Fantasy Aviva Premiership Round Four

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Newcastle Falcons vs. Saracens
Cloudy, 11 degrees, 11mph winds.

Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Sgt Pooly

01. Fabien Barcella	09. Ben Youngs
02. Rory Best	10. Toby Flood
03. Clement Ric
04. Brad Thorn	11. Alex Cuthbert
05. Geoff Parling	12. James O’Connor
06. Kelly Brown	13. George Lowe
07. Chris Robshaw(c)	14. Tommy Bowe
08. Toby Faletau	15. Jared Payne

16. Lee Mears 17. Scott Wilson 18. Alex Waller 19. Paul O'Connell 20. Heinrich Brussow 21. Luke Burgess 22. Miles Benjamin 23. Ben Williams

Tactics

HIGH TEMPO, POSSESION, BIG CARRIES.....GAME CHANGERS IN BACKLINE IN JOC, YOUNGS, BOWE

HOME ADVANTAGE - WON EVERY GAME IN OVER 2 YEARS

Game plan...Fast paced, high intensity, offloading, dynamic rugby. We’ll look to hit the ground running and hit the opposition fast from the off. We’ll be aiming to control possession and go through the phases. Flood will play flat and look to get our backline into the game whenever possible and keep the high tempo going throughout.

Set piece:

In the decent conditions look to get the ball in and out for Youngs/Flood to attack with. Look for fast ball off the top of the lineout with Parling making the calls. If weakness seen in either set piece we’ll look to exploit.

Pack & Breakdown:

Look for strong carries from our pack, tying in the opposition forwards. We’ll be looking to keep the ball alive and look for the offload when on. Our backrow will target the breakdown and look to get in a second tackler to tie up the opposition carriers. Youngs will wait for the call and look to sweep up any turnover ball getting us on the front foot.

DEFENCE:

Look to neutralise the opposition early on and allow out backrow to dominate affairs. Thorn/Brown in particular will look to hit the ruck hard and remove attempted turnovers from the equation allowing us to ruck over the ball and control the breakdown. Robshaw will look to target the opposition fly half early on and pressure his kicking. Youngs to sweep in behind the defensive line.

Backs:

Basically get the backs into play whenever possible with Flood & JOC the spark. JOC will act as second playmaker and alternate 10/12 with Flood to keep Sarries guessing. Look to get Bowe & Cuthbert into the game whenever possible. Youngs to play on instinct around the fringes and look to get JOC in on the draw and release to use his gas through the middle.


POINTS:

SCRUM & LINEOUT – Target throughout, if weakness seen go for the jugular
PHYSICAL PACK – Win the collosion and target rucks to drive through opposition
BREAKDOWN – Brussow/Robshaw to work their magic and Youngs to monitor to attack on turnover ball
FORM – We are in great form 3 from 3
BACKS – World class running options and finishers, big game players and finishers to see us through at home
ROLLING MAUL – With our big front 5 look to get the rolling maul going off selected lineouts and eat up the ground
ALTERNATE FH - Look to keep Sarries guessing and change 1st reciever with JOC offering more direct running option between Sarries 10/12 axis


Saracens
Manager –  Driver

01. Matt Mullen	09. Dewaldt Duvenage
02. John Smit	10. Francois Trinh-Duc
03. Craig Mitchell
04. Lionel Nallet	11. Mark Cueto
05. Ali Williams	12. Yannick Jauzion
06. Phil Dowson	13. Chris Bell
07. Ross Rennie	14. Ben Smith
08. Joe Van Niekerk(C)	15. Freddie Burns(K)

16. George Chuter 17.Max Lahiff 18.Hoani Tui 19.Tim Swinson 20.Luke Narraway 21.Will Chudley 22.Iain Humphreys 23.Tim Visser


Saracens travel to Newcastle with a game plan based around territory and a strong work ethic in defence combined with a strong team effort to help each other win the games ahead.

- Big pack to get us on front foot as much as possible with plenty of work in the loose and a big front 5 to anchor the scrum and secure our own lineout ball as well as pressure the opposition throw.

- Rennie to target the breakdown and look to disrupt any real flow to the Falcons game.

- DD and FTD to dictate the tempo and where we play the game with a educated kicking game and hard running midfield.

- Back 3 built for the conditions and have the top try scorer and form wing in NH rugby ready to come from the bench and run havoc.

