jonathan Joseph
07. Sam Warburton (c)	14. Taku Ngwenya
08. Dave Denton	15. Rob Kearney

16. Matthew Rees 17. Mako Vunipola 18. Kieran Brookes 19. James Gaskell 20. Carl Fearns 21. Karl Dickson 22. Felipe Contepomi 23. Florian Fritz

Tactics


Game Plan

Patience with ball in hand and play what is in front of us. Use big carriers to break holes in the Wasps defence off 9, 10 and in the midfield. Once we have attracted defenders in the midfield we can look to put JJ and our wingers into space as they have pace to burn in the wide channels.

We will look to play at a quick tempo, controlled by Dickson and Laidlaw, as this will play into our hands with our big yet mobile pack. This will make it very difficult for wasps to organise there defence and we can take advantage of this disorganisation. We will not look to rush things but will look to play a quick tempo when we can. Huge difference between rushing and playing at tempo. A quick tempo requires us to be honest at rucks and hit them hard therefore meaning we don't have to over commit at ruck time. We feel we have the men to do that

Forwards

Pack to carry at pace and to hit their lines on different angles and at depth. We will look to carry with support so as to offload if the option is there and to recycle the ball quickly after contact. We will look to go into contact on our terms (in both attack and defence). This means driving the legs after the initial collision to keep momentum. This gives our other players an easier target to hit at ruck time. If the offload is on then we will look for it but will not be looking for miracle balls.

At the set piece we will look to control. Steve Borthwick will call our lineout in both defence and attack. We will look to use short lineouts when we can as to release Denton and Warburton to attack the midfield. In defence we will use Borthwick to mark their prime jumper and Wood and bakkies to mark the front and back of the lineout. At the scrum we will look to put squeeze on. Two powerful scrummagers at prop looking to milk Wasps for penalties. With Bakkies behind Afoa we can really look to get under the Wasps loosehead.

At rucks we want quick ball. We will look for all of our players to ruck if they are in the vicinity (ie 1-15 will ruck should they be required and they are the first men there). Quick ball is vital to us so we need to be effective at the ruck.

Aggression in our pack is vital. We need to really knock the Wasps pack backwards so as to affect there attacking game and slow down there ball.

Backs

Half backs perfect for controlling the game. Both perfectly able to play at a quick or slow tempo and able to play a running or a tactical kicking game. They will make sure we are playing the right rugby at the right time in the right part of the pitch. In the midfield Roberts will look to attack the inside shoulders of the Wasps defence and look to offload to JJ who will be running support lines. In Roberts we have a man who will attract defenders and outside him we have the men to exploit the gaps which will be created. Our blindside winger will come looking for work and to exploit gaps that may be there in the broken field. Kearney to join the line at pace and to look to cut different angles.

Defence

Quick line speed, two men tackles when we have the numbers. One man takes the legs and the other looks to get the ball. We are really looking to build pressure on Wasps by being physical in defence and pressing at speed.

Warburton to look to dominate the breakdown and milk it for pens and turnovers.

Key Points

- Quick ball. When we get it we look to play at a fast tempo. Use big carriers in the pack and backline to punch holes and make it hard for the Wasps defence to reorganize at our quick tempo.

- When we have committed Wasps defenders we will look to get the ball wide. Quick ball and our danger runners outside should see us get some tries.

- Aggressive and disruptive upfront. Get in the faces of the Wasps pack which we think lacks aggression. Pressure on at scrum and lineout with Borthwick marking Wentzel and Wood and Botha looking to pick off other jumpers.

- Carrying in numbers is vital so as to win the ruck quickly or to have support ready to receive an offload to continue our attacking momentum.

- Keep our discipline. Vital to not give away penalties and relieve pressure on Wasps.

- Take points when we get the chance. We want to score tries but we need to win the game first.

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Worcester Warriors vs. Bath Rugby
Cloudy, 16 degrees, 10mph winds.

Worcester Warriors
Manager - prop_lyd

01. Nathan Catt	09. Dwayne Peel (c)
02. Gary Botha	10. Tom Heathcote
03. BJ Botha
04. Ollie Kohn	11. James Short
05. Jim Hamilton	12. Regan King
06. Ryan Jones	13. Matt Hopper
07. Justin Tipuric	14. Julien Malzieu
08. Mamuka Gorgodze	15. Ollie Morgan

16. Richardt Strauss 17. Paul James 18. Chris Budgen 19. Tom Savage 20. Ben Morgan 21. Eion Reddan 22. Olly Barkley 23. Rob Cook

Tactics

We are aiming to hit the ground running this season with a new and exciting brand of confrontational forwards with pace and flair in the backs. Peel is an apt captain with the experience and go-forward drive in his game


Forwards

*Heavy front row who will look to dominate the set piece and we have experience on the bench to come on and do similar.

