Fantasy Aviva Round 15

Aviva Premiership Round Fifteen
Bath v London Irish
Bath Rugby
Manager – Bathite

01. N.Catt	09. M.Classens
02. C.Tolufua	10. O.Barkley (k)
03. O.Franks
04. J.Muller (c)	11. T.Biggs
05. F. VD Merwe	12. F.Steyn
06. F.Louw	13. E.Daly
07. J.Salvi	14. T.Bowe
08. S.Kalamafoni	15. I.Dagg

16. O.Tomascyuk 17. R.Batty 18. J.Golding 19. R.Eldsadt 20. M.Lund 21. C.Cook 22. S.Donald 23. C.Lualala

TACTICS TBC
As always, look to secure a platform up front. Two big scrummaging locks picked, along with world class Franks at cornerstone. Look to secure breakdown with two proven 7s. Great options off the bench with Eldstadt and Lund offering big physical impact against tired legs. Cook to inject some pace around the fringes and Lualala and Donald there if some experience is required.

Forwards
- Picked two opensides to dominate the breakdown. Both Salvi and Louw are great at the contact area
- Kalamafoni to provide ball carrying threat, Louw operates as link man, Salvi first to every ruck to compete
- Muller will continue to make the lineout calls and look to challenge opposition throws for the steal

Backs
- Look to play in the opposition half, use the boots of Barkley, Steyn and Daly to gain yardage. If nothing on / slow ball, use Steyn, Tolufua, Louw and Kalamafoni on the crash

London Irish

Manager – Mad for Chelsea

01. Dean Greyling	09. Joe Simpson
02. Scott Lawson	10. Quade Cooper
03. Paulica Ion
04. Bryn Evans	11. Sailosi Tagicakibau
05. Nick Kennedy	12. Daniel Bowden
06. Tom Guest	13. Aurelien Rougerie
07. David Pocock (c)	14. David Strettle
08. Imanol Harinordoquy	15. Matt Tait

16. Rob Herring, 17. Fraan Rautenbach, 18. Gethin Jenkins, 19. Simon Shaw, 20. Andy Saull, 21. Darren Allinson, 22. Brock James, 23. Anthony Watson

Tactics:

Mediacl joker Dean Greyling makes his debut, his scrummaging power needed to match a powerful Bath scrum. Similarly, Bryn Evans comes into the second row (Shaw has started a few games recently and at his age can't keep doing that all year). Meanwhile Dan Bowden takes over the IC role to act as a second play-maker to Quade Cooper, who makes his return at FH as we put out an ultra attacking backline. Scott Lawson starts at hooker, his work around the park should be a bonus. The gist of the tactics is pretty simple: secure a platform with quick ball, and if it's on, go for it.

- look to dominate the breakdown. Bath has picked two open-sides to try to negate the Pocock effect but we're backing Pocock to deal with this and there's a possibility Bath's backrow may be unbalanced as a consequence. If things are going very badly we can always fight fire with fire with Saull on the bench.

- Bath look set to play a kicking game, so have a few men back to field the kicks. Our back three are all great open field runners, so if the Bath kick-chase isn't spot on we'll look to counter-attack.

- plenty of line-out options, both to secure our own ball and to put pressure on theirs (Kennedy one of the best readers of the opposition line-out in the game).

- Bowden as a second play-maker alongside Cooper, as has worked well for Australia in the past (Beale and/or Barnes). Him and Tait can also take some of the pressure off Cooper with their kicking games.

- If slow ball, use the big ball carriers (Greyling, Evans, Harinordoquy in the forwards, Rougerie on the crash ball in the backs) to get over the gain line and secure quick ball on the following phases.

- The backrow are all good handlers and should provide a good link between forwards and backs

Harlequins v Leicester
Harlequins

Manager – Driver

01.Marcos Ayerza	09.Richard Wrigglesworth
02.John Smit	10.Morne Steyn (K)
03.James Johnstone
04.Eben Etzebeth	11.Bryan Habana
05.Mouritz Botha	12.Hudson Tonga'uhia
06.Tom Croft (c)	13.Adam Ashley Cooper
07.Marcell Coatzee	14.Mark Cueto
08.Dave Denton	15.Jared Payne

16.Joe Grey 17.Chris Budgen 18.Will Collier 19.James Percival 20.Semisi Taulava 21.Bryn Hall 22.Tom Heathcote 23.Nick Abendonan

Tactics

Big pack to get ontop the Wasps front 5 and put them under the cosh at the Scrum and rucks with plenty of impact from the bench.

