Aviva Premiership Round Four

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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 Saracens
Location - Sandy Park
-Sunny, 15 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. Steve Mafi	13. Richard Kahui
07. Steffon Armitage	14. Matt Jess
08. Ernst Joubert	15. Isa Nacewa

16. Ben Moon 17. Neil Clark 18. Hoani Tui 19. James Hanks 20. James Scaysbrook 21. Kevin Barrett 22. Ignacio Mieres 23. Luke Arscott

Tactics

We will play a structured 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, Joubert, Mafi and Deacon all massive jumpers. We will relentlessly target the opposition's throws.

- Massive line-breakers right throughout the side that will look to tire down the opposition defence. We will use our big carriers consistently to tire down the opposition.
The likes of Afoa, Mafi, Armitage, Horwill, Joubert 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 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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Saracens

Manager – ChequeredJersey

01. Mako Vunipola	09. Morgan Parra (k.)
02. Schalk Brits	10. Charlie Hodgson
03. Sekope Kepu
04. Ollie Kohn	11. Vereniki Goneva
05. Donnacha Ryan	12. Anthony Allen
06. Will Fraser	13. Chris Wyles
07. Jonathan Poff	14. Leigh Halfpenny
08. Kelly Brown (c.)	15. Alex Goode

16. Matt Mullan 17. Harry Allen 18. Kieran Brookes 19. Charlie Matthews 20. Billy Vunipola 21. Joe Robinson 22. Ben Spencer 23. Sam Smith


Tactics

Sub coverage- Fraser covers 7, Brown 6 (Vunipola to 8), Robinson 5 and 6, Goode 10 and 12 (halfpenny to 15), Goneva 13.

Main plan this week is to target the breakdown. Poff and Fraser are adept on the floor so they will double up to get to and slow down/secure ball whilst Brown and Ryan hit the rucks and clear them out. As ever, keep slow ball tight, either with picks in groups of 3 relying on the props and second row to do some carrying, or by passing to Hodgson who will have Brown or Botha on his shoulder for the pop crash ball. . It's sunny today so let's kick as little as we need to. If they kick at us, run it back if it's on, the back 3 are excellent at that. Quick ball will be spread wide and this week we will treat Wyles as a centre in the Antipodean manner - an extra outside back. 11, 13 and 14 all to run support lines off Allen so if he breaks the line off Charlie's flat passes they can support and finish the move. If not they will be ready for his pass or the miss from 10. Goode to join the line between 12 and 13 as a pivot in set plays. If Allen is tackled pre pass, Brown to secure ball and Parra to instantly recycle to the out backs.


- defence- blitz, led by Allen. I want Fraser in Peel's face and Brown to cover blindside as this plays to their strengths.

- scrum- we have a tasty front row and bulk from Kohn so let's try and get a drive on. Use back row blindside moves if we get momentum.

- lineout- called by Ryan, jumpers Inc Ryan, Fraser and Brown. Mark Mafi on their throw. Use short throw to Mako at the front when near their line, support with Brits rolling in. Sometime use Brown as dummy half here.

- take points at goal. If it's close, don't forget drop goals. Use mauls In the first half and Sub on a whole new pack if we tire. Both their centres are wingers so I'd like Allen to really test their positioning

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Gloucester v London Wasps
Location - Kingsholm
-Sunny, 14 Degrees, 9mph Winds

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Gloucester

Manager – prop_lyd

01. Nick Wood	09. Dan Robson
02. Darren Dawiduk	10. Freddie Burns (k)
03. Adam Jones
04. Alex Brown	11. JSD
05. Jim Hamilton	12. EFS
06. Alisdair Strokosch	13. Jamie Roberts
07. Akapusi Qera	14. Charlie Sharples
08. Luke Narraway (c)	15. Johnny May

16. Scott Lawson 17. Dan Murphy 18. Rupert Harden 19. Tom Savage 20.JVN 21. Dimitri Yachvilli 22. Mike Tindall 23. Iain Balshaw


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 and Hamilton 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. We know Wasps will be trying to impress their new coach but we are providing a baptism of fire here and forcing players who won't know each other into making mistakes, attractive rugby is the aim in good conditions.



Forwards

*Experienced front row who will look to dominate the set piece and Jones will be the anchor, we will go up on Jones' side and won't go backwards....we go up, forward and down but not backwards.

*2nd rows are two strong players who will look to control the lineout and to put pressure on their back 5 in the scrum with confrontational play we will target the Wasps lineout keeping Wentzel quiet.

*Backrow are breakdown specialists with Strokosch and Qera both terrorising here and Narraway providing brute strength off the back of the scrum and off the backs, again the bench provides more go forward with JVN.



Backs

* Robson to snipe when space but to release Burns and EFS when possible, he will go for goal when in range,

* EFS to be the playmaker for Roberts who will have a winger on his shoulder at all times and also look for Narraway to break through the defence,

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

* A fast back 3 here who will always look for work and are strong in defence and under the high ball.We will look to target the Wasps players making their debuts who won't be used to one another.



Defence

*EFS 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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London Wasps

Manager – GeordieFalcon

01.Tim Payne	09.Danny Care
02.George Chuter	10. Morne Steyn
03.Nicholas Mas
04.George Skivington	11.Mark Cueto
05. Marco Wentzel	12. Billy Twelvetrees
06.Thierry Dusautoir	13. Jacque Fourie
07.Julien Salvi	14. Ugo Monye
08.Thomas Waldrom	15. Mike Brown

16. Matt Stevens 17. Chris Brooker 18. Jeremy Castez 19.Micky Young 20. Jeremy Castez 21. Joe Ansbro 22. Ben Broster 23. Tom Varndnell
Tactics

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Leicester Tigers v Harlequins
Location - Welford Road
-Sunny, 13 Degrees, 2mph Wind

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Leicester Tigers

Manager – Sgt_Pooly

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

16. Tom Youngs 17. Martin Castrogiovani 18. Luke Cowen-Dickie 19. Joe Launchbury 20. Tom Croft 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/Fasa to marshal breakdown and slow/turnover opp ball

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Harlequins

Manager – Driver

01.Alex Corbisero	09.Richard Wrigglesworth
02.John Smith	10.Owen Farrell (K)
03.James Johnstone
04.Mauritz Botha	11.George North
05.Alistair Hargreaves	12.Wesley Fofana
06.Chris Robshaw(c)	13.Adam Ashley-Cooper
07.Hienrich Brussouw	14.Jared Payne
08.Willem Alberts	15.Nick Abendanon

16.Joe Grey 17.Mark Lambert 18.Chris Budgen 19.Eben Etzebeth 20.Jon Fisher 21.Luke Burgess 22.Tom Heathcote 23.Ollie Lindsey Hague

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 Tigers 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 , Payne 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 Tigers 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 Tigers back line using line speed and keeping disciplined with our penalty count , Wrigga to sweep behind and cover any kicks through and line breaks

Hargreaves to put pressure on the Tigers lineout with jumpers throughout our pack from 4-8.

