Aviva Premiership - Round One

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Team Sheets and tactics due by Saturday (20:00)
Predictions due till Tuesday (20:00)

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Exeter Chiefs v Sale Sharks
Location - Sandy Park
White Cloud, 19 Degrees, 9mph Winds

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Exeter Chiefs
Manager – Luke

01. Brett Sturgess	09. Dwayne Peel
02. Rob Webber	10. Jonny Wilkinson (k)
03. John Afoa
04. Loius Deacon	11. Paul Sackey
05. James Horwill (c)	12. Sireli Naqelevuki
06. Tom Johnson	13. George Lowe
07. Steffon Armitage	14. Richard Kahui
08. Ofisa Treviranus	15. Isa Nacewa

16. Ben Moon 17. Neil Clark 18. Hoani Tui 19. James Hanks 20. James Scaysbrook 21. Kevin Barrett 22. Ian Humphreys 23. Gonzalo Camacho

Tactics

We will play a game built around our massive ball carriers, the strength of our set piece and getting our lightning backline into space.

- Attack the scrum as a weapon - and call when we can. Look to really get the shove on.

- Use Wilkinson's boot to attack our strong lineout with Horwill, Deacon and Johnson. We will relentlessly target the opposition's throws.

- Massive line-breakers right throughout the side that will look to tire down Sale defence. We will use our big carriers consistently to tire down Sale .
The likes of Afoa, Trev, Armitage, Horwill, Johnson and Naqelevuki used off the shoulder crashing through the opposition defence.

- Armitage is the man charged with reaching the breakdown first and look to turnover possession. We will always look to attack quickly off turnover ball.

- Box kicks from Peel and up and unders from Wilkinson to give the opposition problems in the air.
Lightning back line to really get the chase on.

- Look to play attacking rugby in the backs, getting the likes of Lowe, Kahui and Nacewa on the ball when we can.

- Our back three are encouraged to do what they do best - counter attacking and running the ball back. If isolated all have good kicking games, but the counter is what we ask them to look for.

- Wilkinson to kick all penalites.

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Sale Sharks

Manager – LondonIrishOllie

01.Logovoi Mulipola	09.Hadyn Thomas
02.Gary Botha	10.Aaron Cruden
03.Davit Kubriashvili
04.Dean Schofield	11.Mark Cueto
05.James Gaskell	12.Sam Tuitupou
06.Schalk Burger	13.Jonothan Davies
07.Dave Seymour	14.Tom Brady
08.Jordan Crane	15.Rob Miller

Subs
16.Andrew Sheridan 17.Marc Jones 18.Matt Stevens 19.Frazer McKenzie 20.Richie Vernon 21.Scott Mathie 22.Johan Goosen 23.Jaque Fourie
Tactics
With a team, which is full of familiar faces, Sale will look to continuity in selection from last season to really push on early on, intergrating new signings slowly and effectively.

Defence - A blitz defence will be employed

Attack - Whenever we are within the Exeter half we will look to play a couple of phases to see if anything it on. If it is not we will kick look to play kicks in behind to turn Sackey who is often lazy in defence around.

Cruden to play flat to bring Tuitupou and Davies into play to get over the gain line. This will create momentum and other big ball carriers such as Crane and Burger will also be used.

Kubs to target the suspect Sturgess.

Lineoute - Gaskell, Schofield, Burger and Crane are all very good jumpers and a mixture will be used.
As Exeter only have 3 lineout options we will look to target this area.

All points to be taken when in range.

Subs - Both Goosen and Fourie have the ability to change the game if needed. This will be invaluable. Especially against a tiring Exeter defence.

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Gloucester v Northampton Saints
Location - Kingsholm
White Cloud, 19 Degrees, 12mph Winds

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Gloucester

Manager – prop_lyd

01. Nick Wood ©	09. Dimitri Yachvilli
02. Darren Dawiduk	10. Freddie Burns(k)
03. Adam Jones
04. Tom Savage	11. Johnny May
05. Alex Brown	12. Jamie Roberts
06. Alisdair Strokosch	13. Henry Trinder
07. Akapusi Qera	14. Charlie Sharples
08. JVN	15. Ollie Morgan

16. Scott Lawson 17. Dan Murphy 18. Sean Knight 19. Will James 20. Luke Narraway 21. Rory Lawson 22. Ryan Mills 23. JSD



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. Wood will lead the side from the front. Our game will want to get the ball to a set of backs who can make a lot of inroads. And our back row will get a lot of turnover ball.



Forwards

*Experienced front row who will look to dominate the set piece and Jones will be the anchor,

*2^nd rows are two strong runners 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 Strokosch and Qera both terrorising here and JVN providing brute strength off the back of the scrum and off the backs, again the bench provides more go forward with Narraway.



Backs

* Yachvilli to marshall and Burns to release Roberts when possible, he will go for goal when in range,

* Roberts to make inroads then offload to Trinder who will have a winger on his shoulder at all times and also look for JVN to break through the defence,

* Exciting backs here who will link well and look to constantly run at and through the Saints defence,

* 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 experience in JSD.



Defence

*Yachvilli to lead this,

*Strokosch/Qera to be on 10’s shoulder looking to wrap the ball up,

*Contest at the breakdown and all set piece.

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Northampton Saints

Manager – SirJohnnyEnglish

01. Soane Tonga'uiha	09. Lee Dickson
02. Dylan Hartley	10. Johnny Sexton
03. Brian Mujati
04. Courtney Lawes	11. Chris Ashton
05. Samu Manoa	12. Sonny Bill-Williams
06. Stephen Ferris	13. George Pisi
07. Tom Wood	14. Jamie Elliot
08. Roger Wilson	15. Ben Foden

16. Steven Kitshoff 17. Richardt Strauss 18. Paul Doran-Jones 19. James Craig 20. Phil Dowson 21. Martin Roberts 22. Stephen Myler 23. Scott Armstrong

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Key Points

• Bench Options: Powerful front row options to come in and take a stranglehold of the scrum in the last quarter. Myler on for SBW and to interchange with Sexton at 10 pinning Glaws back with the boot while Craig & Dowson give extra options in the line out.

• Contact Area: Selected a big strong pack to beast Gloucester in the contact area both in attack and defense. Look to knock Glaws back and get ourselves on the front foot. Specifically target Burns with an inexperienced 12 cum 10 as back up

• Real Life Form: A large glut of this Glaws side were involved with the real life Gloucester side who finished last season on a fairly hefty 6 game losing streak. With no international games for most of them recent form is an issue.

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General Tactics
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.

• If for whatever reason we aren’t getting quick ball, we will look to take control of territory with the boots of Dickson & Sexton and force Gloucester to come at us from deep.

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 Gloucester 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 Gloucester momentum before it can get going.

• Lee Dickson will act as a 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 ball.

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 Wood and co 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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London Welsh v Leicester Tigers
Location - Kassam Stadium
White Cloud, 19 Degrees, 11mph Winds

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London Welsh

Manager – Fluxy

01. Paul James	09. Paul Hodgson
02. David Paice	10. Nick Evans (k)
03. David Wilson
04. Steve Mafi	11. Topsy Ojo
05. Paul O'Connell (C)	12. Gavin Henson
06. Jamie Gibson	13. Dominic Waldlouck
07. Matt Kvesic	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Nick Easter	15. Hugo Southwell

16. Rhys Gill 17. Phil Swainston 18. Tom Lindsay 19. George Robson 20. Chris Hala'ufia 21. Joel Hodgson 22. Steven Shingler 23. Ben Ransom

With our first ever Premier league game we will look to get our home crowd behind us to generate the extra passion and commitment needed to over turn the league champions. The Kassam is our fortress, and we will never make it easy for any team to come and play here. We look to impose ourselves from the off and let the oppisition know how we are going to play the game and how we want to dictate the pace of the game. Our brand of rugby is physical and fast, however we won't just run the ball at every oppurtunity. We will only play in the right areas of the paddock, and Evans knows when to attack and when we need to clear the lines. We will look to go through simple phases to reproduce quick ball to cut the defence open. We have brilliant leaders all other the pitch in POC, Easter, Hodgson and Evans, and they know what will be required to get we want from the game - a win. Nothing will be left in the changing room from our boys, they want to put the rest of the league on high alert with a strong display of effective and efficient attacking rugby from the set pieces.

Tactics

• James and Wilson are solid technicians and will secure our own feed, to provide first phase possesion for our backs. James will look to put pressure on the Tigers feed.
  