- Absorb the play and force the mistakes from Falcons in attack with big hits round the fringes and in most tackles.

- Choke tackle , if the chance is on wrap the man up and force a maul and tie the ball in leading to our put in at the scrum.

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Gloucester vs. London Wasps
Cloudy, 14 degrees, 5mph winds.

Gloucester
Manager - Mat

01. Gurthro Steenkamp	09. Will Genia
02. Joe Gray	10. Ryan Lamb
03. Nicholas Mas
04. Tom Palmer	11. Zac Guildford
05. Richie Grey	12. Matt Scott
06. CJ Stander	13. Richard Kahui
07. Alexandre Lapandry	14. Charlie Sharples
08. Imanol Harinordoquoy (c)	15. Ian Balshaw

16. Nick Wood 17. Jamie George 18. Rupert Harden 19. George Robson 20. Jamie Heaslip 21. Dan Robson 22. Rob Horne 23.James Simpson-Daniel


Tactics

- Target Scrum with our world class front 5 which is also significantly heavier
- Target lineout with gray, hari, palmer,Lapandry
- Control the ball through relentless carrying to get over the game line
- Look to maul the ball off the lineout to suck in pack to wear down oppostion
- Genia to keep backrow interested and dictate play
- Look to win forward battle first before earning the right to go wide
- lamb to hit kahui on straight angle to occupy barritt and pisi
- Start to go wide and look to get oyur back 3 involved and try and id mismtches
-aim to raise tempo and break the game up for our broken field runners
- Impact bench to further raise tempo


London Wasps
Manager – ‘Arry

01. Ben Daley	09. Mike Blair
02. Sean Cronin	10. Rhys Preistland (k)
03. CJ Van Der Linde
04. Mouritz Botha	11. Jamie Elliott
05. Marco Wentzel (c)	12. Brad Barritt
06. Steve Mafi	13. George Pisi
07. Jonathan Poff	14. Matt Banahan
08. Ben Mowen	15. Mike Brown

16. Nathan Morris 17. Charlie Beech 18. Shaun Knight 19. Dan Tuohy 20. Jackson Wray 21. Haydn Thomas 22. Dan Bowden 23. Simon Zebo

Tactics
We will look to play at a high tempo with pace and intensity. Our forwards will look to carry hard, attacking gaps in the Gloucester 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.

We will look to recycle the ball quickly by getting good numbers to the breakdown, with the first few players rucking past the ball to clear out the Gloucester players, allowing Blair to get quick, clean ball for us to get out wide and attack the space on offer. We will look to create mismatches in midfield and will target the outside shoulder of the Gloucester players.

Line speed and aggression is key for us in defence, we will try and prevent Gloucester 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 exert pressure and try and get turnovers.

Preistland will look to kick in behind the Gloucester wingers and put us deep into their territory where we will look to pressurize their lineout. Wentzel will be our main go to man, we will also look to use Mafi and Mowen at the tail of the lineout where we can launch attacks from and get our big centers running at the Gloucester fly half channel. We will look to target Lamb relentlessly, our back row will look to be in his face and our big centres will also look to run at him.

With the ball in hand, we will look to win the collisions and get our offloading game going. Barritt will look to take the contact and give us line breaking options with Pisi running good outside lines, we will attack gaps and half gaps in the Gloucester defensive line. We will use Banahan as another crash ball option, coming in off his wing, looking to suck in Gloucester defenders before spreading the ball and making use of the space.

At the scrum, on our own ball, we will look to turn the scrum legally to erase the Gloucester back row from helping out in defence before starting our own attacks. We will look to control possession and be patient, recycling the ball through several phases with Blair controlling our play. We aim to move the ball around, changing the point of attack to tire out the Gloucester pack.

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Leicester Tigers vs. Harlequins
Heavy Rain, 12 degrees, 6mph winds.

Leicester Tigers
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

01. Gethin Jenkins	09. Dimitri Yachvili
02. Tom Youngs	10. Jonny Wilkinson (k)
03. Dan Cole
04. Pascal Pape	11. Ugo Monye
05. James Horwill (c)	12. Billy Twelvetrees
06. Sean O'Brien	13. Brian O'Driscoll
07. Jacques Burger	14. Vincent Clerc
08. Ernst Joubert	15. Isa Nacewa

16. Andrew Sheridan 17. Christopher Tolofua 18. Brian Mujati 19. Simon Shaw 20. Tom Croft 21. Micky Young 22. Dominic Waldouck 23. Rene Ranger

Tactics:

In heavy rain we will play to our strengths and play a game built around our intelligent HB's moving us into the right areas and our huge line breakers.