Impact players on the bench Etzebeth , Burguss , Grey all capable of keeping the tempo up and not letting tigers rest.

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London Irish v Bath
Location - Madejski Stadium
-Sunny, 15 Degrees, 6mph Winds

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London Irish

Manager – Pullthestrings

01. Gethin Jenkins	09. Joe Simpson
02. James Buckland	10. Brock James
03. Euan Murray
04. Tom Palmer	11. Tom Homer (k)
05. Nick Kennedy	12. Daniel Bowden
06. Declan Danaher	13. Regan King
07. David Pocock (c)	14. Sailosi Tagicakibau
08. Imanol Harinordoquy	15. Delon Armitage

16. Rob Herring, 17. Max Lahiff, 18. Leo Halavatau, 19. Simon Shaw, 20. Tom Guest, 21. Darren Allinson, 22. Aurelien Rougerie, 23. Alesana Tuilagi

Tactics
- Conditions are ripe for running rugby today, so we'll really have a go at Bath and play what we see.

- Be solid at the set piece to create a decent platform to attack from. We have big players on the bench to ensure we keep solid for the full game.

- Look to really gain confidence and stability at scrum time. Quick ball to James if we're stable, Harinordoquy to pick and go if it's messy

- In the lineout, we'll dominate. Opt for full lineouts in their half to tie in their pack, leaving more space out wide. Compete for their ball.

- Play in their half initially. Look for territory and target their back three. When the game opens up a bit, we'll go from anyway if it's on.

- Target the breakdown for possible turnovers, with Pocock staying strong on his feet. When they arise, lets use them to our advantage. If the back three are sparse, look to kick for territory. If there are mis-matches, lets have a go.

- Be disciplined at the breakdown, with a guard and bodyguard at every breakdown to stop those easy yards around the fringes. No excuses here.

- Simpson to keep the tempo high, getting the ball quickly away from the breakdown and releasing the backs. The back three to be hungry and look to get involved.

- Use the piston system Irish have developed so well. Big runners off James to give us real go forward, inside and outside runs.

- For slow ball, look to get outside their guards and bodyguards to suck in more and more forwards at each breakdown. This will give more time to the backs.

- Key emphasis on defence in midfield, looking for the big tackles in there is the opportunity. Rush up fast and close down their space, forcing errors and turnovers where they'll be mismatched.

- Homer to go for points at every opportunity.We can have a pop from anywhere in their half. Make them scared to give away penalties in their half, thus giving us more time at the breakdown.

- Bench is full of impact players to keep the intensity high and have a run at Baths tired legs.

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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. K.Eastmond
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. O.Woodburn

TACTICS TBC

General
- 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 SOB/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. Classens sweeps up behind for counter attacks

Forwards
* Fearns plays as an openside, looking to secure the breakdown
* Picked a very physical pack to make sure that we defend strongly and smash over the gainline. Fearns to lead pack from base of scrum making hard yards and setting up the ruck for Louw and Fearns to clear out. Fearns 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
* 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 get free rein in attack, looking to pop up as second receiver. Can interchange with Banahan on the wing

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Northampton Saints v Worcester Warriors
Location - Franklin Gardens
-Sunny, 13 Degrees, 4mph Winds

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Northampton Saints

Manager – SirJohnnyEnglish

01. Soane Tonga'uiha	09. Lee Dickson
02. Richardt Strauss	10. Johnny Sexton
03. Paul Doran-Jones
04. Courtney Lawes	11. Chris Ashton
05. Samu Manoa	12. James Downey
06. Phil Dowson	13. George Pisi
07. Tom Wood	14. Vasily Artemiev
08. Roger Wilson	15. Ben Foden

16. Steven Kitshoff 17. Dylan Hartley 18. Brian Mujati 19. James Craig 20. Stephen Ferris 21. Martin Roberts 22. Ryan Lamb 23. Sonny Bill Williams

Key Points

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Momentum

• We are 3 for 3 and come into this game with some crucial wins over play off rivals Bath & Gloucester. Worcester come in 0 for 3 and with no momentum. We will look for a blitz start and get points on the board fast as we expect heads will drop.

Home Advantage

• We have a fantastic record here and with a baying home crowd at the hostile Gardens looking to intimidate both Worcester and the ref, Worcester will need to be at their very best to win!

Get At Hooper

• We will target the 13 axis with big carries from the likes of Manoa, Tonga, Strauss, Wilson and Downey. This is an area we can make good ground from based on last weeks Worcester selection.

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 Dickson & Sexton and force Worcester 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 room as possible to attack from.

• In Worcester 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 Worcester 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 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 Wood & Dowson 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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Worcester Warriors

Manager – CJB

01. Joe Marler	09. Will Genia
02. Ed Shervington	10. George Ford
03. Tevita Taumoepeau
04. George Robson	11. David Strettle
05. Graham Kitchener	12. Dan Carter
06. James Haskell	13. Matt Hopper
07. Matt Kvesic	14. Marcel Garvey
08. Ben Morgan	15. Luke Rooney

16. Stephen Moore 17. George Porter 18. Kyle Sinckler 19. Gerhard Mostert 20. Andy Saull 21. Jonny Arr 22. Steven Shingler 23. Ernie Claasens

Overall: Look to play a strong, basic game. We have tremendous ball carriers who we will look to get on the ball and with Genia – Ford – Carter we have a very strong 9-10-12 axis who can really do some damage.

We are going to look to exploit the lineout as we feel we can dominate here. With Robson, Haskell and Kitchener we feel we have a strong basis here against Lawes and Mano

Carter and Genia will look to get there hands on the ball as much as possible. They will control the game from our perspective

Carter should be rested having not played for 4 weeks

Strong bench can come on and potentially change the game

Lots of big carries especially from the backrow

Look to get Kvesic + Haskell on the floor and turning over ball

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Sale Sharks v London Welsh
Location - Salford City Stadium
-Light Rain, 10 Degrees, 9mph Winds

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Sale Sharks

Manager – LondonIrishOllie

01.Logovii Mulipola	09.Hadyn Thomas
02.Gary Botha	10.Nick McLeod
03.Davit Kubriashvilli
04.Yoann Maestri	11.Will Addison
05.Dean Schofield	12. Sam Tuitipou
06.Richie Vernon	13.Jonothan Davies
07.Dave Seymour	14.Tom Brady
08.Jordan Crane	15.Rob Miller

Subs
16.Andrew Sheridan 17.Marc Jones 18.Henry Thomas 19.Matt Garvey 20.James Gaskell 21.Scott Mathie 22.Jonathan Joseph 23.Luther Burrell
Tactics

Following an away win at Quins last week we have named a largely unchanged team with the exception of Crane coming in at 8 and Burrell, Joseph and Garvey coming on to the bench.