*2^nd rows are two confrontational characters who will look to get on top of the breakdown and battle hard when it comes to the lineout. We won’t go backwards with these two.

*Backrow are breakdown specialists with Jones and Tips both terrorising here and Gordogzde providing brute strength off the back of the scrum and off the backs, again the bench provides more go forward with Morgan.


Backs

*Peel to marshall and Heathcote to aim for corners when under pressure but to release King when possible, he will go for goal when in range.

*King to release Hopper who will have a winger on his shoulder at all times and also look for Gorgodze to break through the defence, Hopper is an exciting runner and will look to take it close off King then drag the defence wide.

*A fast back 3 here who will always look for work and are strong in defence and under the high ball, on the bench we have Cook who is an excellent goal kicker and steady in defence.


Defence

*King to lead this.

*Jones/Higgs to be on 10’s shoulder looking to wrap the ball up.

*Contest at the breakdown and all set piece.

*No silly penalties anymore!

Bath Rugby
Manager – inthefastlane

01. Cian Healy	09. Richard Wigglesworth
02. Chris Brooker	10. Charlie Hodgson
03. Davit Kubrashvilli
04. Louis Deacon	11. George North
05. Graham Kitchener	12. Anthony Allen
06. Brad Shields	13. Aurelien Rougerie
07. David Pocock	14. Maxime Medard
08. James Haskell	15. Stuart Hogg

16. Charlie Faumuania 17. Will Tanner 18. Euan Murray 19. Tom Donnelly 20. David Seymour 21. Fourie Du Preez 22. Rob Miller 23. Isiah Toeava

Overall: Look to dominate in the scrum and use that as a platform to really bring our backs in who will be looking to run at the defence with bad intentions.

Forwards: We will really look to attack and come out on top of the scrum. We have two of the best props in Europe in Kubrashvilli and Healy and we feel we can really punish the Warriors scrum, pushing them backwards. Haskell with look to control it at the back. With our second row partnership we are looking at Louis Deacon to provide the grunt necessary and offering the banker ball while Graham Kitchener will be trying to retain our lineout something we feel he is very capable of doing.

We will be looking for big carries from the forwards with the likes of Shields, Haskell and Healy dangerous runners who can really create gaps for our backs. At the breakdown we will look for David Pocock and Brad Shields to win turnover ball or manage to slow down opposition ball. They will both be looking to cause as much trouble as possible. We will be looking for lots of energy from our forwards to open up holes to be exploited.

Backs: We will be looking to play running rugby with the ball in our hands. Using our forwards to create space we will look for quick ball and get the likes of Medard, Hogg and North who are all deadly runners, running at the Worcester defences. Wigglesworth will control the tempo of the backs and will look to keep the backs calm and composed.. Hodgson will also be looking to get involved in the play along with Allen + Rougerie all of who can dangerously run.

Defence: Look to wrap the defensive line and try to put pressure onto King who we feel is their key playmaker. If he is stopped a lot of the pressure will go onto the young shoulders of Tom Heathcote.

Substitutes: We have some really good options on the bench who we feel can really add to the game. Faumuania is one of the most exciting props in the world who can add power to the scrum as well as being a threat in open play. He will backed on the other side of the scrum by Murray who can do some damage.. Donnelly Is another option who can sure up our lineout. Seymour another if he comes on will look to really get at the breakdown and use his energy. FDP is another quality player who will look to control our tempo. Miller + Toeava will look to come on late and add to our running game.

---

I would have had Alex Payne from the sky studio above Payne on a lions tour!!

Payne a dependable scrummager and player but a lion???? Payne in a good team works as he does a job. If you are trying to win a game and throw the kitchen sink at it and need an impact sub he is not your man.

Arry I think you are just missing the SH men in your pack.

You lose Robinson, TPN, Dennis and Gill in your pack. I can tell you now if you'd had those players for our game then I think you'd be coming close to a win.. I am only missing Cooper, Faainga, Hooper, Crockett, Franks and Woodcock, and realistically only Cooper would definately start for me out of those had they have been availible.

Should we meet in the 6N I suspect you would take a win from me at home.

Don't give up just yet. See if you can get some loans in to cover you for the RC and then see how the rest of the season leaves you.