  
• With a strong lineout, O'Connell will lead the lineout and use Mafi as a banker ball at the front of the line with POC jumping in the middle. If winning own ball POC will look to cut the lineout to five, to allow Easter to get a chance to run at the defence in open field.
  
  
• Our whole pack is mobile and capable of snaffling ball at the breakdown. Collectively we will look to (legally!) slow down Tigers' ball as much possible, only committing men to rucks if the turnover is on.
  
  
• Evans will look to angle runners either side of JOC to get in behind him, as he prone to rushing up from 12. Evans will pepper Wade and Benjamin with balls every so often, with a committed chase to apply pressure on them.
  
  
• Off any first phase possesion, there will be a strike runner to get over the gainline to provide quick ball whilst the opposition defence is still organising itself.
  
  
• Evans will direct traffic and marshall the attacking forces, looking for the runs of Henson off his shoulder or to allow Wald to release our dangerous roaming back three.
  
  
• Evans will kick all points, unless POC dictates we have a dominate set piece at the moment in time.

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Leicester Tigers

Manager – Sgt_Pooly

01. Thomas Domingo	09. Ben Youngs
02. Bismark du Plessis	10. Toby Flood
03. Martin Castrogiovani
04. Richie Gray	11. Miles Benjamin
05. Geoff Parling	12. James O’Connor
06. Tom Croft	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Sam Warburton(c)	14. Christian Wade
08. Sergio Parisse	15. Rob Kearney

16. Tom Youngs 17. Dan Cole 18. Luke Cowen-Dickie 19. Joe Launchbury 20. Luke Wallace 21. Karl Dickson 22. George Ford 23. Jordan Turner-Hall

Tactics

We will base our game around high tempo, high intensity rugby. We’ll look to use the set piece as a foundation to work from and turn the screw on the opposition if a weakness is seen. We’ll look for big carries from our pack to give us go forward ball which Youngs thrives upon.

We’ll look to target the lineout throughout with 5 top draw options. Croft, Parling and Gray will look to mark the front, middle and back and put intense pressure on throughout the game.

Flood/JOC will dictate tempo and look to get Manu running angles to either punch holes in the opposition midfield or draw the decoy and allow our back 3 into the game.

When the 3 is on in front of the posts we’ll take and the captain will make the call on set piece if an advantage is seen.

- Turn screw in set piece if weakness seen
- High intensity & keep the ball alive
- Youngs to attack the gaps and allow Flood time to hit the line
- Manu to be used as crash and decoy with back 3 coming into the line
- Target lineout with world class operators
- Warburton/Croft to marshal breakdown and slow/turnover opp ball

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Saracens v London Irish
Location - Twickenham
White Cloud, 21 Degrees, 8mph Winds

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Saracens

Manager – ChequeredJersey

01. Matt Mullan	09. Morgan Parra
02. Schalk Brits	10. Charlie Hodgson
03. Sekope Kepu
04. George Kruis	11. Leigh Halfpenny (k.)
05. Donnacha Ryan	12. Anthony Allen
06. Kelly Brown (c.)	13. Conrad Smith
07. Jonathan Poff	14. Sam Smith
08. Ernst Joubert	15. Alex Goode

16. Mako Vunipola 17. Rob Buchanan 18. Carlos Nieto 19. Charlie Matthews 20. Will Fraser 21. Chris Wyles 22. Ben Spencer 23. James Fitzpatrick

Tactics

Irish's main strength is their back row. We will target Pocock, removing him from the breakdown by forcing him to make numerous tackles, and the back row will work as a unit to clear him out of the rucks he makes and let Poff fight for the ball. Kruis and Ryan are also handy at the breakdown and will join in. If Irish can't get fast ball, Simpson ceases to be a menace and could become a liability. We will aim to edge ahead in the set pieces and use this platform to throw the ball around in the backs - it will be a good day for running rugby so let's use Halfpenny and Smith and Goode at their best with Hodgson standing and passing flat and Allen being the first point of attack. Parra will control the pace of the game and if Irish slow our ball down, he can box-kick with a forward chase or keep it tight in our carriers like Ryan, Kepu and Joubert who will batter Simpson and James until better ball can be secured. On opposition ball, let Irish commit Pocock and Harinordiquy to the first ruck relatively unopposed then attack the second one, where they will be less well positioned, as hard as possible.

We are surely buoyed by the pre-minor knock real life form of Conrad Smith, 606's best choice for best centre in the world.


- defence: drift on first phase then blitz the quick ball to force turnovers. Halfpenny to cover Tuilagi- he's big but if he underestimates Leigh he could get isolated and in trouble.

- Conrad to lead line and Allen to follow. Poff to fly off scrums and pressurise 10 and Joubert terrorise Simpson. Make Pocock protect them. Brown to cover the big carriers in their back row

- Attack Spin quick ball, Allen to run at gaps and Conrad to support and utilise the space made and put the back 3 clear. Goode do his thing and join the line when appropriate

- Send ball carriers at 9 and 10 and wear out 6 and 7 by testing their workload covering the halfbacks in defence

- Set piece - We have an excellent 2 and multiple jumpers- use them all. Ryan to call lineout. Off the scrums, test the blind side with Parra and the blindside winger

- more importantly, send Joubert off solid scrums straight at the open side. If Simpson engages, smash him. If Pocock, go to contact and commit him. If someone else, pop to Brown in support.

- Breakdown - isolate Pocock or if he does make the ruck, let him have his own ball and clear him off ours. Work as a team here and 4-5 men will always beat 1/2.

- Other - Halfpenny (Parra if he leaves) take 3 pointers within reason. Don't be afraid to use set piece as a platform off pens though. Back 3 run back almost all kicks.

- Subs - use as necessary. Goode covers 10 today. If Cooper comes on, bring on Fitzpatrick and have him run straight at him off a simple switch. Test him in defence.

-Above all, let's keep the ball moving when it's quick, keep their back row tackling when it's slow and take advantage of our experience and prior success in this Stadium

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London Irish

Manager – Pullthestrings

01. Gethin Jenkins	09. Joe Simpson
02. Tatafu Polota-Nau	10. Brock James
03. Euan Murray
04. Tom Palmer	11. Sailosi Tagicakibau
05. Nick Kennedy	12. Daniel Bowden
06. Jerome Kaino	13. Aurelien Rougerie
07. David Pocock (c)	14. Alesana Tuilagi
08. Imanol Harinordoquy	15. Tom Homer (k)

16. James Buckland, 17. Max Lahiff, 18. Paulica Ion, 19. Simon Shaw, 20. Tom Guest, 21. Darren Allinson, 22. Quade Cooper, 23. Delon Armitage

Tactics

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London Wasps v Harlequins
Location - Twickenham
White Cloud, 21 Degrees, 9mph Winds

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London Wasps

Manager – GeordieFalcon

01.Boris Stankovich	09.Danny Care
02. Andy Titterell.	10.Jimmy Gopperth
03.Nicholas Mas
04.Matt Garvey	11.Jonathan Joseph
05. George Skivington	12. Luke McAlister
06.Thierry Dusautoir	13.Billy Twelvetrees
07.Julien Salvi	14. Ugo Monye
08.Thomas Waldrum	15. Mike Brown

16. Tom Varndell 17. Billy Vunipola 18.Micky Young 19. Morne Steyn 20. Tim Payne 21. Marco Wentzel 22. Ben Broster 23. Chris Brooker
Tactics

Looking to play a high impact, high physicality) quick release game from the forwards...utilising a very strong set of backs.,....

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Harlequins

Manager – Driver

01.Alex Corbisero	09.Luke Burguss
02.John Smit	10.Owen Farrell (K)
03.James Johnstone
04.Mouritz Botha	11.George North
05.Alistair Hargreaves	12.Wesley Fofana
06.Chris Robshaw(c)	13.Jared Payne
07.Heinrich Brussouw	14.James Short
08.Craig Newby	15.Nick Abendanon

16.Joe Grey 17.Mark Lambert 18.Chris Budgen 19.Tom Denton 20.Will Skinner 21.Richard Wrigglesworth 22.Tom Heathcote 23.Hudson Tonga'uhia

Tactics

In fine rugby playing conditions Quins will look to play the game at a high tempo shift the ball wide and keeping a high intensity through out. We have gone for a physical front 5 to allow us to gain a solid attacking platform to allow our backs to come into the game. A powerful scrummaging front row will really see us attack the Wasps front row and look to separate the tighthead from the rest of his front row with Smit focusing his hit more on the 3 and test his patience. Robshaw will look to get around the field linking play up , offloading and hitting rucks whilst Newby will play his strengths and get through plenty of graft in the tight and carry from the base with Brussouw targetting the breakdown to steal ball. North , Short and Bendy to come into the line and look for the ball in gaps and counter any kicks with interest.