- We have named a team full of ball carriers with 2 powerful 2nd rows and a two big centres who can get over the gainline.
-Seymour will look to scavenge on the floor and slow their ball down.
-McLeod and Thomas will look to use there kicking games to push Welsh back into their half.
-Addison will come off his wing to get on do JDv2's shoulder to attempt to profit from any offloads.
-Kubs will target Gill at scrum time.
-Waldouck will be targeted by Davies, as physically there is a massive difference.

Impact Bench - Sheridan, JJ, Burrell and Thomas can offer a lot from the bench and put the game away.

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London Welsh

Manager – Fluxy

01. Rhys Gill	09. Paul Hodgson
02. David Paice	10. Nick Evans (k)
03. David Wilson
04. Paul O'Connell (C)	11. Topsy Ojo
05. Tim Swinson	12. Brad Barritt
06. Ashley Johnson	13. Dominic Waldlouck
07. Will Welch	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Nick Easter	15. Hugo Southwell

16. Paul James 17. Craig Mitchell 18. Tom Lindsay 19. Dean Mumm 20. Tom Johnson 21. Joel Hodgson 22. George Lowe 23. Ben Ransom

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

• Gill and Wilson are solid technicians and will secure our own feed, to provide first phase possesion for our backs. Gill will look to put pressure on the Sharks feed. With James and Mitchell to come on, our scrummaging should remain a threat throughout the game.
  
  
• With a strong lineout, O'Connell will lead the lineout and use Swinson 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 Sharks' ball as much possible, only committing men to rucks if the turnover is on.
  
  
• Evans will look to angle runners either side of the opposition centres to get in Barritt running at their weak inside shoulders, as he prone to rushing up from 12.
  
  
• Off any first phase possession, there Barritt will run a straight line 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 distribution of Waldlouck outside him to release our dangerous roaming back three.
  
  
• With the possibility of a greasy ball, we will look to keeping the passes simple and not to extravagant to keep handling errors down. If penned in our 22, we look kick and chase towards the Sharks back three, with pressure errors and possession could arise for us.
  
  
• Look to use our strong bench for impact later in the game, and to bed in players like; Mitchell, Johnson, Mumm, Lowe
  
  
• Evans will kick all points, unless POC dictates we have a dominate set piece at the moment in time.

London Welsh

Manager – Fluxy

01. Rhys Gill	09. Paul Hodgson
02. David Paice	10. Nick Evans (k)
03. David Wilson
04. Paul O'Connell (C)	11. Topsy Ojo
05. Tim Swinson	12. Brad Barritt
06. Ashley Johnson	13. Dominic Waldlouck
07. Will Welch	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Nick Easter	15. Hugo Southwell

16. Paul James 17. Craig Mitchell 18. Tom Lindsay 19. Dean Mumm 20. Tom Johnson 21. Joel Hodgson 22. George Lowe 23. Ben Ransom

Saracens
Manager – ChequeredJersey

01. Mako Vunipola	09. Morgan Parra (k.)
02. Schalk Brits	10. Charlie Hodgson
03. Sekope Kepu
04. Ollie Kohn	11. Vereniki Goneva
05. Donnacha Ryan	12. Anthony Allen
06. Will Fraser	13. Chris Wyles
07. Jonathan Poff	14. Leigh Halfpenny
08. Kelly Brown (c.)	15. Alex Goode

16. Matt Mullan 17. Harry Allen 18. Kieran Brookes 19. Charlie Matthews 20. Billy Vunipola 21. Joe Robinson 22. Ben Spencer 23. Sam Smith


Tactics

Sub coverage- Fraser covers 7, Brown 6 (Vunipola to 8), Robinson 5 and 6, Goode 10 and 12 (halfpenny to 15), Goneva 13.

Main plan this week is to target the breakdown. Poff and Fraser are adept on the floor so they will double up to get to and slow down/secure ball whilst Brown and Ryan hit the rucks and clear them out. As ever, keep slow ball tight, either with picks in groups of 3 relying on the props and second row to do some carrying, or by passing to Hodgson who will have Brown or Botha on his shoulder for the pop crash ball. . It's sunny today so let's kick as little as we need to. If they kick at us, run it back if it's on, the back 3 are excellent at that. Quick ball will be spread wide and this week we will treat Wyles as a centre in the Antipodean manner - an extra outside back. 11, 13 and 14 all to run support lines off Allen so if he breaks the line off Charlie's flat passes they can support and finish the move. If not they will be ready for his pass or the miss from 10. Goode to join the line between 12 and 13 as a pivot in set plays. If Allen is tackled pre pass, Brown to secure ball and Parra to instantly recycle to the out backs.


- defence- blitz, led by Allen. I want Fraser in Peel's face and Brown to cover blindside as this plays to their strengths.

- scrum- we have a tasty front row and bulk from Kohn so let's try and get a drive on. Use back row blindside moves if we get momentum.

- lineout- called by Ryan, jumpers Inc Ryan, Fraser and Brown. Mark Mafi on their throw. Use short throw to Mako at the front when near their line, support with Brits rolling in. Sometime use Brown as dummy half here.

- take points at goal. If it's close, don't forget drop goals. Use mauls In the first half and Sub on a whole new pack if we tire. Both their centres are wingers so I'd like Allen to really test their positioning

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. Steve Mafi	13. Richard Kahui
07. Steffon Armitage	14. Matt Jess
08. Ernst Joubert	15. Isa Nacewa

16. Ben Moon 17. Neil Clark 18. Hoani Tui 19. James Hanks 20. James Scaysbrook 21. Kevin Barrett 22. Ignacio Mieres 23. Luke Arscott

Tactics

We will play a structured 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, Joubert, Mafi and Deacon all massive jumpers. We will relentlessly target the opposition's throws.

- Massive line-breakers right throughout the side that will look to tire down the opposition defence. We will use our big carriers consistently to tire down the opposition.
The likes of Afoa, Mafi, Armitage, Horwill, Joubert 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 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.

01. Nick Wood	09. Dan Robson
02. Darren Dawiduk	10. Freddie Burns (k)
03. Adam Jones
04. Alex Brown	11. JSD
05. Jim Hamilton	12. EFS
06. Alisdair Strokosch	13. Jamie Roberts
07. Akapusi Qera	14. Charlie Sharples
08. Luke Narraway (c)	15. Johnny May

16. Scott Lawson 17. Dan Murphy 18. Rupert Harden 19. Tom Savage 20.JVN 21. Dimitri Yachvilli 22. Mike Tindall 23. Iain Balshaw


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 and Hamilton 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. We know Wasps will be trying to impress their new coach but we are providing a baptism of fire here and forcing players who won't know each other into making mistakes, attractive rugby is the aim in good conditions.