Your best side of

1. Robinson
2. TPN
3. Nieto
4. Botha
5. Wentel
6. Dennis
7. Gill
8. Manoa/Mowen
9. Blair
10. Preistland
11. Ojo
12. Barritt
13. Pisi
14. Banahan
15. Brown

is very decent. Big seasons from a few of your fringe players and Bowden storming it for Tigers and your doing well.

Agree with Steve think Samoa at 4 maybe to add carrying and zebo instead of
Banahan. To be fair I
Would pick Ian Brady and Fred west above banahan but I am a one eyes glos
Fan !

If he was marked as a rugby player out of 10 he'd be a 5 all day , don't get much more average than him. Won't let you down , lose games but won't win games. He's the Mike Harris of props.

Harris wins 1 game in his life and it happens to be for Aus against Wales.

Falcons 18 Sale Sharks 17
Falcons have a edge in front 5 with Sale picking big scrummagers , Zirka would give Tonga some probs but Tonga is one of top LHs in world for me. Back rows are pretty split with Robshaw on par with POM and Brussouw shading Quedrago with Pickles just better than Falatau.
Half backs both proven in this league but Youngs is better 9 and Flood similer to Sexton. Not a fan of JTH or Freuun (Freeun struggled with out SBW) , SBW is on fire at the minute and Lowe would be a tricky attacker with clever footwork , back 3 Falcons better for conditions with Cuthbert a rock under high ball and Bowe good all round , Goode has great brain and i'v not seen much of Buttin Johnny. Can't see much getting through Sale's backs though so very hard to break down.

Gloucester 20 Nothampton 22

See Saints on top in front 5 , Saints better at 1 and 2 with Mas best TH in world when on form , Davies very underated real enforcer and Lawes does plenty in tight , Palmer by own admission in real world is not fit. Glaws take back row except at 8 with Parrise shading Hari. Lapandry will dominate lineout but Salvi will take the urine on the deck.
Phillips against Murry would turn into a fisty cuff after a while so could see this disrupting rhythem , Giteau needs to play 10 in real life to be rated there , Goose been out a while so not rated as a high as he would fit. But perfare Phillips to Murrey at 9. Centres to Northampton with Plenty of Power and a well balanced back 3 outside , JSD not up to this level , not 100% on May at 15. Sharples good on wing

Will do rest tomorrow , rents away and must look after cats and what not.

Driver You are first person ever to notice Lapandry as a lineout forward I salute you! JSD is the Second coming of Christ and we should all follow whatever he says!!!

Looking after cats ??? I have a new dog and 2 cats ( not keen on them but they came with the wife) cats take no looking after most selfish animals in world. Watching rugby club eulogising about palmers skills as a 2 nd row!

London welsh 19-21 Leicester tight game. It's welsh first game and the fire of this makes them come out strong. They also come on the back of good form. Lots of promoted sides start well so take this into account.

Good tactics both playing percentages and patience. Sarries want to keep the ball and win front row. Bruno terrible last year. Corbs biz and jones best unit in league

Leicester take engine room but welsh pair great grafters and good pairing.

Welsh take backrow just with croft being out a while
Still being rated and sob in form
With Waldrom. Would swap dus to 7 and fas to 6 pete. Great backrow clash both top units. Fas tremendous player .

Half backs even. Both solid and great kicking.

Leicester backline more threat and big names. Their bench seal it. Can't see welsh back 3 being hard to defend and at top level chances need to be taken think homer and Crew butcher a few and Leicester win.

They usually no bother but the older one (18 years) has devoloped a tumour in her belly so needs a bit more attention with her diet and the other is just daft as rags and falls off the couch when she's asleep a lot

My dog sleeps 20 hours a day yet can't be left on his own. Costs me a fortune in dog care yet just sleeps there. Leave him
On his own destroys the house.

Cats live for ages both mine 7-11. That's a long innings for a big dog. Rescued an 7 year old weimeraner after the last
One went. Lucky if he goes to 10

Saracens 22–22 Irish

Good upfront battle with Sarries having a little more in the front 5 overall, good units though. Again a good backrow battle and hard to separate, Elsom struggling for rating but still holds a decent amount. Halfbacks a class above for Irish and see them edging the backs also. I think Sarries have better in the pack but Irish the backs.