• Farrell to use his wide range of kicking skills to stretch the Wasps defense and put the ball in behind the wingers with plenty of pressure from a on rushing Quins chase
  
  
• Blitz defense putting pressure on the wasps back line using line speed and keeping disciplined with our penalty count , Burguss to sweep behind and cover any kicks through and line breaks
  
  
• Hargreaves to put pressure on the Wasps lineout with jumpers throughout our pack from 4-8.
  
  
• Impact players on the bench , Wrigglesworth will let us play the game in there half whilst Tonga will make plenty of head way at 12 or 13.
  
  
• MOTIVATION - We are Quins , we had a poor season last year and aim to make amends for it this year and it starts with a big win in round 1.
  
  
• Confidence is high after a strong pre-season just losing out to Tigers in the cup final.
  

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Worcester Warriors v Bath
Location - Sixways Stadium
White Cloud, 19 Degrees, 11mph Winds

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Worcester Warriors

Manager – InTheFastLane

01. Joe Marler	09. Jonny Arr
02. Ed Shervington	10. Joe Carlisle
03. Tevita Taumoepeau
04. Gerhard Mostert	11. David Strettle
05. Graham Kitchener	12. Brad Barritt
06. James Haskell	13. Matt Hopper
07. Ashley Johnson	14. Marcel Garvey
08. Ben Morgan	15. Luke Morgan

16. Will Radburn 17. George Porter 18. Oliver Tomaszczyk 19. James Percival 20. Andy Saull 21. Shaun Perry 22. Andy Goode 23. Ernie Claasens

Tactics

We will be looking to get the ball and really look to play attacking rugby. We will be looking to get our back row on the ball as much as possibly as they can all carry really well. They will be looking to set a good platform the backs to work off. We will be hoping to make a dent in the line out with a strong second row partnership

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Bath Rugby

Manager – Bathite

01. C.Healy	09. M.Classens (c)
02. L.Mears	10. J.Hook
03. A.Perenise
04. J.Muller	11. O.Woodburn
05. D.Attwood	12. M.Banahan
06. S.O'Brien	13. C.Laulala
07. F.Louw	14. T.Biggs
08. C.Fearns	15. R.Chisholm

16. K.P-Newport 17. C.Tolufua 18. N.Catt 19. R.Caldwell 20. M.Lund 21. C.Cook 22. S.Donald 23. K.Eastmond

TACTICS TBC

General
- XX
- We want to make sure that we play rugby in the opposition half and force handling errors, where we can attack the scrum. Use the physicality of our pack to our advantage, keeping the ball tight in the middle section of the pitch to retain possession and build a platform to attack from. In our third clear to touch and challenge for the ball at lineout.
- With slow ball, use Banahan on the switch off Hook to tie up and fix defenders, looking to get Laulala and Hook half a yard
- Hook to ensure we play sensible rugby in the right areas, kicking long for touch in our 22, using the up and under in the centre of the pitch and delicate grubbers in behind centres to chase and force kickable penalties.
- Banahan leads the rush defence, with Louw/Fearns flying up to cramp 10 for time and space and ensuring he takes the ball deep behind the gainline and starving their outside backs of ball.

Forwards
* XX
* Picked a very physical pack to make sure that we defend strongly and smash over the gainline. O'Brien to lead pack from base of scrum making hard yards and setting up the ruck for Louw and Fearns to clear out. SOB to mark opposite 8 in defence to prevent charges from base of scrum
* At the lineout, Muller will lead the calls and look to pressurise oppoistion hooker and compete at every throw
* Louw is a breakdown specialist and will look to stay on his feet at the ruck and slow opposition ball down. Fearns and Lund to guard to the fringes of the ruck
* Use ball carriers of Franks, Louw, Tolufua, O'Brien, Fearns to make hard yards up the pitch and draw defenders into the ruck area, looking to create space around the fringes for Laulala to exploit

Backs
* Chisholm given free rein in attack, looking to come into the line either side of Laulala. Laulala to look for the half gap with power and offload (only if on), with the pace of Biggs and Woodburn on their shoulder to make the break
* Hook to take the ball flat on the gainline, drawing defenders and buying time and space for Banahan. Banahan often used as dummy runner to keep it unpredictable
* Use the inside pass with forward runners of SOB, Louw, Fearns to keep the inside shoulder honest and force the 10 to make tackles.
* Get Laulala on the ball early on and encourage a very pacy back three to run off his shoulder. Only offload if it is on, otherwise, crash it up and use SOB, Fearns, Caldwell to clear out and Louw to secure.
* Eastmond to come on for last 30 mins in a free role, acting as 2nd receiver, popping up wherever to use his pace, step and get more experience

Worcester Warriors

Manager – InTheFastLane

01. Joe Marler	09. Jonny Arr
02. Ed Shervington	10. Joe Carlisle
03. Tevita Taumoepeau
04. Gerhard Mostert	11. David Strettle
05. Graham Kitchener	12. Brad Barritt
06. James Haskell	13. Matt Hopper
07. Ashley Johnson	14. Marcel Garvey
08. Ben Morgan	15. Luke Morgan

16. Will Radburn 17. George Porter 18. Oliver Tomaszczyk 19. James Percival 20. Andy Saull 21. Shaun Perry 22. Andy Goode 23. Ernie Claasens

Tactics

We will be looking to get the ball and really look to play attacking rugby. We will be looking to get our back row on the ball as much as possibly as they can all carry really well. They will be looking to set a good platform the backs to work off. We will be hoping to make a dent in the line out with a strong second row partnership

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Saracens
Manager – ChequeredJersey

01. Matt Mullan	09. Morgan Parra
02. Schalk Brits	10. Charlie Hodgson
03. Sekope Kepu
04. George Kruis	11. Leigh Halfpenny (k.)
05. Donnacha Ryan	12. Anthony Allen
06. Kelly Brown (c.)	13. Conrad Smith
07. Jonathan Poff	14. Sam Smith
08. Ernst Joubert	15. Alex Goode

16. Mako Vunipola 17. Rob Buchanan 18. Carlos Nieto 19. Charlie Matthews 20. Will Fraser 21. Chris Wyles 22. Ben Spencer 23. James Fitzpatrick

Tactics

Irish's main strength is their back row. We will target Pocock, removing him from the breakdown by forcing him to make numerous tackles, and the back row will work as a unit to clear him out of the rucks he makes and let Poff fight for the ball. Kruis and Ryan are also handy at the breakdown and will join in. If Irish can't get fast ball, Simpson ceases to be a menace and could become a liability. We will aim to edge ahead in the set pieces and use this platform to throw the ball around in the backs - it will be a good day for running rugby so let's use Halfpenny and Smith and Goode at their best with Hodgson standing and passing flat and Allen being the first point of attack. Parra will control the pace of the game and if Irish slow our ball down, he can box-kick with a forward chase or keep it tight in our carriers like Ryan, Kepu and Joubert who will batter Simpson and James until better ball can be secured. On opposition ball, let Irish commit Pocock and Harinordiquy to the first ruck relatively unopposed then attack the second one, where they will be less well positioned, as hard as possible.

We are surely buoyed by the pre-minor knock real life form of Conrad Smith, 606's best choice for best centre in the world.


- defence: drift on first phase then blitz the quick ball to force turnovers. Halfpenny to cover Tuilagi- he's big but if he underestimates Leigh he could get isolated and in trouble.

- Conrad to lead line and Allen to follow. Poff to fly off scrums and pressurise 10 and Joubert terrorise Simpson. Make Pocock protect them. Brown to cover the big carriers in their back row

- Attack Spin quick ball, Allen to run at gaps and Conrad to support and utilise the space made and put the back 3 clear. Goode do his thing and join the line when appropriate

- Send ball carriers at 9 and 10 and wear out 6 and 7 by testing their workload covering the halfbacks in defence

- Set piece - We have an excellent 2 and multiple jumpers- use them all. Ryan to call lineout. Off the scrums, test the blind side with Parra and the blindside winger

- more importantly, send Joubert off solid scrums straight at the open side. If Simpson engages, smash him. If Pocock, go to contact and commit him. If someone else, pop to Brown in support.