Scrummage for 80 minutes with strong scrummagers on the bench to come on if need

Steyn to test Tigers backs 3s position game with Kicks in behind with Habana and Cueto chasing with neither being on the small side.

Tonga/AAC to take the ball to the gain line and ask questions of the Tigers back line with Habana/Cueto/Payne coming into the line to cause problems

Croft to run our lineout whilst Coatzee and Croft will look to smash rucks to slow down and Wasps ball.

Jumpers from 4-8 in our pack giving John Smit plenty of targets with Etzebeth and Corft targeting the Tigers Lineout.

Wrigglesworth to control the tempo , feeding Morne Steyn the ball at the right times and using his own vision to snipe and put the ball in behind Tigera.

Blitz Defence to stop Tigers backs playing with Wrigglesworth sweeping behind

Impact from the bench will see this game through Grey will keep things calm up front , Taulava will come on and smash everything in front of him. . Hall and Heatcote are a exciting half back pair and will put plenty of pace onto the game.

Leicester Tigers
Manager – Sgt_Pooly

01. Thomas Domingo	09. Karl Dickson
02. Bismark Du Plessis	10. Toby Flood
03. Martin Castrogiovani
04. Luke Romano	11. Digby Ioane
05. Geoff Parling	12. Berrick Barnes
06. Siya Kolisi	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Sam Warburton(c)	14. Christian Wade
08. Jacque Cronje	15. James O’Connor

16. Jamie George 17. Aaron Jarvis 18. Luke Cowan-Dickie 19. Tom Price 20. Maurie Fa’saivalu 21. Ben Youngs 22. George Ford 23. Marlon Yarde

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.

In the damp conditions look to target scrum and keep ball in so can get squeeze on opposition. See us having a big advantage here so will look to exploit.

We’ll look to target the lineout throughout with numerous options and attack the opposition throw, esp in the opp half.

Flood/Barnes 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
- 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
- Warburton/Kolisi to marshal breakdown and slow/turnover opp ball
- Target scrum all game and take points on offer
- Look to give 6n players a half and refresh pack
- Look to get backs into game whenever possible
- Kolisi tasked with cutting Steyn down and putting him under pressure. If we we can stifle Quins play we can see their backs struggling
- With Steyn favouring to kick for corners will look to Parling to take apart Quins lineout as they have no lineout leader

London Welsh v Sale
London Welsh

Manager – Fluxy

01. Rhys Gill	09. Will Chudley
02. David Paice	10. Nick Evans(k)
03. Frans Malherbe
04. Dean Mumm	11. Topsy Ojo
05. Paul O'Connell (C)	12. Dominic Waldlouck
06. Tim Johnson	13. George Lowe
07. Hienrich Brussow	14. Horacio Agulla
08. Nick Easter	15. Maxime Medard

16. Tom French 17. Dave Wilson 18. Tom Lindsay 19. Steve Borthwick 20. Louis Picamoles 21. Paul Hodgson 22. Tom Casson 23. Adam Thompstone

Tactics

We look to impose ourselves from the off and let the opposition 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 opportunity. 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 and Evans, and they know what will be required to get we want from the game - a win. With the terrible conditions, they also know how we will want to play our game. We will look to force Sharks to play from in their 22 and use our strong lineout and kicking game to pressure them. After good form in Europe, we will continue to build on our great position in the league.

Tactics

• Gill and Malherbe are solid technicians and will secure our own feed, to provide first phase possession for our backs. We have strong props on the bench as well, so we should not be outclassed throughout the game.
  
  
• With a strong lineout, O'Connell will lead the lineout and use himself as banker ball at the front of the line with Mumm jumping in the middle. If winning own ball POC will look to call full number lineouts to tie in the Sharks fowards.
  
  
• Our whole pack is mobile and capable of snaffling ball at the breakdown. We will look to offload in the tackle to keep moving the point of attack and tire out the big Sharks pack.
  
  
• The backrow will target the halfbacks, allowing them no time on the ball, which will lead to them rushing and making handling errors and mistakes.
  
  
• We will look to keep the ball alive, preventing them from setting any defensive lines. Evans will direct traffic with the use of quick pods systems outside the guards of the rucks, and target any of our forwards against their backs.
  
  
• We will use a banana drift line in defence to cut down Cruden's options and push him inside towards our backrow.
  
  
• Evans has some dangerous backs out side him, and will look to use them at every valid opportunity after we have tied in forwards or created mismatches in the defensive line.
  