- Target Quins back three - with Yachvili and Wilkinson, we will look to get the ball deep in Quins territory and test their back three with a mixture of kicks.

- No ambitious passing - In heavy rain we will either look to kick to gain territory or look to keep ball in hand and take it through the middle. All players told not to offload or attempt long passes.

- Attack the scrums - Cole and Jenkins to look to really get the shove on against Marler and Afoa. Sheridan and Mujati to attack Vunipola and Brookes in the second half too.

- Attack at all lineouts. Our lineout is led by Horwill, using Joubert as our banker ball, and with Pape and SOB as our other options. Croft to join the action in the 2nd half to be our banker ball for the last quarter.

- Use massive line-breakers in the tight to tire down the Quins defence. The likes of SOB, Burger, Joubert, Youngs, Pape and Horwill used off the shoulder at pace of 9/10 crashing through the Quins defence.

- Burger is the man charged with reaching the breakdown first and look to turnover possession. We will always look to attack quickly off turnover ball. With Burger, Cole and Jenkins, we feel our breakdown play will be crucial today.

- 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.

- We will look to employ a blitz defence, focusing on a quick line speed to hit the ball carrier before he gets to the gainline. We have aggressive forwards to carry out this instruction.

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

- Wilkinson to kick all penalites.


Key Points:

Home Advantage
Our home record is sensational, and we always feel we will win games at Welford Road. We feel we have the players to control the game, and in front of our own fans, Welford Road is a fortress.

Weather Conditions
In heavy rain, our side is at its best. Controlling, tactical HB's with 36 outside them, and a massive pack full of carriers. Play to our strenghts, and play to the weather, and force Quins into mistakes for Wilko to take the points.

Target Quins Back Three
In heavy rain, we will really test the opposition with a our kicks. Yachvili, Wilko and 36 to pepper Quins' back three with a mixture of kicks to force them into mistakes when going for the slippy ball.


Harlequins
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Joe Marler	09. Lee Dickson
02. Matthew Rees	10. Greg Laidlaw (k)
03. John Afoa
04. Bakkies Botha	11. Luke Morahan
05. Steve Borthwick	12. Jamie Roberts
06. Carl Fearns	13. Jonathan Joseph
07. Sam Warburton (C)	14. Yoann Huget
08. Dave Denton	15. Andre Taylor

16. Rob Hawkins 17. Mako Vunipola 18. Kieran Brookes 19. Jerome Thion 20. Tom Wood 21. Chris Henry 22. Karl Dickson 23. Felipe Contepomi

Tactics

Game Plan

Big carries from our players and retaining possession. Looking to tie in Defenders before looking to use the ball in wider channels.

Look to clear the rucks out effectively with players rucking past the ball. We want to play at a quick tempo controlled by Dickson. Good rucking needed for quick ball and tempo.

Look for Warburton and Fearns to dominate breakdown

Forwards

Very physical and mobile pack picked. Strong carries in numbers taking the ball at pace off 9 and 10. Always looking to win the collision and keep the legs pumping after contact.

Borthwick to run lineout. Lots of jumpers to aim for. Look to scrummage hard and get underneath Jenkins and Cole. Target Youngs throw.

Defence

Quick line speed and attempt to double up in the tackle. Win collisions and knock back carriers.

Key Points

We have a back 3 who are all comfortable at full back so no issues if Leicester go towards negative play. Lineout also very strong so we will have no trouble at lineout.

Feel we have a few more guys who can mke the gain line (Marler, Afoa, Botha, Fearns, Denton, Roberts, Huget, Morahan)

Kick all points. We want to take as many match points from this game as possible.

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London Irish vs. Bath Rugby
Cloudy, 15 degrees, 4mph winds.