- Breakdown - isolate Pocock or if he does make the ruck, let him have his own ball and clear him off ours. Work as a team here and 4-5 men will always beat 1/2.

- Other - Halfpenny (Parra if he leaves) take 3 pointers within reason. Don't be afraid to use set piece as a platform off pens though. Back 3 run back almost all kicks.

- Subs - use as necessary. Goode covers 10 today. If Cooper comes on, bring on Fitzpatrick and have him run straight at him off a simple switch. Test him in defence.

-Above all, let's keep the ball moving when it's quick, keep their back row tackling when it's slow and take advantage of our experience and prior success in this Stadium

Conditions:

Game 1 - White Cloud, 19 Degrees, 9mph Winds
Game 2 - White Cloud, 19 Degrees, 12mph Winds
Game 3 - White Cloud, 19 Degrees, 11mph Winds
Game 4 - White Cloud, 21 Degrees, 8mph Winds
Game 5 - White Cloud, 21 Degrees, 9mph Winds
Game 6 - White Cloud, 19 Degrees, 11mph Winds

Bath Rugby
Manager – Bathite

01. C.Healy	09. M.Classens (c)
02. L.Mears	10. J.Hook
03. A.Perenise
04. J.Muller	11. O.Woodburn
05. D.Attwood	12. M.Banahan
06. S.O'Brien	13. C.Laulala
07. F.Louw	14. T.Biggs
08. C.Fearns	15. R.Chisholm

16. K.P-Newport 17. C.Tolufua 18. N.Catt 19. R.Caldwell 20. M.Lund 21. C.Cook 22. S.Donald 23. K.Eastmond

TACTICS TBC

General
- XX
- We want to make sure that we play rugby in the opposition half and force handling errors, where we can attack the scrum. Use the physicality of our pack to our advantage, keeping the ball tight in the middle section of the pitch to retain possession and build a platform to attack from. In our third clear to touch and challenge for the ball at lineout.
- With slow ball, use Banahan on the switch off Hook to tie up and fix defenders, looking to get Laulala and Hook half a yard
- Hook to ensure we play sensible rugby in the right areas, kicking long for touch in our 22, using the up and under in the centre of the pitch and delicate grubbers in behind centres to chase and force kickable penalties.
- Banahan leads the rush defence, with Louw/Fearns flying up to cramp 10 for time and space and ensuring he takes the ball deep behind the gainline and starving their outside backs of ball.

Forwards
* XX
* Picked a very physical pack to make sure that we defend strongly and smash over the gainline. O'Brien to lead pack from base of scrum making hard yards and setting up the ruck for Louw and Fearns to clear out. SOB to mark opposite 8 in defence to prevent charges from base of scrum
* At the lineout, Muller will lead the calls and look to pressurise oppoistion hooker and compete at every throw
* Louw is a breakdown specialist and will look to stay on his feet at the ruck and slow opposition ball down. Fearns and Lund to guard to the fringes of the ruck
* Use ball carriers of Franks, Louw, Tolufua, O'Brien, Fearns to make hard yards up the pitch and draw defenders into the ruck area, looking to create space around the fringes for Laulala to exploit

Backs
* Chisholm given free rein in attack, looking to come into the line either side of Laulala. Laulala to look for the half gap with power and offload (only if on), with the pace of Biggs and Woodburn on their shoulder to make the break
* Hook to take the ball flat on the gainline, drawing defenders and buying time and space for Banahan. Banahan often used as dummy runner to keep it unpredictable
* Use the inside pass with forward runners of SOB, Louw, Fearns to keep the inside shoulder honest and force the 10 to make tackles.
* Get Laulala on the ball early on and encourage a very pacy back three to run off his shoulder. Only offload if it is on, otherwise, crash it up and use SOB, Fearns, Caldwell to clear out and Louw to secure.
* Eastmond to come on for last 30 mins in a free role, acting as 2nd receiver, popping up wherever to use his pace, step and get more experience

London Irish

Manager – Pullthestrings

01. Gethin Jenkins	09. Joe Simpson
02. Tatafu Polota-Nau	10. Brock James
03. Euan Murray
04. Tom Palmer	11. Sailosi Tagicakibau
05. Nick Kennedy	12. Daniel Bowden
06. Jerome Kaino	13. Aurelien Rougerie
07. David Pocock (c)	14. Alesana Tuilagi
08. Imanol Harinordoquy	15. Tom Homer (k)

16. James Buckland, 17. Max Lahiff, 18. Paulica Ion, 19. Simon Shaw, 20. Tom Guest, 21. Darren Allinson, 22. Quade Cooper, 23. Delon Armitage

Tactics
TBC

Are the London games at HQ?

Good point

Harlequins

Manager – Driver

01.Alex Corbisero	09.Luke Burguss
02.John Smit	10.Owen Farrell (K)
03.James Johnstone
04.Mouritz Botha	11.George North
05.Alistair Hargreaves	12.Wesley Fofana
06.Chris Robshaw(c)	13.Jared Payne
07.Heinrich Brussouw	14.James Short
08.Craig Newby	15.Nick Abendanon

16.Joe Grey 17.Mark Lambert 18.Chris Budgen 19.Tom Denton 20.Will Skinner 21.Richard Wrigglesworth 22.Tom Heathcote 23.Hudson Tonga'uhia

Tactics

In fine rugby playing conditions Quins will look to play the game at a high tempo shift the ball wide and keeping a high intensity through out. We have gone for a physical front 5 to allow us to gain a solid attacking platform to allow our backs to come into the game. A powerful scrummaging front row will really see us attack the Wasps front row and look to separate the tighthead from the rest of his front row with Smit focusing his hit more on the 3 and test his patience. Robshaw will look to get around the field linking play up , offloading and hitting rucks whilst Newby will play his strengths and get through plenty of graft in the tight and carry from the base with Brussouw targetting the breakdown to steal ball. North , Short and Bendy to come into the line and look for the ball in gaps and counter any kicks with interest.

• Farrell to use his wide range of kicking skills to stretch the Wasps defense and put the ball in behind the wingers with plenty of pressure from a on rushing Quins chase
  
  
• Blitz defense putting pressure on the wasps back line using line speed and keeping disciplined with our penalty count , Burguss to sweep behind and cover any kicks through and line breaks
  
  
• Hargreaves to put pressure on the Wasps lineout with jumpers throughout our pack from 4-8.
  
  
• Impact players on the bench , Wrigglesworth will let us play the game in there half whilst Tonga will make plenty of head way at 12 or 13.
  
  
• MOTIVATION - We are Quins , we had a poor season last year and aim to make amends for it this year and it starts with a big win in round 1.
  
  
• Confidence is high after a strong pre-season just losing out to Tigers in the cup final.
  

And we're off!!!

Driver - RIP 606 wrote:Are the London games at HQ?

Yeah mate conditions are for Twickenham for both games

London Welsh

Manager – Fluxy

01. Paul James	09. Paul Hodgson
02. David Paice	10. Nick Evans (k)
03. David Wilson
04. Steve Mafi	11. Topsy Ojo
05. Paul O'Connell (C)	12. Gavin Henson
06. Jamie Gibson	13. Dominic Waldlouck
07. Matt Kvesic	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Nick Easter	15. Hugo Southwell

16. Rhys Gill 17. Phil Swainston 18. Tom Lindsay 19. George Robson 20. Chris Hala'ufia 21. Joel Hodgson 22. Steven Shingler 23. Ben Ransom

With our first ever Premier league game we will look to get our home crowd behind us to generate the extra passion and commitment needed to over turn the league champions. The Kassam is our fortress, and we will never make it easy for any team to come and play here. We look to impose ourselves from the off and let the oppisition know how we are going to play the game and how we want to dictate the pace of the game. Our brand of rugby is physical and fast, however we won't just run the ball at every oppurtunity. We will only play in the right areas of the paddock, and Evans knows when to attack and when we need to clear the lines. We will look to go through simple phases to reproduce quick ball to cut the defence open. We have brilliant leaders all other the pitch in POC, Easter, Hodgson and Evans, and they know what will be required to get we want from the game - a win. Nothing will be left in the changing room from our boys, they want to put the rest of the league on high alert with a strong display of effective and efficient attacking rugby from the set pieces.

Tactics

• James and Wilson are solid technicians and will secure our own feed, to provide first phase possesion for our backs. James will look to put pressure on the Tigers feed.
  