  
• Look to use our strong bench for impact later in the game. To get an advantage in the scrum, and collisions with big impact players.
  
  
• Evans will kick all points, he can kick from within their half, so this indicates that Sharks should be wary of giving away penalties.
  
  
• At home we make it a struggle for anyone to even get a LBP at our fortress.

NO SALE TEAM

Saracens v Exeter Chiefs

Saracens
Manager – ChequeredJersey

01. Matt Mullan	09. Jordan Burns
02. Schalk Brits	10. Charlie Hodgson (k)
03. Ben Tameifuna
04. Ollie Kohn	11. Tom Williams
05. Charlie Matthews	12. Anthony Allen
06. Jackson Wray	13. Conrad Smith
07. Richie McCaw (c)	14. Vereniki Goneva
08. Billy Vunipola	15. Chris Wyles

16. Jared Saunders 17. Rob Buchanan 18. Sekope Kepu 19. Bakkies Botha 20. Will Fraser. 21. Joe Robinson 22. Julien Dupuy 23. Leigh Halfpenny

Tactics-

Exeter are putting a big pack out against us, our pack will have a reasonable amount of bulk to hold them off in the tight but will all be comfortable ball in hand and at passing the ball too. We will use our mobility to run their forwards (and backs) off their feet and then try to punch holes once exhaustion kicks in. We will hit the breakdown as a unit, with McCaw stealing/slowing the ball, Vunipola clearing out and Wray doing both, but we will offload when appropriate and when supported to switch the direction of attack to tire the defenders. We will move quick ball as quickly as possible and switch between series of picks with the forwards in alternating directions with getting the ball to the backs. Nobody be afraid to pass or recycle the ball today, and I need McCaw (or if he can't make it, Brits) to chase the ball, to act either as the first man at the ruck or as a linkman between pack and backs. If we need to kick slow ball, kick it high and chase it all day. Once the ball gets to our backs, in the first half I want players to offer an inside line for the pass, especially the wingers, and look to pass whenever they have drawn the man. Burns will be looking to sweep up any loose ball this high octane style might lead to. Even if there are mistakes this will tire the opposition and we will look to make them run in defence whenever possible. In the second half we will capitalise on any tiredness shown and run straight at any gaps in the backline or at the fringes of rucks, in the knowledge that if our pack gets tired we have big carriers on the bench in Kepu, Buchanan, Both and Robinson, another breakdown man who will allow McCaw to play a more carry/linking focused game, 2 kickers who can slow the game down if attack doesn't pay and it is too loose, one of whom is a strike winger who can take advantage of fatigue.

Defence- blitz led by Smith, stop the Exeter backline making any momentum. Wray to harry TJ, Billy target their backrow and McCaw to put Wilko under pressure. Must be guards at every ruck.

Scrum- We will get parity at least in the scrum, the Ex pack may be bigger but ours is technically very sound. If we get a shove on, use the momentum as a platform for Billy to run, with Wray and the winger (blind) or McCaw and Allen(open) on his shoulders to keep the move going.

Lineout- jump at the front on Ex's throw to put the inexperienced Spurling off. Be ready for a lot of mauling, and I'd expect a lot of ball to go to Mafi. On our throw, alternate the options a lot, we have 4 good options but no stand out jumper which means they'll struggle to guess where we are throwing. Brits to call it in.

Kicking- unless there is a lot of space to exploit behind the back 3, run back kicks, and kick with height.

Attack- as above, but in essence keep the ball moving and get the wingers switching inside Smith or coming in off the blind wing.

Exeter Chiefs
Manager – Pooly (Caretaker)

01. Tendai Mtawarira	09. TJ Perenara
02. Scott Spurling	10. Jonny Wilkinson (k)
03. John Afoa
04. Loius Deacon	11. Matt Jess
05. Pascal Pape(c)	12. Sireli Naqelevuki
06. Steve Mafi	13. Richard Kahui
07. Steffon Armitage	14. Cory Jane
08. Ernst Joubert	15. Isa Nacewa

16. Brett Sturgess 17. Simon Alcott 18. Hoani Tui 19. James Horwill 20. James Scaysbrook 21. Kevin Barrett 22. Ian Humphreys 23. Israel Folau

Tactics

- Look to set a tone in the set piece with big front 5 unit & two big scrummaging locks
- Dominate collisions and allow TJ fast ball to attack with
- Look to ruck over the ball and allow Steffon to get in amongst things
- Wilko to take 3 points on offer
- Look to keep ball in hand and work through the phases