Forwards

*Experienced front row who will look to dominate the set piece and Jones will be the anchor, we will go up on Jones' side and won't go backwards....we go up, forward and down but not backwards.

*2nd rows are two strong players who will look to control the lineout and to put pressure on their back 5 in the scrum with confrontational play we will target the Wasps lineout keeping Wentzel quiet.

*Backrow are breakdown specialists with Strokosch and Qera both terrorising here and Narraway providing brute strength off the back of the scrum and off the backs, again the bench provides more go forward with JVN.



Backs

* Robson to snipe when space but to release Burns and EFS when possible, he will go for goal when in range,

* EFS to be the playmaker for Roberts who will have a winger on his shoulder at all times and also look for Narraway to break through the defence,

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

* A fast back 3 here who will always look for work and are strong in defence and under the high ball.We will look to target the Wasps players making their debuts who won't be used to one another.



Defence

*EFS 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.

Bath Rugby
Manager – Bathite

01. C.Healy	09. M.Classens (c)
02. L.Mears	10. J.Hook
03. A.Perenise
04. J.Muller	11. K.Eastmond
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. O.Woodburn

TACTICS TBC

General
- 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 SOB/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. Classens sweeps up behind for counter attacks

Forwards
* Fearns plays as an openside, looking to secure the breakdown
* Picked a very physical pack to make sure that we defend strongly and smash over the gainline. Fearns to lead pack from base of scrum making hard yards and setting up the ruck for Louw and Fearns to clear out. Fearns 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
* 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 get free rein in attack, looking to pop up as second receiver. Can interchange with Banahan on the wing

Conditions:

Sandy Park - Sunny, 15 Degrees, 9mph Winds
Kingsholm - Sunny, 14 Degrees, 9mph Winds
Welford Road - Sunny, 13 Degrees, 2mph Winds
Madejski Stadium - Sunny, 15 Degrees, 6mph Winds
Franklins Garden - Sunny, 13 Degrees, 4mph Winds
Salford City Stadium - Light Rain, 10 Degrees, 9mph Winds

Harlequins

Manager – Driver

01.Alex Corbisero	09.Richard Wrigglesworth
02.John Smith	10.Owen Farrell (K)
03.James Johnstone
04.Mauritz Botha	11.George North
05.Alistair Hargreaves	12.Wesley Fofana
06.Chris Robshaw(c)	13.Adam Ashley-Cooper
07.Hienrich Brussouw	14.Jared Payne
08.Willem Alberts	15.Nick Abendanon

16.Joe Grey 17.Mark Lambert 18.Chris Budgen 19.Eben Etzebeth 20.Jon Fisher 21.Luke Burgess 22.Tom Heathcote 23.Ollie Lindsey Hague

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 Tigers 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 , Payne 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 Tigers 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 Tigers back line using line speed and keeping disciplined with our penalty count , Wrigga to sweep behind and cover any kicks through and line breaks

Hargreaves to put pressure on the Tigers lineout with jumpers throughout our pack from 4-8.

Impact players on the bench Etzebeth , Burguss , Grey all capable of keeping the tempo up and not letting tigers rest.

London Irish

Manager – Pullthestrings

01. Gethin Jenkins	09. Joe Simpson
02. James Buckland	10. Brock James
03. Euan Murray
04. Tom Palmer	11. Tom Homer (k)
05. Nick Kennedy	12. Daniel Bowden
06. Declan Danaher	13. Regan King
07. David Pocock (c)	14. Sailosi Tagicakibau
08. Imanol Harinordoquy	15. Delon Armitage

16. Rob Herring, 17. Max Lahiff, 18. Leo Halavatau, 19. Simon Shaw, 20. Tom Guest, 21. Darren Allinson, 22. Aurelien Rougerie, 23. Alesana Tuilagi

Tactics
- Conditions are ripe for running rugby today, so we'll really have a go at Bath and play what we see.

- Be solid at the set piece to create a decent platform to attack from. We have big players on the bench to ensure we keep solid for the full game.

- Look to really gain confidence and stability at scrum time. Quick ball to James if we're stable, Harinordoquy to pick and go if it's messy

- In the lineout, we'll dominate. Opt for full lineouts in their half to tie in their pack, leaving more space out wide. Compete for their ball.

- Play in their half initially. Look for territory and target their back three. When the game opens up a bit, we'll go from anyway if it's on.

- Target the breakdown for possible turnovers, with Pocock staying strong on his feet. When they arise, lets use them to our advantage. If the back three are sparse, look to kick for territory. If there are mis-matches, lets have a go.

- Be disciplined at the breakdown, with a guard and bodyguard at every breakdown to stop those easy yards around the fringes. No excuses here.

- Simpson to keep the tempo high, getting the ball quickly away from the breakdown and releasing the backs. The back three to be hungry and look to get involved.

- Use the piston system Irish have developed so well. Big runners off James to give us real go forward, inside and outside runs.

- For slow ball, look to get outside their guards and bodyguards to suck in more and more forwards at each breakdown. This will give more time to the backs.

- Key emphasis on defence in midfield, looking for the big tackles in there is the opportunity. Rush up fast and close down their space, forcing errors and turnovers where they'll be mismatched.

- Homer to go for points at every opportunity.We can have a pop from anywhere in their half. Make them scared to give away penalties in their half, thus giving us more time at the breakdown.

- Bench is full of impact players to keep the intensity high and have a run at Baths tired legs.

---

WASPS TACTICS

My first attempt at these they will get better as i get into it lol

1.Tim Payne 9.Danny Care
2.George Chuter 10.Morne Steyn
3.Nicolas Mas 11.Mark Cueto
4.Marco Wentzel 12.Billy Twelvetrees
5.George Skivvington 13.Jaque Fourie
6.Theirry Dusatoir (C) 14.Ugo Monye
7.Julien Salvi 15.Mike Brown
8.Thomas Waldrom

Replacements: Matt Stevens, Chris Brooker,Jeremy Castez,Micky Young,Shane Geraghty,Joe Ansbro,Tom Varndell

Look to play attacking rugby, through the backs...Intially the forwards will look to try and move up the field with ball in hand, to set an early tone...The forwards will look to run the other side ragged, Cueto and Monye will look to use pace and run the ball down the wings..

Morne Steyn will kick the ball from all areas, he will also look to use the drop goal on a regualr basis, to keep the scoreboard ticking over. Matt Stevens, Gerathy,Ansbro, will all come on at the 65min mark, for Mas,Twelvetrees and Fourie.