  
• With a strong lineout, O'Connell will lead the lineout and use Mafi as a banker ball at the front of the line with POC jumping in the middle. If winning own ball POC will look to cut the lineout to five, to allow Easter to get a chance to run at the defence in open field.
  
  
• Our whole pack is mobile and capable of snaffling ball at the breakdown. Collectively we will look to (legally!) slow down Tigers' ball as much possible, only committing men to rucks if the turnover is on.
  
  
• Evans will look to angle runners either side of JOC to get in behind him, as he prone to rushing up from 12. Evans will pepper Wade and Benjamin with balls every so often, with a committed chase to apply pressure on them.
  
  
• Off any first phase possesion, there will be a strike runner to get over the gainline to provide quick ball whilst the opposition defence is still organising itself.
  
  
• Evans will direct traffic and marshall the attacking forces, looking for the runs of Henson off his shoulder or to allow Wald to release our dangerous roaming back three.
  
  
• Evans will kick all points, unless POC dictates we have a dominate set piece at the moment in time.

Northampton Saints
Manager – SirJohnnyEnglish

01. Soane Tonga'uiha	09. Lee Dickson
02. Dylan Hartley	10. Johnny Sexton
03. Brian Mujati
04. Courtney Lawes	11. Chris Ashton
05. Samu Manoa	12. Sonny Bill-Williams
06. Stephen Ferris	13. George Pisi
07. Tom Wood	14. Jamie Elliot
08. Roger Wilson	15. Ben Foden

16. Steven Kitshoff 17. Richardt Strauss 18. Paul Doran-Jones 19. James Craig 20. Phil Dowson 21. Martin Roberts 22. Stephen Myler 23. Scott Armstrong

---

Key Points

• Bench Options: Powerful front row options to come in and take a stranglehold of the scrum in the last quarter. Myler on for SBW and to interchange with Sexton at 10 pinning Glaws back with the boot while Craig & Dowson give extra options in the line out.

• Contact Area: Selected a big strong pack to beast Gloucester in the contact area both in attack and defense. Look to knock Glaws back and get ourselves on the front foot. Specifically target Burns with an inexperienced 12 cum 10 as back up

• Real Life Form: A large glut of this Glaws side were involved with the real life Gloucester side who finished last season on a fairly hefty 6 game losing streak. With no international games for most of them recent form is an issue.

---

General Tactics
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.

• If for whatever reason we aren’t getting quick ball, we will look to take control of territory with the boots of Dickson & Sexton and force Gloucester to come at us from deep.

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 Gloucester 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 Gloucester momentum before it can get going.

• Lee Dickson will act as a 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 ball.

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 Wood and co 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.

---

Exeter Chiefs
Manager – Luke

01. Brett Sturgess	09. Dwayne Peel
02. Rob Webber	10. Jonny Wilkinson (k)
03. John Afoa
04. Loius Deacon	11. Paul Sackey
05. James Horwill (c)	12. Sireli Naqelevuki
06. Tom Johnson	13. George Lowe
07. Steffon Armitage	14. Richard Kahui
08. Ofisa Treviranus	15. Isa Nacewa

16. Ben Moon 17. Neil Clark 18. Hoani Tui 19. James Hanks 20. James Scaysbrook 21. Kevin Barrett 22. Ian Humphreys 23. Gonzalo Camacho

Tactics

We will play a game built around our massive ball carriers, the strength of our set piece and getting our lightning backline into space.

- Attack the scrum as a weapon - and call when we can. Look to really get the shove on.

- Use Wilkinson's boot to attack our strong lineout with Horwill, Deacon and Johnson. We will relentlessly target the opposition's throws.

- Massive line-breakers right throughout the side that will look to tire down Sale defence. We will use our big carriers consistently to tire down Sale .
The likes of Afoa, Trev, Armitage, Horwill, Johnson and Naqelevuki used off the shoulder crashing through the opposition defence.

- Armitage is the man charged with reaching the breakdown first and look to turnover possession. We will always look to attack quickly off turnover ball.

- Box kicks from Peel and up and unders from Wilkinson to give the opposition problems in the air.
Lightning back line to really get the chase on.

- Look to play attacking rugby in the backs, getting the likes of Lowe, Kahui and Nacewa on the ball when we can.

- Our back three are encouraged to do what they do best - counter attacking and running the ball back. If isolated all have good kicking games, but the counter is what we ask them to look for.

- Wilkinson to kick all penalites.

Leicester Tigers
Manager – Sgt_Pooly

01. Thomas Domingo	09. Ben Youngs
02. Bismark du Plessis	10. Toby Flood
03. Martin Castrogiovani
04. Richie Gray	11. Miles Benjamin
05. Geoff Parling	12. James O’Connor
06. Tom Croft	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Sam Warburton(c)	14. Christian Wade
08. Sergio Parisse	15. Rob Kearney

16. Tom Youngs 17. Dan Cole 18. Luke Cowen-Dickie 19. Joe Launchbury 20. Luke Wallace 21. Karl Dickson 22. George Ford 23. Jordan Turner-Hall

Tactics

We will base our game around high tempo, high intensity rugby. We’ll look to use the set piece as a foundation to work from and turn the screw on the opposition if a weakness is seen. We’ll look for big carries from our pack to give us go forward ball which Youngs thrives upon.

We’ll look to target the lineout throughout with 5 top draw options. Croft, Parling and Gray will look to mark the front, middle and back and put intense pressure on throughout the game.

Flood/JOC will dictate tempo and look to get Manu running angles to either punch holes in the opposition midfield or draw the decoy and allow our back 3 into the game.

When the 3 is on in front of the posts we’ll take and the captain will make the call on set piece if an advantage is seen.

- Turn screw in set piece if weakness seen
- High intensity & keep the ball alive
- Youngs to attack the gaps and allow Flood time to hit the line
- Manu to be used as crash and decoy with back 3 coming into the line
- Target lineout with world class operators
- Warburton/Croft to marshal breakdown and slow/turnover opp ball

Sale Sharks
Manager – LondonIrishOllie

01.Logovoi Mulipola	09.Hadyn Thomas
02.Gary Botha	10.Aaron Cruden
03.Davit Kubriashvili
04.Dean Schofield	11.Mark Cueto
05.James Gaskell	12.Sam Tuitupou
06.Schalk Burger	13.Jonothan Davies
07.Dave Seymour	14.Tom Brady
08.Jordan Crane	15.Rob Miller

Subs
16.Andrew Sheridan 17.Marc Jones 18.Matt Stevens 19.Frazer McKenzie 20.Richie Vernon 21.Scott Mathie 22.Johan Goosen 23.Jaque Fourie
Tactics
With a team, which is full of familiar faces, Sale will look to continuity in selection from last season to really push on early on, intergrating new signings slowly and effectively.

Defence - A blitz defence will be employed

Attack - Whenever we are within the Exeter half we will look to play a couple of phases to see if anything it on. If it is not we will kick look to play kicks in behind to turn Sackey who is often lazy in defence around.

Cruden to play flat to bring Tuitupou and Davies into play to get over the gain line. This will create momentum and other big ball carriers such as Crane and Burger will also be used.

Kubs to target the suspect Sturgess.

Lineoute - Gaskell, Schofield, Burger and Crane are all very good jumpers and a mixture will be used.
As Exeter only have 3 lineout options we will look to target this area.

All points to be taken when in range.

Subs - Both Goosen and Fourie have the ability to change the game if needed. This will be invaluable. Especially against a tiring Exeter defence.

---

You need a 10 Ollie. lol

I think he wants Cruden there

Cheers Driver
Yeah just changed it. Was trying to work out who i was going to start at 10, and so left it till the end, and ended up deciding but forgetting to put it down.

I won't be around to update the page immediately tonight, will do it when I get in from work tonight. I won't be adding any teams or tactics that have been edited past 8:00pm as well. I believe we are only waiting for Geordie's team though, and we will have a full compliment.

Its on his page Fluxy

He's put his team in his team thread. I can transfer it into into the correct format if he hadn't in a couple of hours

Cheers mate I'll leave updating until later, otherwise I might miss an updated tactic.