London Irish
Manager – stnick88

01. Jean Baptiste Poux	09. Julien Dupuy
02. James Buckland	10. Nick Evans
03. Martin Castrogiovanni
04. Matt Garvey	11. Marland Yarde
05. Johann Muller	12. Sireli Naqalevuki
06. Keegan Daniel	13. Max Evans
07. Steffon Armitage	14. Sailosi Tagicakibau
08. Pierre Spies	15. Delon Armitage

16. Matt Stevens 17. Motu Ma'tu 18. Grant Shiells 19. Stuart Hooper 20. Hendrie Fourie 21. Neal De Kock 22. Shane Geraghty 23. JP Pieterson

Tactics

- Target the set piece, we will look to turn the screw at scrum time with two big scrummaging props. Any pens won will be kicked by Evans for goal if in range.
- Muller is our main go to guy at the lineout. He will also try to disrupt opposition ball. Spies, Garvey and Daniel are our other options to keep Bath guessing. We will look for quick ball off the top to get the ball to Evans to release our quick backline.
- We are looking to attack and run all game long. Evans will manage from 10 and look to put our runners in gaps and get us in the right areas of the pitch. The forwards will make the hard yards and create as much space as possible to get the backs in.
- If for any reason our attacking play isnt working, we have Geraghty and JP on the bench who can change the game and give us a different option in attack.
- With Armitage on such good form, we will look to target the breakdown and seek turnovers. We will look to get to the rucks fast, drive back any opposition and allow Armitage to go for the turnover. We will be careful about this though and not look to give away easy penalties.
- Tagicakibau will come off his wing and look to work off Naqa's shoulder. Naqa is very good at breaking through the first tackle and is a good offloader, so Losi will look to track his runs and take any offloads.


Bath Rugby
Manager – inthefastlane

01. Cian Healy	09. Richard Wigglesworth
02. Chris Brooker	10. David Skrela
03. Davit Kubrashvilli
04. Jarrad Hoeata	11. Nopolioni Nalaga
05. Graham Kitchener	12. Anthony Allen
06. James Haskell	13. Aurelien Rougerie
07. Akapusi Qera	14. George North
08. Tom Guest	15. Stuart Hogg

16. Kane Palmer Newport 17. Will Tanner 18. Jon Golding 19. Tom Donnelly 20. Jamie Gibson 21. Fourie Du Preez 22. Rob Miller 23. Michael Harris

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 Irish scrum, pushing them backwards. With our second row partnership we are looking at Jarrad Hoeata 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 Guest, Haskell and Healy dangerous runners who can really create gaps for our backs. At the breakdown we will look for Akapusi Qera and James Haskell to win turnover ball or manage to slow down opposition ball by going through opponents.. 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 Nalaga, 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.. Skrela 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 stop them running in from deep

Substitutes: We have some really good options on the bench who we feel can really add to the game. Golding and Palmer Newport can come in and help strengthen our front row. Donnelly will look to come on and shore up the lineout. Jamie Gibson is a quality player who can really cause trouble around the park. FDP will look to control our tempo late in the game. Harris is another option who can come on and use his boot effectively to put the ball in good positions. Rob Miller is another dangerous runner who can use his boot.

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Northampton Saints vs. Worcester Warriors
Light Rain, 13 degrees, 7mph winds.

Northampton Saints
Manager: Dammit Chris

01. Logovi'i Mulipola	09. Joe Simpson
02. Dylan Hartley	10. Matt Giteau
03. Carl Hayman
04. Joe Launchbury	11. Leigh Halfpenny (k)
05. Courtney Lawes	12. Ashley Beck
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. Alyn Wyn Jones 20. Julien Bonnaire 21. Mike Phillips 22. George Ford 23. Siti Siviatu

Tactics

Overview - To play a game based on power, speed, pressure and aggression and forcing mistakes to exploit. To work the ball through the phases with our forwards who will use the setpiece to gain an upper hand and then launch our backline on Worcester, looking to spread the ball wide, keep the ball in play and get Tuilagi over the gainline. Playing an aggressive defence, led by Launchbury, Lawes&Lydiate in the pack. Halfpenny to take all of the points on offer and with our backline we will be looking to score tries.

Pack/SetPiece

- strong front row selected - will aim to target Nathan Catt in this area and exert some dominance, especially as Hartley, Mulipola and Hayman are in good form in real life. two internationals on the bench to strengthen the team and will look to use the scrum as an attacking platform and place Warriors under pressure.

- opted to rely on the lineout ability of Lawes, Launchbury&Parisse as we do not see a true world class lineout operator in the Warriors pack. If we struggle at all we will bring on Bonnaire. Again place pressure on the Warriors throw&force errors/turnovers.

- we have the best breakdown specialist in the AP in Salvi, who has been on great form in real life. He will look for turnovers whenever they are on, and we have chosen a very quick second row to help clear the breakdown area for our backrow. We have a faster pack and will use this here, as turnover ball is a key part of our gameplan.