Wasps 22–20 Harlequins

Another good contest. Prefer Quins front row but think Wasps edge the engine room as a unit with Borthwick not quite settled in as a main lineout op (will take a few weeks). Quins stronger at 7/8 but hard to rate Wood with him out most of year. Wasps a class up at halfback and one a piece in 2 good centre combo’s. Prefer Wasps back 3 as a unit but Kearney prob standout for Steve. Home advantage just sees Wasps through in a tight affair.

Worcester 20–21 Bath

Another really close game. Bath stronger in the pack although Deacon struggling for rating a little. Bath backs win this one and are really set out well. Prop misses Steyn to steer him though these tight games but a really good game with Bath coming away with a really tough win.

What happened to the no patter rule during predo's????

Turned into a bit of a free for all!

Thanks for the feedback Steve, I'll stick it out for a while longer and see what happens, it's just frustrating at times

Also thanks mat for the ideas and comments

Newcastle Falcons 20 – 18 Sale Sharks
Very close battle in the packs, prefer the combinations from the Falcons, really like the experience they have in the second row. Think Robshaw suits these conditions perfectly, back row close Faletau lacking form but still see Falcons coming out on top in this area. Prefer the Sale half backs, but I don’t see JTH or Fruean really causing much damage, think Falcons will nullify them. Think that the Falcons have that extra quality in the backline to progress to an opening victory.

Gloucester Rugby 20 – 23 Northampton Saints
Pick of the games for me, plenty of power for Gloucester in the pack, but I think Saints can match them. Engine room goes to Mat though, Lawes injured with no form so hard to judge. Back row battle very close, prefer the experience of the Gloucester trio. Back line goes to Chris, really like Fofana and Tuilagi, good names in Mat’s backline but rather mixed up, prefer JDJ at outside centre. Think the continuity and balance of the Saints side also helps.

London Welsh 23 – 20 Leicester Tigers
I think Pete would have his side massively fired up and ready to go in this encounter, his players would definitely be well up for it and raise their performance levels. Big pack on show from London Welsh and it will be a very physical battle, really like the London Welsh back row, they will be the men who really stick it to Tigers. Prefer the Tigers back line, plenty of spark, but I see London Welsh bullying their way onto the front foot in the forward battle and I think Tigers will really be pushed back.

Saracens 23 – 21 London Irish
Two good units on show up front, think Sarries win the forward battle with some big, experienced players like Nallet and JVN leading the way. Elsom at 6 really is too hard to judge form wise as he has gone off the rails. Big fan of Rennie, can see him winning Saracens plenty of ball. Big ball carriers in the backline for Saracens that will create some gaps, Irish have more spark but I think Saracens will grind it out up front and earn quite a few penalties.

Worcester Warriors 21 – 23 Bath Rugby
Very close encounter, Bath just stronger in the pack, with some very physical units. Really strong backline on display too, plenty of variation in attack and I don’t see Heathcote being able to control the Warriors play like Hodgson who will be calling the shots with some fizzed passes for the likes of North and Rougerie.

The same theme will run through all of my predictions through the season. Star names only carry so much weight with me, particularly if they are out of form. I am looking for who players fit into the team and system and would the tactics employed suit those players. I will also be looking at who wins the key battles, which during the winter months if the weather is bad,as well as the battle at the gainline.

Newcastle Falcons 18 Sale Sharks 25

Lots of good players in both packs, but in terms of form I see some issues with Falcons, where PDJ is not first choice at his club, and Tiny only had an average season last time around. Likewise POC is not the force he was 2 years ago, and Brussow had a poor Super Rugby season. Faletau also tailed off in the second half of last season. If all at peak form it is a wonderful pack, but at the moment I don't see it that way. Sale have less big names in there, but I really like their pack. The front row will scrum hard, and I like the back row with 2 very dynamic flankers and a big carrying number 8. Right now I see the Sale pack putting them really on the front foot here.

In the backs, Youngs and Flood is tried and tested and we know it works well together. I do like to see real life combos in this game, and that's a big plus for Falcons here. I will judge Youngs on his most recent performances at this stage, and his last game for England he was good, so he gets that rating here, but he needs to come back to fitness soon or that will start to drop. For Sale, I think care and Sexton would work, and Sexton could really flourish as Care keeps back rows honest with his little breaks, which will give Sexton time to play. I am with Mat on the SBW issue in this game. To play 2 internationals in Aus and NZ in the space of 8 days, then fly halfway across the world the jet lag and fatigue would be immense and I don't see any way that he would really have played here. That being the case I can only rate him at 50% (bringing him down to the level of mere mortal) in this game. Two good backlines, both of whom have the potential to score tries. Falcons have a bit more impact off the bench.