London Wasps
Manager – GeordieFalcon

01.Boris Stankovich	09.Danny Care
02. Andy Titterell.	10.Jimmy Gopperth
03.Nicholas Mas
04.Matt Garvey	11.Jonathan Joseph
05. George Skivington	12. Luke McAlister
06.Thierry Dusautoir	13.Billy Twelvetrees
07.Julien Salvi	14. Ugo Monye
08.Thomas Waldrum	15. Mike Brown

16. Tom Varndell 17. Billy Vunipola 18.Micky Young 19. Morne Steyn 20. Tim Payne 21. Marco Wentzel 22. Ben Broster 23. Chris Brooker
Tactics

Looking to play a high impact, high physicality) quick release game from the forwards...utilising a very strong set of backs.,....

---

Waiting for calrification from Pooly or SJE on how we are predicting, otherwise we are all clear I believe

Normal predicting

Exeter Chiefs 25 v Sale Sharks 25
Location - Sandy Park
White Cloud, 19 Degrees, 9mph Winds

Front rows - + Exeter, slight edge across the front row in the tight, fairly close in open play
Second row- ++ Exeter, Gaskell a bit lightweight compared to the bulky Ex locks
Back Row- edge to Sale overall, Burger a bit better than Armitage in the star stakes (though injured in real life...), though Armitage will push him
Half Backs- edge Sale- Cruden in excellent from and outdoes Wilko. Peel excellent and the Ex combo very good but Cruden just too good right now
Centres - edge Sale
Back 3- + Exeter, just better across the whole back 3 very good mix

Scrum- edge to Exeter thanks to the locks
Lineout- evens
Breakdown- edge to Exeter thanks to Armitage

Attack- overall go just to Sale, as Cruden will get a lot from his centres esp JD2 and outdo the power in Exeter's pack
Defence- Exeter stronger here, solid all across the backs and some big hitters in the back row and locks. Lowe can actually defend (excellently) at 13 too.
Kicking- Advantage Wilko and Exeter


Verdict- Sale score a few tries but Wilko's boot keeps Exeter in it and they draw, 25-25


Exeter Sale
Tries- Johnson Davies x2, Cruden
Conversions Wilkinson Cruden x 2
DG- Wilkinson
Pen- Wilkinson x5 Cruden x 2


Gloucester v Northampton Saints
Location - Kingsholm
White Cloud, 19 Degrees, 12mph Winds

Front rows - Edge to Gloucester, worse hooker but better on both props
Second row- + + Saints, Lawes good all round game despite detractors and Manoa a handy player, more proven players than Brown or Savage
Back Row- + Saints. In the carrying and tackling stakes, it goes to Saints though the breakdown might be different. Both well balanced. Stroks isn't going to "terrorise" at the breakdown though, certainly not going to terrorise Wood or Ferris
Half Backs- edge Gloucester, Yachvilli and Burns could really work with Yach dictating and Burns creating. Sexton is obviously very good but his combo with Dickson is just a little less inspiring
Centres - edge Saints- harsh on Gloucester who have an excellent pairing of power and guiley pace, but Pisi collecting SBW offloads is a scary thought and Roberts hasn't looked his best this past year. SBW is on fire, and not just normal fire but magical fire or Greek Fire or something.
Back 3- + Saints. Ashton doing what he does best on the weekend. Foden not at top form still but better than Gloucester at the moment

Scrum- slight advantage to Gloucester thanks to their props
Lineout- Advantage to Saibnts, Wood an excellent extra option
Breakdown- Advantage Gloucester, just, due to the work of the whole pack.

Attack- + Saints. Good attacks from both sides, Trinder will love playing off Roberts but Pisi off SBW even more so, especially when Ashton comes off his wing onto pops from Sexton or SBW. Big carriers for both sides. Just, the 10-12 axis and the runners come onto it for it for Saints is fantastic
Defence- Evens, both good gameplans, both good defences in the backs and tacklers in the pack. 2 of the better Ds in the League.
Kicking- Out of hand edge to Gloucester with Yachvilli chipping in and Saints having practically no kickers outside of Sexton! Evens at goal.
A little more off the bench for Gloucester though, although I like the idea of Sexton and Myler in duo when Saints take the lead (though Myler at 10 and Sexton at 12).

Verdict- Home advantage not quite enough, Gloucester 16- Saints 20


Gloucester Saints
Tries- May
Conversions Burns Sexton x 2
DG-
Pen- Burns x 2, Yachvilli Sexton, Myler




London Welsh v Leicester Tigers
Location - Kassam Stadium
White Cloud, 19 Degrees, 11mph Winds

Front rows - ++ Tigers, the best front row in the competition. Too good to deal with
Second row- Evens. Both very good pairings, both mix power and lineout ability. Neither has an outright lump (Gray is big but surprisingly not that physical in the loose) but still well balanced.
Back Row- + Tigers. Welsh have a good mix but Gibson at 6 is going to get beaten physically and Croft isn't even very physical. More experience at 7 for Tigers but in the tight I think Parisse might get a surprise from Easter.
Half Backs- edge to Welsh. Great combo and well-known for Tigers. But I still think Flood is not all that and is pretty predictable. Hodgson is solid at 9 and Evans is glorious and just had a great game.
Centres - + Tigers. Henson unproven for a few years. Waldouck very good and the combo could be good. JOC and Manu is a fanastic combo but Manu hasn't been that great too recently. I think JOC would set him free.
Back 3- + Tigers. Welsh have a good back 3, Tigers a great one. Exposable though...

I think both benches are packed with young talent and gamechangers, would love either of them.

Scrum- Tigers- too much power and a technically brilliant front 3
Lineout- Both fantastic, both will more than 3 very viable options. Evens
Breakdown- Edge to Tigers, where Croft is underrated

Attack- Tigers. Though Nev might have something to say about that. Linebreakers with steps and power everywhere.
Defence- Welsh. This is where I think Tigers are weak, they have no line-general in the backs and Croft isn't the most secure man down the blindside. Wade can be a bit defensively weak and Welsh is pretty solid in the backs.
Kicking- Evens. Flood decent enough out of hand and helped by Kearney and JOC vs Nev and Henson. JOC and Nev not going to miss kicks.


Verdict- Too much up front and out wide for Tigers. Sorry Fluxy, good team though. Welsh- 26 Tigers 34


Welsh Tigers
Tries- Evans, Waldouck Penalty, Parling, Wade x2
Conversions Evans x2 O'Connor x 4
DG- Evans
Pen- Evans x 3 O'Connor, Ford


London Wasps v Harlequins
Location - Twickenham
White Cloud, 21 Degrees, 9mph Winds

---

Front rows - + Quins. Very close at tighthead (Mas' technique vs JJ's raw power) but Quins have the advantage elsewhere. No slouch in the loose either.
Second row- edge Wasps. Not quite as proven but for me more potential there and slightly classier players.
Back Row- Edge Wasps. Wasps have Dus who is class and Salvi and Waldrum both good players with good starts to the season (albeit against Welsh), but Robshaw is class allround and when not injured Newby and Brussouw are good too But due to form players vs injured players, advantage pests.
Half Backs- Evens. Ach, you've both gone for good attacking nines with defensive kicking 10s! Care better player (with a worse haircut) than Burguss, but Farrell better than "Jimmy".
Centres - Edge Quins. Fofana not the best defender but with Payne outside him could be devastating in attack. Very good centres in attack for Wasps but I fear 36 could be exposed too easily at 13.
Back 3- Edge Wasps. Very good form from North last match and good back up in Abs and Short but Brown (despite some defensive hesitancy), Monye and Joseph are an ace back 3


Subs - advantage to Wasps in gamebreaking but some cool heads for Quins.

Scrum- Slight advantage to Quins, too much power upfront.
Lineout- Advantage Wasps, just a bit better and Dus/Salvi good jumpers at the back
Breakdown- Advantage Quins- Robshaw and Brussouw is a potent backrow on the ground and both packs look like they will rely on the back rows to win ball.

Attack- Evens. Both very potent in the backs but with defensive 10s and big carriers, not much to separate them here.
Defence- Quins, just. Wasps advantage at the back, but 36 isn't a 13 and Farrell better in D than Gopperth and Dus and Robshaw both tackle-machines
Kicking- Wasps. Even from 10 but McAlister handy help for Wasps.