Sale Sharks
Manager – LondonIrishOllie

01.Logovii Mulipola	09.Hadyn Thomas
02.Gary Botha	10.Nick McLeod
03.Davit Kubriashvilli
04.Yoann Maestri	11.Will Addison
05.Dean Schofield	12.
06.Richie Vernon	13.Jonothan Davies
07.Dave Seymour	14.Tom Brady
08.Jordan Crane	15.Rob Miller

Subs
16.Andrew Sheridan 17.Marc Jones 18.Henry Thomas 19.Matt Garvey 20.James Gaskell 21.Scott Mathie 22.Jonathan Joseph 23.Luther Burrell
Tactics

Following an away win at Quins last week we have named a largely unchanged team with the exception of Crane coming in at 8 and Burrell, Joseph and Garvey coming on to the bench.

- We have named a team full of ball carriers with 2 powerful 2nd rows and a two big centres who can get over the gainline.
-Seymour will look to scavenge on the floor and slow their ball down.
-McLeod and Thomas will look to use there kicking games to push Welsh back into their half.
-Addison will come off his wing to get on do JDv2's shoulder to attempt to profit from any offloads.
-Kubs will target Gill at scrum time.
-Waldouck will be targeted by Davies, as physically there is a massive difference.

Impact Bench - Sheridan, JJ, Burrell and Thomas can offer a lot from the bench and put the game away.

CF, you get 8 subs at club level, you can have another sub (front row I think)

Scratch that I suggest second row sub

its ok, i shall stick with 7 subs this week.

Northampton Saints
Manager – SirJohnnyEnglish

01. Soane Tonga'uiha	09. Lee Dickson
02. Richardt Strauss	10. Johnny Sexton
03. Paul Doran-Jones
04. Courtney Lawes	11. Chris Ashton
05. Samu Manoa	12. James Downey
06. Phil Dowson	13. George Pisi
07. Tom Wood	14. Vasily Artemiev
08. Roger Wilson	15. Ben Foden

16. Steven Kitshoff 17. Dylan Hartley 18. Brian Mujati 19. James Craig 20. Stephen Ferris 21. Martin Roberts 22. Ryan Lamb 23. Sonny Bill Williams

Key Points

---

Momentum

• We are 3 for 3 and come into this game with some crucial wins over play off rivals Bath & Gloucester. Worcester come in 0 for 3 and with no momentum. We will look for a blitz start and get points on the board fast as we expect heads will drop.

Home Advantage

• We have a fantastic record here and with a baying home crowd at the hostile Gardens looking to intimidate both Worcester and the ref, Worcester will need to be at their very best to win!

Get At Hooper

• We will target the 13 axis with big carries from the likes of Manoa, Tonga, Strauss, Wilson and Downey. This is an area we can make good ground from based on last weeks Worcester selection.

Game Plan

---

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 Worcester 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 room as possible to attack from.

• In Worcester 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 Worcester 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 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 Wood & Dowson 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.

---

Manager – InTheFastLane

01. Joe Marler	09. Will Genia
02. Ed Shervington	10. George Ford
03. Tevita Taumoepeau
04. George Robson	11. David Strettle
05. Graham Kitchener	12. Dan Carter
06. James Haskell	13. Matt Hopper
07. Matt Kvesic	14. Marcel Garvey
08. Ben Morgan	15. Luke Rooney

16. Stephen Moore 17. George Porter 18. Kyle Sinckler 19. Gerhard Mostert 20. Andy Saull 21. Jonny Arr 22. Steven Shingler 23. Ernie Claasens

Overall: Look to play a strong, basic game. We have tremendous ball carriers who we will look to get on the ball and with Genia – Ford – Carter we have a very strong 9-10-12 axis who can really do some damage.

We are going to look to exploit the lineout as we feel we can dominate here. With Robson, Haskell and Kitchener we feel we have a strong basis here against Lawes and Mano

Carter and Genia will look to get there hands on the ball as much as possible. They will control the game from our perspective

Carter should be rested having not played for 4 weeks

Strong bench can come on and potentially change the game

Lots of big carries especially from the backrow

Look to get Kvesic + Haskell on the floor and turning over ball

Wood and Dowson are pretty good at the lineout CJB

Aha did it without looking at your team tbh so just mentioned the lineout pair.

Think I could have the edge, when was last time Lawes played?

He put in an all action performance today actually mate reading the reviews. Got on last week as well and was a wrecking ball

Just how often is Haskell used in the lineout by the way?
Not a lot in that 2nd row come scrum time either is there?

Leicester Tigers
Manager – Sgt_Pooly

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

16. Tom Youngs 17. Martin Castrogiovani 18. Luke Cowen-Dickie 19. Joe Launchbury 20. Tom Croft 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/Fasa to marshal breakdown and slow/turnover opp ball

By all reports he was exhausted by the ends. take it you won't play him 80 minutes, so Craig will come on. Not the strongest

I'm sure I saw him win a lineout against Quins recently.

Decent conditions, can't see there being much scrummaging tbh.

Want to give a link to these reports? Seen no mention of him struggling

So one lineout win means hes going to dominate Lawes, Manoa, Dowson, Wood? Hes rarely been used for England, Highlanders, Stade in the lineout in last few years.

I've no worries over Craig he led the Saints line at the back end of last year and was brilliant putting in a few man of the matches and that was without Wood and co around to help him out. I'd be more worried about how Porter, Sinckler, Shingler and Classens will do coming on from the bench

Theres a quote from Jim Malinder "Courtney was exhausted at the end, he has not played 80 minutes for months, Luther Burrell as well.

I was just suggesting a recent example off the top of my head.

Sinckler should be fine, quality player. As will Shingler with Genia + Carter controlling it for him. What about Ryan Lamb, is he going to be in good form or terrible. Never know with him do you

Link mate? Mallinders post match interview is up on the Saints homepage. http://www.northamptonsaints.co.uk/home.php "Courtney Lawes its good for him to play 80 minutes" No mention of Burrell.

Sinkler has just 3 senior apperances an average of 7 minutes long, hasn't gone up against a scrum like Kitshoff/Hartley/Mujati and then theres Porter at LH who hasnt played yet this season.

Leaving Genia on for the 80 minutes after a hard game on the back foot last week against Glaws having to control it for Ford/Shingler. While putting Shingler next to Hooper for the last quarter with SBW running at them?

Wonder how Carter feels being flown across the world and back again when he has just been named in the All Blacks squad for the Argie game? Expecting him to play the 80 as well is a bit risky? http://www.setanta.com/ien/Articles/2012/09/21/Carter-included-for-All-Blacks/gnid-155368/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-union/19628072 Under views from the dressing room

Not expecting many scrums once again, looking at work round the park.