Overall I just think the Sale pack would boss this game, and if it was at Salford City Stadium I would have them very comfortably winning this. At Kingston Park I have to give Falcons some credit for home advantage, but it's still a comfortable win for Sale.


Gloucester 27 Northampton Saints 27

Really tough call actually this game. Again on paper two very good packs. Couple of issues for me in both. For Gloucester, not sure if Palmer and Gray works as a pair. Could do, but not 100% sold on it, will be watching them both closely in the first few weeks of the season to make my mind up. For Saints, Lawes has been out a while so no form to speak of really, and with Davies and Lawes in the engine room it puts a lot of responsibility on Parisse for running the lineout as well as captaining the side. I don't see them stealing any Gloucester ball there, although they should be solid enough on their own throw. Mat's gameplan is set around his packs ability to carry and secure the ball whilst making ground. They have the players to do this, but Saints also have the players to stop them doing this, with some excellent defensive players in the pack, the standout being Lydiate who will tackle forever. Saints have the form man across the packs in Taumalolo who is just off of a stunning Super Rugby season, and if Saints get near the Gloucester tryline he has shown that he is very difficult to stop from going over.

Both sets of backs are very good, with lots of tries in them. Defensively possibly one or two issues in the Gloucester back three, but boy they have some attacking threat in them, and Goosen showed in the Super Rugby this year that he can really spark a backline. Saints fully international back line are all proven quality, albeit a couple maybe not quite in the form of their lives, they still possess the ability to put points on the board.

Overall this is a really tough call. There are tries and points in both sides, with a little bit more threat from Gloucester, but better defence from Saints. I do believe that winning games begins with stopping the opposition from playing and scoring and on that basis would have Saints marginally ahead, but have to give a bit to Gloucester for home advantage, so am really sorry boys, but I'm getting splinters in my orse here and going for the draw.


Saracens 22 London Irish 21

Unsurprisingly, I really like the Saracens back row (well I would, I bought the three of them! lol), and see them winning the battle with the Irish back row, where Elsom has no form at all and I can't remember when I last saw him dominate a game, and Spies had a very below par Super Rugby season. Issues in both front rows, where for all of his bulk, Tameifuna is not the best scrummager as yet. However he is up against Stevens who has not been great at loosehead, so no give either way really in the scrums. A couple of decent ball carriers in both sides, but I think the Saracens back row would work harder to stop the Irish carriers and therefore I see them having the better of the gainline battle.

The issue I see for Saracens is at half back. Paddy Jackson will be a very good player, but him being able to play at the level that this game is at now, is probably about 2 years away. Hodgson is off the back fo a poor season at 9 and needs to find form quickly this year to be rated. The Irish backline just has more quality through it than the Saracens one, so the question really is around do they get enough quality ball to damage Saracens and take a good away win.

That leads me to looking back at the packs and how they function as overall units, and my answer on tis occasion is that the Saracens pack do just enough to give them the narrowest of home wins.


London Wasps 20 Harlequins 23

In tactics Arry talks about wanting his forwards to carry hard and win the collisions, which is the right approach, as it's a key area of the game, however looking at the two packs, I am not convinced of their ability to be able to win those collisions against this Harlequins 8. I think others may have mentioned, but if you are going down the route of that gameplan, get Manoa in the starting line up as he will do that job well and give the whole pack a lift. For Quins they have a front row with a tighthead who can anchor a scrum and carry well, and two other carriers there, along with Bakkies and the back row. Wasps pack will defend well and work hard to stop them, but I just see them eventually wearing Wasps down and gaps appearing.

The backlines are fairly even, with two good centre pairings. I don't see a lot getting through Barritt and Pisi. Laidlaw I prefer at 9 if I am being honest, but he can do a job at 10, so no real dramas there.

I like the solidity of the Wasps backs, but I see the Quins pack getting dominance in the final quarter and earning them a good away win.


Worcester Warriors 21 Bath Rugby 22

Running out of time a bit, but overall nothing in the pack battles. Good attacking threat from the Warriors backline, but I have to have real question marks about a defence lead by Regan King, who was a revolving door whenever I watched him play for the Scarlets. I just think that Bath would be more defensively secure and Waorcesters weakness there would give Bath an away win.

I'v had more wins predicted for me this season already than i did all last year!