Verdict- Power in the scrum and the rucks just enough to give Wasps 21- Quins 23


Wasps Quins
Tries- Waldrum, Brown North, Skinner
Conversions Gopperth Farrell x 2
DG-
Pen- Gopperth x2, Steyn Farrell x3



Worcester Warriors v Bath
Location - Sixways Stadium
White Cloud, 19 Degrees, 11mph Winds

Front rows - Edge to Bath- Marler and Healey good struggle that Healey edges just. Otherwise close.
Second row- Advantage Bath, just about
Back Row- Edge to Bath- Interesting. Does Johnson play 7? 3 potential 8s in that Wuss backrow, not sure the balance is right. I think Hask at 7 would be a better bet. Good players but Bath's balance is better, and SOB is a standout player.
Half Backs- Advantage Bath- Hook could be dangerous if flakey. Don't know a lot about Arr.
Centres - Evens- I like Barritt- Hopper and Barritt was very good in a dull game yesterday (Hopper good but weak in defence). Laulala amazing attacker, still not a Banahan fan at 12 even though the gameplan could get something out of him.
Back 3- Advantage Bath- tasty attacking back 3, looks to have more in attack than Worcester's

Scrum- Advantage Bath, no doubt here
Lineout- Advantage Bath
Breakdown- Advantage Bath with Louw a bit better than Haskell here and SOB and Fearns very capable of helping out.

Attack- Advantage Bath. Wuss actually slightly ahead in the pack with their carriers but no DC and no Genia cripples their backs a bit and Laulala and Chisholm and Hook will look to score tries.
Defence- Evens- little in it, back row great tackling unit on both sides and Hopper and Barritt even out to a decent defence in the backs for Wuss.
Kicking- Evens


Verdict- Too much all around the park for Bath. Wuss missing their class HBs. Worcester 19 - Bath 28


Worcester Bath
Tries- Haskell Biggs, Chisholm, Classens
Conversions Carlisle Hook x 2
DG-
Pen- Carlisle x2, Goode Hook, Donald x2

Great predictions CJ!!

After the second match I massively regretted doing them in this much detail but it would have been unfair to change the level of detail for the last 3 and soul-crushing to delete the first 2! Literally wasted an hour of valuable work time, now I'm off to the gym

Exeter Chiefs 23 - 21 Sale Sharks

A good fight up front, but Chiefs have a little more in the front five. Back rows are pretty much even, but for me chiefs will get an edge in the lineout, scrums even and physically both teams are matched. A great solid chiefs combo will keep the scoreboard ticking over and the backs moving, but the sheer class of Cruden at the moment will give Sale some real impetus. Two good baclines, but Chiefs have a little more as a unit. Two great benches as well, Sale will get the most out their's. But Chiefs will shade them at home.

---

Gloucester 24 - 24 Northampton Saints

Two top four teams here that have recruited well over the summer. Saints well get a physical edge up front, slowly grinding Glos down. Glos do have some dog in them but there is only so much they can take. Set pieces are very even, with maybe Saints just shading the lineouts. However the difference here for me will the halfbacks. Yachvili will control the game and make it easy for Burns and co in attack. Two great backlines which maybe I'd edge towards glos. The benches are even, with Saints having good forward subs and Glos good back subs. In the end I think a draw will come around due to the boot of Yach keeping them in touch and a explosive moment from May beating Elliot.

---

Saracens 19 - 18 London Irish

A great fight up front. I think Irish have sorted the issue that their pack were great in the setpiece but lacked grunt around the park. My only concern for most of them now is that, not many of them have been in the most inspiring form, but still good nonetheless. Sarries have a good solid front row, and a growing reputation in the second row. The Back row is where Sarries will even up the physicality battle. Another great fight between two sets of halfbacks, Irish are good, James is a good attacker as is Simpson. But Parra and Hodgson are level up and really release Allen and Smith well. Irish have some dangerous backs though and will strike when cornered. In the end can't see past Sarries here. No tactics obviiusly doesn't help Irishes' cause!

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London Wasps 30 - 31 Harlequins

Two good teams will underachieved a little last season. Up front I can see it being a bit of "to me to you" as each have their great cornerstones anchoring the packs. Again the back fives of each time are even, Quins exceptional at the breakdown and tunrover, but Wasps have brilliantly ball carriers. Alomst a vicious cycle as one tries to get on top of the other. A good set of halfbacks from, both similar too! Can maybe see quins getting the ball out a little better, but both backlines are full of talent. Might see a bit more from Wasps back three. For Quins will nick it, as their bench will be key, whereas Wasps is unfortunately mostly forwards!

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Worcester Warriors 8 - 23 Bath

Up front Bath will get a nudge on and dominate with their added quality in their pack. Not to doubt the Warriors physicality but they lack that little something other than in their backrow which Bath has through their pack. Warriors have a solid halfback pairing and a good little backline. But again Bath have more x factor to them and will only be aided by their dominance up front.

Exeter 20-19 Sale
Edge to the Exeter front five. Prefer the Sale front row but only just, Exeter have one of the best second row partnerships in the league. Prefer the Sale backrow though also one of the best in the league. Very good set of forwards. Half backs about even but prefer Exeter backs. Subs bring it mighty close for Sale but at home Exeter just about hold on.

Gloucester 21-27 Saints
Like both front fives again. Saints edge the front row and I think have a big advantage in the second row. Prefer their back row as well. Both teams have good half backs as well but once again slight edge to Saints. Strong set of backs and a good bench see Saints nick an early away win

Welsh 18-31 Tigers
Welsh unfortunate to come up against such a strong side. Dominant front row and they edge the second row as well. The Tigers backrow is also stronger. Think they edge the half backs although Evans could be key for them. 11-15 is probably where they are weakest and Tigers are strong here as well as every other position. Very strong bench from Tigers, I suspect most of the players on the bench could feasible start for some of us.

Sarries 23-20 Irish
Real strong front fives. Just an edge overall there to Irish. Back row from Irish is simply superb and a step above. The Sarries half backs have enough quality to control the game. Prefer the Sarries 11-15 as well both have really strong centre combinations. Irish have a better bench, but home advantage and a clear game plan mean Sarries take the win

Wasps 25-26 Quins
Prefer the Quins front row. Do just about prefer the Wasps second row, similarly small edge to Quins in the back row. Overall prefer their forwards. Prefer Quins half backs but from 11-15 they are probably equal. If the Wasps tactics were a bit more filled out they coulda grabbed a win.

Exeter 24-16 Sale
Exeter have the better pack overall, despite losing out a bit in the front row. Second row goes to Exeter by quite a bit and a lack of form and game time for Crane and Burger counts against Sale in this area.

Like Peel and Wilko as a half back combo and they outshine their opposite numbers despite Cruden's sparkling form. Not much in the centres, back Exe have a bit more star quality in the back three and their physical edge will out power Sale out wide.

Gloucester 14-19 Saints
Saints win the pack battle quite easily here and with a cracking front row bench and dowson on the bench, they sustain the advantage right through. Whilst Glos miss Whitelock badly, Saints cope without Read as Wood and Ferris are good lineout operaters and Wilson no mug. Back row the closest area, but probably still equal at best for Glos.

Prefer the Saints halfbacks and Ashton back to his best this weekend is a big plus for the away side. SBW at 12 is a world beater on current form as well. In this game, there is a solid enough platform up front for Sexton to have an armchair ride and with Ashton and SBW, tries are scored. Glos' backs are great, but struggled for any ball, despite some good breakdown work.

Welsh 10-21 Tigers
A solid front row from the Welsh, but sadly all are outclassed by their opponents, with a better bench from the away side as well. Prefer the Welsh row, which has a great bit of physicality and also the lineout leadership of POC, his influence around the park is great. Back row is where the Tigers really dominate though, with class and experience over shadowing the promise of the Welsh flankers.

Half backs have to be about even, with Youngs out injured and both 10s in great form. Not sure about JOC at 12 yet, especially after a long absence, but with Henson at 12 opposite him, he wins this hands down. Big difference in quality out wide for the Tigers and they have enough firepower here for the win.

Sarries XX-XX Irish

Wasps XX-XX Quins

I'll do the other 2 games later

Gloucester 22 - 22 Saints

Really tight up font with not a lot of give either way. Both sides struggling a bit in the 2nd rows. Slight edge to Saints. Two very good backrow units, again, slight edge to Saints. One apiece in the HBs, I think it's too soon for SBW, but then Roberts been injured so centres quite even. Tight in the back three's too. Slight edge to Saints but negated by home advantage. Good game. 


Welsh 15 - 24 Tigers

Big advantage to Tigers in the front row. Really great battle in the 2nd row although I prefer Mafi at 6. Tigers dominate the back row too with a great unit. Really tight HB battle between combo of tigers and form of Evans. Tough to spilt. Advantage Tigers beyond there with some top players. Tigers have too much today. 