60/70 should be fine for him and obviously he only played 40 minutes last week, did I forget to mention that all my best players got some rest

He should be fine. He clearly is more interested in playing for us than he is for the All blacks. Can't see him playing at the weekend anyway so he will get some rest then.

You listen to the interview mate? The BBC quote doesnt match the interview. Lazy BBC journalism as usual. Courtney hasn't played 80 minutes in months... No "Courtney was exhausted". Also we have already established Craig is coming on for him so I dont know why your arguing the 80 minutes point?

Looking for work around the field with Robson & Kitchner up against Manoa and Lawes?

There will always be scrums its the nature of rugby. We wont mind a few knock ons in the last quarter if the scrum is dominating and giving us penalties. If England could get away with it against Ireland in the 6 nations I reckon we can too

Hansen expects Carter to be playing reading the reports

Are you really expecting to leave him out there for 80 minutes after all the flying? Looking forward to seeing Arr/Shingler or else Shingler/Hooper in the last quarter.

Im off so best of luck mate

Nope, just read the article. Wasn't arguing, you just asked for the article so I got it :P

Front row and back row are some of the ball loose play forwards in England. We can afford to have a second row not as strong as yours in that aspect of the game.

I have erm Stephen Moore coming on. World class hooker. Erm yer, the rest of the front row is fairly Poopie.

Well he doesn't know Carter is fully dedicated to the Warriors cause :P

We will see how the game is going, I am expecting nothing more than a losing bonus point and even that I'd be delighted with so hopefully he can keep it close.

Good luck to you too

Chiefs 18-15 Sarries
2 strong front rows with the edge to Sarries at the scrum. More experience in 2nd rows from Chiefs who should take the lineout. Love the Chiefs back row and think Brown is more suited for 6 in this game. Good tactics with Fraser at Peel but Peel should be able to handle this. 9-10 to Chiefs with a strong pairing. Centres again to Chiefs but the Sarries back 3 will cause a lot of damage if they get quick ball. Parra should get it away so long as htey nullify Armitage which maybe should be in the tactics. Win for Chiefs here.

Tigers 22-20 Quins
Huge front row battle with Tigers edging it here. 2nd rows with Quins with Gray in a struggling squad at present. 2 strong backrows and I'd have swapped Robshaw and Brussouw around, Warburton getting into form at the breakdown again so should take this. 9-10 just to Tigers and really can't split the rest of the backlines with both having inform ones here. Tigers take the bench here and with home advantage will sneak home!

Irish 16-18 Bath
Both Looseheads will get joy here and feel Mears has more to offer. Like both 2nd rows combinations here and should nullify each other. Back row: Danaher and Fearns and the two issues but feel Bath have more grunt compared to Irish's flair. Simpson is in awesome form and helps take the 9-10 channel with Hook struggling a bit in France. Not sure about King at 13 and Laulaula will target him taking the centre battle. Back three to Irish. Irish also take the bench with the better impact players here. Good win for Bath away here.

Saints 28-21 Worcester
Going to give the pack here to Saints with Morgan, Marler and Robson having too much to do to help their counterparts. Lineout will be a good contest with strong jumpers in both teams. At the breakdown Saints have a couple more specialists especially with Strauss' breakdown work. 9-10 to Saints with Genia hard to rate and Sexton able to give Ford a lesson. Not sure about playing Carter to be honest and with Downey's currently form he'll take advantage of the jet lag. Pisi should trouble Hopper too. Back 3 to the inform Saints. Bench to Saints again, really not sure about playing R.C players when the competition's still going on!

Sharks 17-19 Welsh
Good front rows with Sharks taking this with their starters. Not much to go on for either set of 2nd rows but, even without much game time irl, POC's leadership will count. Welsh have a good back row here just bringing a little bit more. Nice 9-10 for Welsh which'll control the game. 2 sets of good centre pairings and I'd say JD2 is just in a bit more form. Good young back 3 for Sale who will nick at least one try but Welsh have a little more experience and I'm a big fan of Southwell at the moment. I feel the bench will have a big impact here with Sheridan doing well but the experience of James doing the same on the other side. There is a little bit more in the 2nd and back row subs for Welsh which will see them over the line as Johnson gets the winning penalty at the breakdown.

Exeter Chiefs 20 Saracens 15

Chiefs shade the pack battle with more stardust on show in Horwill , Afoa and Mafi. I rate Brown any where in the back row CJ , had a long winded debate about him on the other game so won't be marked down for me there. Half backs to Sarries but Wilko on fire in France , Naqa = Allen whilst Kahui shades Wyles with Kahui out so long. Saracens win back 3 but Chiefs get too much ball.

Gloucester 21 London Wasps 21

Tough one to split this one with both having fire power in the pack but Glaws take Scrum and Wasps take the lineout , Wasps have better 9/10 which is big in away games. Centres to Glaws with Fourie playing kids rugby in Japan. Back three is even with Brown the stand out.

London Irish 15 Bath 14

Irish better set out in key positions such as 5 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 15. Irish get on top at the scrum with Jenkins and Murrey smashing the Bath front row Locks also go to irish in this with Kenndo playing well in france , Irish better at 7 and 8 with Fearns a 6 playing 8. More experience in Irish backs sees them see this one out.

Northampton Saints 25 Worcester Warriors 18

Saints from 5 sees them get on top with a big impact bench to follow through with this. Back rows even but Morgan and Haskell better than Dowson and Wilson. Half backs 1 a piece with Genia above Dickson and Sexton miles ahead of ford. No gainline smasher in Warriors backs sees them struggle to get into game and Downey has been great for Munster and Ashton has started on fire.

Sale Sharks 20 London Welsh 14.

Sale have a better forward pack man for man for me , Welch is playing Championship rugby whilst Crane was Tigers best vs Quins. Big scrummagers for Sale see there more dangerous backs get plenty of ball to run with. Ojo out of sorts and Thompstone player about 5 minutes in last 4 games good benchs from both sides but sharks already ahead.

Why is it hard to rate Genia Prop?

Lads, we've got in trouble before with people commenting on predictions on here. I've noticed it's sneaked back in again. I'm pretty sure Pooly / SJE agreed that you can take up comments with the author, but should do it on their team page, not on here

Bathite wrote:Lads, we've got in trouble before with people commenting on predictions on here. I've noticed it's sneaked back in again. I'm pretty sure Pooly / SJE agreed that you can take up comments with the author, but should do it on their team page, not on here

Well said Bathite.

I agree with the no commenting....p/m people if you have a problem.

I will reply to you CJB on here as you have asked on here and it is simply due to him being out at the moment and I just wasn't over sold by recent performances.

Driver wrote:

Bathite wrote:Lads, we've got in trouble before with people commenting on predictions on here. I've noticed it's sneaked back in again. I'm pretty sure Pooly / SJE agreed that you can take up comments with the author, but should do it on their team page, not on here

Well said Bathite.