Saracens 19 - 21 London Irish

Not a lot in it up front - think both TH's will get joy at the scrum. Edge to Sarries in the 2nd row with their experienced combo having a bit more nous about them. Slight edge to Sarries in the back row with form - Nick I don't think you can be playing Elsom. Big advantage for Irish at HB with a much stronger combo, and I prefer their centre pairing too. Same story in the back three too. Tough to call, Sarries better pack, Irish better backs. Rain would have seen Sarries win, but in the dry Irish have just enough.

Wasps 22 - 23 Harlequins

Prefer the Quins front row with more in the set piece and the loose. Wasps to get more joy at the lineout though for me. Prefer Quins back row where they have a strong trio - Wasps should have played Manoa and Poff from the start. Better players at HB for Wasps, but not great form. Great centre battle - Steve think Roberts has been out for too long (?), so advantage Wasps. Tight back threes. Tight game this, think Quins just edge the key areas and nick a good win.

Worcester 22 - 22 Bath

Slight advanatge to Bath up front, although Botha to get joy out of Broooker.Really tight second row battle, not a lot in it. Deacon needs some form for me. Similar story in the back rows with two powerful units, maybe slight edge to Worcester. One apiece in the HB's, prefer Bath in the centres and in the back three. Really tough to call this game, not a lot in it at all. Bath would have won at home, Worcester have enough for the draw at their ground.

London Welsh 18 Leicester Tigers 21

Huge battle in front row with Corbs one of the best scrummaging LHs in the world and will have had a few craics at Cole over the years and will know him inside out. BDP is 100x the player Bruno is. Jenkins will suit these conditions but Jones will win a few penalties with big Deano behind him. Horwill is stand out from 4/5 with a better set piece. Welsh lack a turnover machine in the back row but BDP wins plenty on his own so expect LW to get through plenty of graft. Tigers back row has plenty of brute force in it with Croft a V good carrier. A bit more attacking threat from Tigers half backs but think Farrell is a preistland type in the sense he does nothing flash but ticks the line well. Davies/Cave great combo as is mermoz/bod but see it one a piece with Davies and Bod the standouts all though i think cave will be irelands 13 come 6N. great back 3 from Luke but it's all about counter and might struggle if pinged back by Faz , Welsh have good balance to it. More from Tigers bench sees them steal it

London Wasps 21 Quins 20

firstly the thing i like about Arry's side is it is better balanced than a lot of sides in the league except it's missing a starting fetcher. Can see wasps getting a bit of a nudge at the scrum but struggle a bit at lineout with only Wentzel capable of banking his own ball against Borthwick and Wood. Mafi has a big physical presence at 6 and Potgieter is playing well whilst Warburton has been off the boil a bit. The Wasps half backs are better , I don't think Dickson suits a wide expansive game plan. Centres Roberts hasn't played in a while whilst Pisi is better than JJ for now. Roberts also is a crash ball specialist which i wouldn't see working vs Priestland and Barritt. Back 3 i'd only take Kearney from Quins as i perfare Banahan and Ojo to Hugut and Ngwenya.

RESULTS

Newcastle Falcons 24 Sale Sharks 21
Gloucester 24 Northampton Saints 27
London Welsh 20 Leicester Tigers 23
Saracens 22 London Irish 25
London Wasps 22 Harlequins 25
Worcester Warriors 22 Bath Rugby 26


Well done all the winners, commiserations to the losers. Always next week, let the battles continue.

Sorry lads thought cut off was 7pm so only predicted 2 games

Scorers

Newcastle Falcons 24 (T: Cuthbert 2, Lowe C: Flood 3 P: Flood)
Sale Sharks 21 (T: Gilroy, Picamoles C: Sexton P: Sexton 3)

Gloucester 24 (T: May, Kahui, Heaslip C: Goosen 3 P: Goosen)
Northampton Saints 27 (T: Ashton 3 C: Halfpenny 3 P: Halfpenny 2)

London Welsh 20 (T: du Plessis, Johnson C: Farrell 2 P: Farrell 2)
Leicester Tigers 23 (T: Nacewa, O'Brien C: Wilkinson 2 P: Wilkinson 3)

Saracens 22 (T: Visser 2 P: Jackson 4)
London Irish 25 (T: S. Armitage, Evans, Pietersen C: Evans 2 P: Evans 2)

London Wasps 22 (T: Barritt, Wentzel P: Priestland 4)
Harlequins 25 (T: Brits, Marler, Ngwenya C: Laidlaw 2 P: Laidlaw 2)

Worcester Warriors 22 (T: Peel, Short P: Heathcote 4)
Bath Rugby 26 (T: North 2, Hogg C: Hodgson P: Hodgson 3)