Saracens 22 - 24 Irish

Give the advantage to Irish in the front row. Good second row battle that I just edge to Irish. Similar story In the back row but Sarries' unit is strong enough to hold their own. Sarries take the HBs with a good combo. Really great centre battle that is tough to split. Slight edge to Sarries in the back three. Pull think your struggling with Tuilagi. Think Irish just have enough to secure a great away win. 


Wasps 23 - 23 Harlequins

Give the edge to Quins up front. Titteral and Stanks past it. Tight battle in the second row with nor clear winner. Really good back row contest. Maybe slight edge to wasps.  One apiece in the HBs, tough to call centres with 36 out of position do edge to Quins. Very close back threes. Really tight game. At home think Wasps have enough to hang on for a draw. 


Worcester 18 - 25 Bath

See both LHs getting the shove on so no real winner here. Edge to bath in the 2nd row. Slight edge to bath in the back row but not a great deal to split them. Bath take the HBs with a nice combo. Same again in the centres with baths powerful unit on top. Worcester take the bak threes. Think bath have too much today. 

Exeter Chiefs 17-12 Sale Sharks

Can see Sale getting an edge at the scrum here with a powerful front row and Schofield backing up. See the Chiefs with stronger jumpers at the lineout. Webber will miss the occasional dart but see Chiefs nicking a few balls. Back row goes to Exeter. No real life form really for either Burger or Crane in the Sale back row and this sees Chiefs get some joy. Halfbacks edge to Sale on overall quality but the Chiefs combo is perfect for the game plan and its a bit dodgy to be playing Cruden with him still involved with the All Black squad. In the backs see Chiefs with a bit more overall attacking wise in the back threes. Decent balance to both midfields and both sides can get some go forward from here. A little bit more quality for Sale off the bench. Just see the Chiefs back row causing a lot of problems in this one and Wilko will get the clean ball needed to really work the Chiefs game plan.

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London Welsh 20-26 Leicester Tigers

Welsh have recruited well and built a very good front 5 but Tigers probably the strongest in the league here and should get a little edge at both set pieces. Bit more in carrying terms and the loose as well in the front 5 for Tigers. In the back row see Welsh getting through a lot of work and making the breakdown a will scrap but there’s a bit more carrying threat from the Tigers unit. Halfbacks wise there is a better balance to the Tigers unit. Hodgson not the man to give the Welsh backline the service they need. In the backs there’s more threat from Tigers. Henson very hard to rate until he gets a few games in. Overall great recruitment drive from Welsh but a tough opener and the league champions just have that bit more quality through the side

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Saracens 35-29 London Irish

Big mark down in this game is no tactics from Irish.
Both set pieces are fairly solid here more of a carrying threat from Saracens is the only difference really in the front 5s. In the backrow Kaino is hard to rate now. Hasn’t played since the world cup while Brown has only just made his come-back for Sarries. More quality for Irish at 7 and 8 but Sarries are following the All Blacks route and will nullify Pococks effect somewhat. 2 decent well balanced sets of halfbacks while there isn’t much difference overall in quality across the backs. Irish can add a bit more attacking flair from the bench but Cooper will be got at defensively when on. Would say this is a fairly even game with home advantage negated by a bit more in the back row from Irish but no game plan is costly and Sarries see out the win in a high scoring game.

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London Wasps 12-22 Harlequins

Big mark down in this game is no real tactics from Wasps.
Good battle at the scrum in this one but fancy Quins to get a bit more out of the lineout. More loose work from the Quins front 5 overall. In the back row industrious unit from Quins that will get through a lot of ruck work but there will be a lot of pressure on Fofana and North to make good yardage. At halfback judging by the flyhalfs this could be a kicking contest. In midfield not sure on 36 at 13 better balance to the Quins unit (Payne looked very good Friday night for Ulster). Not a lot between the back 3s offensively but Quins are right to target the Wasps wings with Farrells boot. Benches look fairly even. See Quins making the breakdown a real scrap for Wasps and with a good lineout their game plan will take advantage of the Wasps back 3 positional problems.

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Worcester Warriors 19-25 Bath

Neither side the strongest at the scrum but Bath have more in the loose and carrying wise in the front 5. Muller the main man in the air but see both sides holding their own ball. In the backrow there’s a little more quality to the Bath flankers but it’s a decent Worcester unit and they won’t let Bath really dominate. Halfbacks is the killer here though. Bath are a class above. In the back 3s see a bit more attacking threat from Bath. In midfield Banahan will stop one or two plays at 12 but will more then make up for it with his carrying. Bench wise there isn’t an awful lot between the sides. See Bath getting a bit more of the ball with more loose work from the pack and using it a lot better with Classens and Hook pulling the string.

Sarries 15 - 17 Irish
1-8 I have Irish down as winning every area and with some good bench options in the pack. Sarries have got a great half back combo, but with a full strength Irish pack, I can't see them getting a nudge on the scrum and they will be under huge pressure at the breakdown and with plenty of lineout jumpers as well.

Outside backs are more balanced, but again with Delon and Quade to bring on, Irish get the win here.

A really strong Sarries side, but man for man in the pack, Irish win the key battles at set piece and the breakdown to set up a narrow win.

Wasps 16 - 18 Quins
Front five very even, balancing each other out. Titterell the only real weak link here. Second rows both have nice balance of brawn and brain, althought i'm not convinced by Botha. Back row goes to Wasps, with a set of three that covers all the key skills beautifully. Not sure about Newby at 8.

Similar half backs, with pacey 9s and two 10s that love to kick the ball away. Kicking games will be good, but won't make the most of their backlines. Not sure about Gopperth at 10, with Mcallister 12 and 36 at 13 and JJ on wing. Think it would be much better with JJ at 13, and either Mac or 36 at 10. Think this backline isn't quite right. Quins have a much more settled unit and their tactics really help give insight into their gameplan.

Quins to sneak this with a late Faz penalty

Exeter 23-21 Sale

Not much in front rows in scrum or loose but Exeter step up in the engine room. Burger standout in backrows but lacking form so little in the units, little edge to Exeter in pack. Cruden the world class talent on show and will create from little ball, great centres but Exeter just sneak at home.

Gloucester 25-25 Saints

Great front row battle but Saints have a little more in the pack although lawes a little hard to rate with being out so long. Cracking halfback and backs battle with SBW in sparkling form for Saints. Elliott stands out a bit but not much in it elsewhere. Saints slightly stronger but see Gloucester holding for draw.

Saracens 23-21 Irish

I think Sarries just shade the front 5 but a tight affair. Irish with the bigger names in the backrow but Kaino lacking a bit of form so see things pretty tight. Fantastic back battle but Sarries strong game plan sees them shade a good battle Irish tactics would have seen at least a draw.

Wasps 24-28 Harlequins

Great matchups and again very tight to call. Pretty even in the packs but Quins with good game plan seeing them get better ball for their talented backline to get into the game. Farrell static game is bypassed somewhat with Burgess a real threat around the fringes and Fofana good on front foot.

Worcester 27-27 Bath

Good front row matchups and not much in it. Think Worcester jjst shade the engine room with a little more form but similar standard players. Big carrying threats from both backrows but just a shade more guile for Bath see them get a bit more around the contact/breakdown. Step up in the halfbacks for Bath and this is where Worcester don't win the game despite a better backline. and more balanced centre combo. Home advantage see's them rough out a draw.

Exeter 31 - 22 Sale

Gloucester 25 - 28 Saints

Welsh 19 - 25 Tigers

Wasps 18 - 23 Quins

Worcester 21 - 21 Bath

Sorry no explanations, been busier than I thought I would be today. I have considered my reasons, so happy to justify predictions if requested.

Exeter 30 Sale 25
Gloucester 24 Saints 28
Saracens 20 Irish 20
Welsh 17 Leicester23
Worcester 20 - 22 Bath

Results:

Exeter Chiefs 28-20 Sale Sharks
Gloucester Rugby 21-27 Northampton Saints
London Welsh 18-30 Leicester Tigers
Saracens 24-22 London Irish
London Wasps 21-28 Harlequins
Worcester Warriors 19-27 Bath Rugby


Full Bonus:
CJ, Fluxy, CJB, Bathite, Luke, SJE & Pooly

Half Bonus:
Pull & Driver

Is it 1.5m or 3m full bonuses?

Full predo (over 2 lines average) - 3m

Just scores - 1.5m