Felt like a bit of a d ick writing that, but think we all needed a reminder

His last played for his club in July. I would give 6 months before you can completely ignore them personally. No more replies now

Sorry not my usual detail this week

Glos- Wasps-

Glos get the front row and the scrum, most;y as I expect Jones to mash Payne. Nothing much in the second row, Glos a bit nastier but Wasps better in the lineout IMO and better overall in the lineout with their back row. Wentzel is in great form. Wasps win back row as Salvi and Waldrom are two of the most underappreciated yet in form players in the AP right now and Dusautoir is just pure awesome. The Glos back row can't quite compete with such an efficient and well-balanced trio. Evens in the HBs as Care > Robson but Burns is looking great so far and Morne is out of form and defensive. Centres close too- 36 hitting stride at last and looking physical and like an England player but Fourie a GREAT centre but almost impossible to rate currently. Roberts may have played 13 (and wing, and FB) before but I don't like him there and he is only really just getting back. EFS and Roberts is plenty powerful though. In the back 3, just an edge to Wasps- Brown is the form FB in the AP in almost every aspect, but May is looking good (better at wing though). Monye is playing well and will relish running at that back 3 which is dodgy defensively. JSD is class, Sharples is off form, Cueto is past it IMO. Wasps tactics brief and need another sub! Morne's kicking not at its best but if he sucks midgame I'm sure Twelvetrees can cover.

Prop, you can't say your flankers will terrorise at the breakdown every week, Salvi is great at the breakdown and Dus isn't a slouch either!

Targeting Wasps' new partnerships gets Gloucester the win though


Wasps - 18- Gloucester 23

Tigers 25 - 23 Quins

Great Tigers tight 5 edge over Quins' units here (and I mean edge) but Quins just about take the backrow and breakdown. Tigers comfortably take 9/10 as Farrell is not on form (neither is Flood but he won't physically kill the attack like an off-form Farrell). Actually, as Youngs hasn't played it's closer than that. Great centre pairings, both going to miss tackles though IMO, and Tigers have better back 3 overall but this is reduced as North is on fire. However, Tigers have a player on the pitch who isn't in awful kicking form (by virtue of being injured!) so they edge it.

Irish 24 - 24 Bath

Bath look like they have an advantage in the pack except the crucial breakdown which I can't and won't call, and the lineout which Hari takes for Irish. I think Irish take the HBs but Bath the centres and Irish have solider and more powerful back three players and Bath better attackers but more likely to concede tries. I think Bath will get momentum from the pack and early on they will score tries with their pace outwide playing off power in the centre. However, penalties at the breakdown will keep Irish in it and they'll sneak a draw when they start to get at Bath with their better bench.

Saints 16- 15 Wuss

I think Wuss steal the pack here, with an effective back row and Marler creaming PDJ. They'll win the lineout too but Saints might get carrying advantages as they have many in their pack.

Downey- Pisi is a tried and tested 12-13, whilst Carter is undoubtedly tired and not in his best position at 12 and Hopper can attack but is exposable. Genia's not been great but not that bad, he's not Beale. Sexton will boss Ford today though and aside from Ashton, the back 3s are leaving me uninspired at the moment. Saints narrowly win by exploiting the centres but can't pull away with DC kicking points and the Worcester set piece on top.

Sale 20- 27 Welsh

Even in the front row, if anything a slight advantage to Welsh. Similar, very tough and physical second rows too, but Welsh take the back row- Johnson better as a flanker than Vernon, Seymour more experienced than Welch but Easter showed this weekend that he is a top class 8 at this level and Crane hasn't yet. Thomas might edge Hodgson but Hodgson should be able to get decent (and quick, as the Welsh breakdown should be decent with the back row and POC all good there) ball to Nev who is so hot right now that I occasionally struggle to look directly in the direction of SW London. Except he's further SE than I am right now. But the point stands. He is world class and in better form than any 10 as of their most recent few games. Centres are close, JD2 and Waldouck should both enjoy playing outside their 12s and nothing in the back 3s. I see Welsh winning because Easter and Nev are setting the Premiership alight

Exeter vs Saracens- 33-21

Lecister vs Harlequins- 12-5

London Irish vs Bath- 20-14

Northampton vs Worcester- 25-18

Sale vs London Welsh- 28-30

sorry for no explanations this week guys, still easing into it.

Exeter Chiefs 24-18 Saracens

See Afoa causing a few problems at the scrum for Saracens. Lineout wise both sides with decent jumpers although both hookers can have the yips occasionally. Nothing between the front 5s around the park. Interesting ploy in the back row from Sarries and they will poach a few balls but they lack ball carriers and I see Brown struggling at 8. Cracking sets of halfbacks on show. Great little back three from Sarries. Wyles is the weak link in midfield though. I think the Chiefs will get the better platform from the back row in this one and at home they win.

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Gloucester 32-24 London Wasps

Gloucester to get at the scrum in this one with Jones causing Payne all sorts of problems. Lineout wise Wasps with a bit more quality but Glaws have enough options to hold on to their own ball. See the Glaws front 5 getting through a lot more around the park. Advantage in the back row to Wasps. See them disrupting an awful lot but there is a lack of carrying options through the pack. Halfbacks go to Gloucester. Wasps may have the big names but Steyn will be jet lagged and the balance of the combo is all wrong for me. Care needs his flyhalf playing flat to get the best out of him which Steyn will never do. Midfield is fairly tight on current form. Roberts firing on all cylinders this would shade to Gloucester. Cueto is the weakest on show in the back three but Brown and Monye are the form players so it evens out. No lock or back row cover on the bench is suicidal for Wasps. For all the good work of the Wasps back row see them struggling to get any go forward in this game while kicking to the Gloucester back three won't work out.

I'll get the rest in tomorrow lunch time

I'm going to do mine this evening lads, you know i'm good for it!

Exeter Chiefs 16 - 13 Saracens

Up front, the both front fives are relatively even around the park. However in the set pieces Chiefs are in the ascendancy, with Horwill and Afoa both leading here. The backrows are more even, with Mafi and Joubert being thrown in straight away marking them down, against a more settled unit, despite Brown at 8. Two great sets of halfbacks to control the game, but with Sarries only just managing to secure their own ball, and losing some possession the Chiefs pair will fair a bit better with more time. A great Chiefs centre pair will dominate the sarries pair IMO although Allen and Wyles will keep going. They would provide a good backbone to supply a dangerous backthree. But unfortunately the upfront power of Chiefs will secure the home win.