Attack -

- the conditions are very good for our style of play, we want to attack Warriors from the off and play at a high tempo, which goes through the phases and will see Simpson sniping around the fringes and giving Giteau that extra bit of time to dictate play.

- will specifically send our big runners (Mulipola, Launchbury, Lawes, Parisse) down the throat of Barkley to get us over the gainline and then look for quick ball again. Tuilagi is key and we will look to isolate Hooper for one on one mismatches.

- should have a bit more quality in the backline to outscore Warriors and take the chances that come our way.

Defence -

- aggressive defence that is led by Lawes, Launchbury&Lydiate as a key part of our gameplan is stopping guys like Morgan and Gorgodze getting over the gainline&exerting influence on the game. Lydiate's tackling is essential and as soon as they are grounded we use our faster pack to get over the ball and force the turnovers.

- will implement a blitz defence, targeting Barkley and using Tuilagi to put in big hits in the midfield.

- Giteau to make use of the grubber kick and putting kicks into the corners of the field as we have an excellent kick chase with Ashton&Halfpenny where we will aim to force penalties.

Key points -

- home advantage, have a lot of attacking threat from 9-15 so will score tries.

- strong set piece, secure platform to attack.

- strong bench, impact players, all internationals bar Thomas&Ford.

- great form in real life - Hartley, Launchbury, Lydiate, Mulipola, Hayman, Simpson, Giteau, Tuilagi and all back three!


Worcester Warriors
Manager - prop_lyd

01. Nathan Catt	09. Eoin Reddan
02. Richardt Strauss	10. Olly Barkley (k)
03. BJ Botha
04. Jim Hamilton (c)	11. Julien Malzieu
05. Luke Charteris	12. Fergus McFadden
06. Mamuka Gorgodze	13. Matt Hopper
07. Justin Tipuric	14. James Short
08. Ben Morgan	15. Cameron Shepherd

16. Dave Ward 17. Paul James 18. Chris Budgen 19. Tom Savage 20. Ryan Jones 21. Kerr-Barlow 22. Sam Vesty 23. Rob Cook


Tactics:

We have a squad full of experienced internationals who will look to control the game and we have barkley who will look to control the game and take options infront of him. Hamilton takes the regins as captain.

Forwards

*strong front row who will look to get the edge with Botha going up and who will look to dominate the set piece and we have youngsters and Budgie who have proven their worth prior to come on and do similar, Hayman has started 2 games all season with Kubs being consistently selected infront of him and we feel that Catt will hold his own and Botha and Strauss can help out here easily, we also have James to come on if required.

*2nd rows are two players who will look to dominate the lineouts and with Gorgodze we can control these lineouts and ruffle a few feathers.

*Backrow has Tips for the breakdown and Gorgodze and Morgan providing brute strength off the back of the scrum and off the backs, again the bench provides more breakdown control with Jones who will also look to steal lineout ball.

*we will look to slow down as much of their ball as possible as we know they have dangerous runenrs in the game. If we keep Salvi quiet then they won't have as much quick ball. Our forwards will look to control the tempo of the game and take on ball at the sides of the ruck to get us into better positions.

Backs

* Reddan to marshall and Barkley to aim for corners when under pressure but to release McFadden when possible,we will go for goal when in range,

* McFadden to release Hopper who is an exciting runner and who will have a winger on his shoulder at all times and also look for Morgan to break through the defence, Whitten is an exciting runner and will look to take it close and Gorgodze off McFadden 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 Vesty and Cook to come on to steady the ship.

* we will send runners to Giteau's channel and look to put pressure on his tackling, tuilagi is a strong tackler so we will send hamilton and gorgodze down his channel a few times to 'test' him and place him under strain.

Defence

*McFadden to lead this,

*Tips to be on 10’s shoulder looking to wrap the ball up,

*Contest at the breakdown and all set piece,

* we will slow their ball down and Gorgodze will target Giteau to put him under pressurew and put in a few questionable challenges. We are looking to bully Saints but within the laws! Two men will watch Tuilagi so there will be a forward on Hopper's shoulder meaning our backline will not be stretched.

*we come here after a very good performance against a strong gloucester squad and the boys know they need to perform well with the rc coming to a close.

*No silly penalties anymore!