Leicester Tigers 22-17 Harlequins

Good battle at scrum time and neither side will really get on top. At the lineout I see Sarries being able to hold their own ball but Tigers are far more dangerous on attacking lineouts. Good backrow battle on show. Both 7s aren’t at there very best while I see 6&8 as one a piece. Decent balance to both units and would be a very good battle in real life. Halfbacks go to Tigers. Neither 10 has started the season well but I can’t see the Sarries combo getting the high tempo and shifting it wide going. Midfield goes to Quins. Not often you see Tigers bettered in this league but cracking unit for Driver. Back threes are fairly tight think there is a bit more in the Quins combo but feel Payne is wasted a bit on the wing. Bit of impact for both sides of the bench but Tigers could really get at the set piece in the final quarter. At home see the Tigers halfbacks getting more out of their side and with a strong set piece in the final quarter they should fight off any come back.

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London Irish 26-29 Bath

Don’t see a major shift at the scrum here. Bit more meat in the 2nd row for Bath but Irish with a bit more scrummaging in the front row. Lineout wise Irish with more options and can see them pinching a few balls. Bath have more around the park in the front 5. Back row battle is tight. Irish will get a few turnovers but they haven’t got the physicality of Bath. Irish are lacking ball carriers in the pack overall. Quality wise halfbacks are even with two good units but I don’t think Simpson will get much of his sniping game going today with no big carriers to get him the momentum he needs. Back threes go to Irish. Bath good attacking wise but could be got at defensively. Eastmond will struggle with Tagi running at him. In midfield Irish will bring their back three on to the ball more but see them struggling defensively against a big Bath combo. On the bench Irish will get some much needed physicality in the last quarter. See Irish struggling to make an in road into the Bath defence in this one without the big runners needed for their piston system while Bath will make a lot of ground running at the midfield. Irish to make it a struggle with a good bench but I think Bath have enough to see it out.

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Sale Sharks 19-25 London Welsh

Sale with a slight edge at scrum time with a lot of power in the 2nd row but won’t dominate here. See Welsh really getting at the lineout though and dominating here. In the back row more form for Welsh sees them get the upper hand with the Sale flanks not having the best start to the season. Halfbacks are one a piece but Evans is a class above and will direct traffic. In the back three there is nothing between the combo’s on current form. In midfield Davies will get at Waldouck a little defensively but not much between the two combos. Both teams with impact from the bench where Sale will add some great carriers but see Welsh getting at both set pieces with James getting at young Thomas. Welsh will have the better attacking platform in this game with Evans making use of their lineout superiority and that sees them win out.

Exeter 23-21 Saracens

2 strong front rows with props in great form. Webber loses a little with lack of recent form but a close contest. Not much in the engine rooms with Exeter suffering a little from lack of form which evens it out. Little bit unbalanced in Sarries backrow and Exeter a bit stronger here with a good unit. Sarries edge halfbacks and back 3 but Exeter great centre combo. Tight throughout but Exeter just sneak it.

Gloucester 24-20 Wasps

Lack of game plan hinders Wasps. Good front row battle, not much in it. Better lineout options for Wasps but lack a bit of bulk in the engine room. Wasps backrow stronger and a good unit.

Wasps halfbacks a step in quality but some good form for Gloucester with both playing good stuff. Not much in 2 v good backlines. If Wasps had game plan this would be very close, Gloucester just edge.

Irish 25-22 Bath

Irish just edge it upfront with Penerise a bit of a weakness up top. 2 v good engine rooms though with strong balance. Good backrows on show, Danaher suffering abit with form. Louw down rated after playing for SA and prefer Fearns at 6. Good halfbacks on show, not much in it.

Can see Bath doing some damage in midfield with a lightweight Irish partnership. Not a fan of Banahan at all but he'll get some joy. Bit more for Irish back 3 though and they just have enough at home.

Saints 24-24 Worcester

Think Saints edge scrum but Worcester get edge on in lineout with no real leader for Saints. Worcester a little stronger in the backrow too.

Genia will ease Ford into game but will take a few games to settle. Love the Saints pairing and will only get better with Smith. Like the Worcester midfield and just edge, Carter outside Ford is clever move. Saints back 3 have edge but Worcester strong. V tight game, think Worcester would sneak at home.

Sale 23-24 Welsh

Sale have a serious front 5 on show and will really impose themself around the park. Welsh to dominate lineout though. Not much in backrows with some good form for both. Welsh backs looking great but need time to gel, Evans the key man on show and just gives Welsh the edge.

Gloucester 18 - 17 London Wasps

A good front row battle, but I can see Glos getting on top of Wasps, and wasps struggling to turnover any glos ball at the scrum against Jones and Hamilton. Lineout time Wasps will have some joy with Skivs and Wenztel being prominent. Backrows slightly go to Wasps, as they have a solid unit which will snaffle ball. The glos unit will suffer being rotated, but still provide good go forward. Two similar style of halfbacks, with Care in good form, although Steyn hasn't been in great form. Glos dominate the backlines in attack, although Brown and 36 are shining lights in both attack and defence. The addition of 36 and Fourie is detrimental due to the lack of time together. Glos will win it with the introduction of their powerful bench.

Leicester Tigers 23 - 21 Harlequins

Leicester have a good front five, but the mixture of youth and experience in the Quins row make up a good little unit. Quins will manage to secure their own ball at scrum time. Lineout time Tigers will dominate, pinching some quins ball with Parling leading the line. Backrows is a brilliant battle with both being very equal, but Parisse getting the edge on Alberts. Halfbacks slight edge to Tigers, with youngs being out of form, but Faz stunting attacking play, its up to Flood to pull strings, and Wiggles has looked good for Sarries IRL. Two great backlines, with some similar frailties. Two good benches as well but Tigers will win at home.

London Irish 21 - 20 Bath

Two powerful front fives, with an about even scrum battle. Lineouts are again even IMO, with both Kennedy and Mulller in a great battle. Where the forwards are separated is the backrow, with the Bath unit getting a good edge on the Irish unit. Halfbacks are again quite even. The backline are both potent, with Irish possibly getting a bit more with their cohesion as a unit. But Bath's back three have a dangerous elusiveness which will conjure up tries. What edges this one for me is the benches, with Irish having more experience and ability coming on just to secure a win with a penalty at the death from Homer.

Northampton Saints 19 - 13 Worcester Warriors

Saints have a very powerful front five which will dominate the Warriors lighter second row. Marler is a shining light and Robson does some good hard work, but there is no balance for me. Lineouts will go to the Warriors, with Robson and Kitchener dominating the skies. Warriors have a good backrow with a good balance and would be good on the front foot, but in this one are going backwards off the scrum. Around the park though they make their presence felt. The introduction of genia and Carter is a godsend for Warriors, but with DC out of position slightly he will suffer against a solid partnership of the Saints. Saints are better in the back three but warriors have a solid unit. In the end the strong Saints bench will just edge it in their favour in the end.