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Sale Sharks vs. London Welsh
Cloudy, 11 degrees, 9mph winds.

Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Vasil Kakovin	09. Danny Care
02. Guilleme Guirado	10. Johnny Sexton
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. David Attwood	11. Keith Earls
05. Christian Day	12. James Hook
06. Peter O'Mahony	13. Robbie Freuen
07. Fulgence Quedragao	14. David Strettle
08. Louis Picamoles	15. Nick Abendanon

16. Lee Imolek 17. Darren Dawdiuk 18. Luc Ducalcon 19. Stephen Sykes 20. Matt Kvesic 21. Ben Spencer 22. Yann David 23. Kyle Eastmond

Key Points

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Breakdown

• We will look to attack the breakdown with two flankers who specialise here on show. Turnover ball is the best form of attack!

Playing the blitz

• After analysing the game tapes we have noticed no sweeper covering behind the Welsh blitz and we will look to exploit this with Sexton putting chips and grubbers in behind the Welsh midfield looking to take advantage of our extra pace in midfield.

Game Plan

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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 Sexton & Hook and force Welsh 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 Welsh 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 Welsh 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.

London Welsh
Manager – Ozzy3213

01. Alex Corbisiero	09. Morgan Parra
02. Bismarck du Plessis	10. Butch James
03. Dave Wilson
04. Nathan Hines	11. Christian Wade
05. George Skivington	12. Jonathan Davies
06. Maurie Fa’asavalu	13. Darren Cave
07. Thierry Dusautoir ©	14. Matt Jess
08. Sione Kalamafoni	15. Louis Ludik

16. Chris Whitehead 17. Steven Kitschoff 18. Adam Jones 19. James Hanks 20. Kevin McLaughlin 21. Charlie Davies 22. Owen Farrell 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 Sale 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 the Sharks make. Fa’asavalu and Dusautoir will play right/left on the flanks as opposed to open and blindside.

Attacking specifics

• Butch James to play what is front of him, looking to move the Sharks defence around and create gaps.
  
• Big carriers to run hard and stright in midfield off early phase ball to suck defenders in and create space out wide for Wade, Jess and Ludik, who will look to exploit the fact that Sale play with their wingers sat deep behind the defensive line to field kicks.
  
• Carriers to look to hit gaps rather than defenders 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 (penalties or drop goals).
  
• If at any time we feel that we are in danger of conceding a turnover then Parra or James will use their boot to kick for touch deep in Sharks territory.
  

Defensive specifics

• Darren Cave will be defensive captain.
  
• 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. Parra will sweep in behind.
  
• 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.
  

Key Points

• Gameplan is ideally suited to the players we have selected. Our pack is well balanced with carriers, tacklers and players who are good in the set piece.
  
• Solid defensively in midfield with real attacking threat out wide (Jess and Wade scoring for fun so far this season).
  
• We have no traditional fetcher, but with BdP in the side the balance of our pack is good as he is better at the breakdown than most opensides.
  

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Man...smashed again!!

Three if us with 4 losses out of 4, gonna be a battle royale to avoid relegation.

Rugby Champs is crippling teams

Aye..I need my 1-10-12 back asap!! Peel being injured on here hasn't helped

Scorers

Newcastle Falcons 28 (T: Payne, Robshaw, Faletau C: Flood 2 P: Flood 3)
Saracens 19 (T: Burns C: Burns P: Burns 4)

Gloucester 28 (T: Scott, J.Gray, Harinordoquy C: Lamb 2 P: Lamb 3)
London Wasps 19 (T: Banahan, Elliott P: Priestland 3)

Leicester Tigers 24 (T: Pape, Twelvetrees, Joubert C: Wilkinson 3 P: Wilkinson)
Harlequins 17 (T: Warburton P: Laidlaw 4)

London Irish 31 (T:Castrogiovanni, Daniel, Muller, Garvey C: Evans 4 P: Evans)
Bath Rugby 23 (T: Kitchener, North C: Skrela 2 P: Skrela 3)

Northampton Saints 31 (T: Beck, Mulipola 2, Parisse C: Halfpenny 4 P: Halfpenny)
Worcester Warriors 22 (T: Hamilton C: Barkley P: Barkley 5)

Sale Sharks 28 (T: Hook, Freuan, Picamoles C: Sexton 2 P: Sexton 3)
London Welsh 23 (T: Ludik, J.Davies C: Parra 2 P: Parra 3)