Wasps v Gloucester
WASPS TACTICS


01.Zak Taulfao 09.Piri Weepu
02.Dimitri Swarzeski 10.Shane Geraghty
03.Nicolas Mas 11.Tom Varndell
04.James Cannon 12.Billy Twelvetrees
05.Ross Flippio 13.Chris Bell
06.Tinis Du Plessis 14.Ugo Monye
07.Matt Everard 15.Richard Haughton
08.Pedrie Wannerburg

REPLACEMENTS: 16.Tim Payne 17.Chris Brooker 18.Boris Stankovich 19.George Skivington 20.Jaque Burger 21.Danny Care 22.Jimmy Gopperth 23.Charlie Ingall

TACTICS: We're looking to play more of a physical game today, with the bench mainly being forwards to come on.....have taken a bit of a gamble by playing some of my 6 nations players but not all of them...they wont play the full game and will be replaced in the 2nd half. The forwards will look to gain ground with the ball, and look to tire the opposition defence. When the opposition gets tired, the backs will look to gain the ball and run at the defence, and score points. Geraghty will look to kick drop goals when given the opportunity.

Gloucester

01. A.Guillamon	09. D.Yachvilli
02. D.Dawiduk	10. F.Burns (k)
03. R.Harden
04. S.Whitelock	11. C.Sharples
05. W.James	12. R.Mills
06. A.Strokosch	13. R.Horne
07. S.Cane	14. J.May
08. JVN (c)	15. I.Balshaw

16. K.Britton 17. D.Murphy 18. A.Jones 19. A.Qera 20. L.Narraway 21. D.Robson 22. P.Lambie 23. J.De Jongh

Key Points

Power Pack
We have fielded a huge pack looking to bring the extra grunt needed to give us quick ball and to put pressure on their ball. The forwards will be looking to do alot of damage today running off Mills and Burns with their offloading game and also keep our set piece on top.

Excitement Outwide
Proven scorers from 9-15 all who can make something out of nothing (see May's 2nd try vs Saints). They will look to capitalise on Wasps' errors and utilise the overlap which the forwards will bring to the game.

Impact Bench
We have: Qera, Narraway, Robson, Lambie and JDJ to come off the bench and all are game changers who can continue our abrasive and energetic style of play to push us towards the big win.

Attacking

• We want to force errors from Wasps and will be targetting Geraghty by sending big runners down his channel.

• Yachvilli and Burns to play what's in front of them and look to release Mills or snipe as much as possible. If it isn't on then Lambie will stick it in the corners and, with Whitelock, Cane, JVN, Strokosch and Savage we have a number of jumpers to gain the ball back.

• Look for runners off of 10 and 12 channel to make the initial break before sending the ball out wide to Sharples and May.

• We will look to use our big pack to carry alot of ball and, if it isn't on then run off of 9 and take a couple of 'up the jumper' phases to drag defenders in.

• Our back three will look to come off their wings and hit the right angles.

• Impact bench to shore up our victory and to keep the scoreboard ticking, Narraway brings extra grunt and Qera will have a field day against tired legs at the breakdown, JONES WILL ONLY COME ON IF NEEDED AND FOR A MAX OF 10MINS IMPACT.

Set Piece

• Strong scrum which will get the edge up on the tighthead side and a good bench to come on as well to continue the pressure, 8-9-10 is a move we will use alot.

• We will use the maul to get ourselves up the pitch quickly and power over from short distance.

• Lineout has been mentioned previously where we have many strong jumpers here who will look to control attacking and defensive ones.

Defending

• Banana blitz defence targetting 10 so he has no time to kick or give quick ball to the centres, we will protect the channels to stop 9 sniping.

• Yachvilli will look to sweep and counter attack off any kick through's.

• We will hit the breakdown quick to give Canetime to get over the ball and obliterate any protection they have in place.

• If the turnover isn't on we won't commit and will fan out defending inside-out.

Worcester v Northampton

Worcester Warriors

Manager – InTheFastLane

01. George Porter	09. Will Genia
02. Stephen Moore	10. Dan Carter
03. Juan Figallo
04. Gerhard Mostert	11. Tom Homer
05. George Robson	12. Ma’a Nonu
06. Liam Messam	13. Robbie Freaun
07. Michael Hooper	14. Marcel Garvey
08. Ben Morgan	15. Kurtley Beale

16. Will Radian 17. Joe Marler 18. Tevita Taumoepeau 19. Nile Dacres 20. James Haskell 21. Shaun Perry 22. Alex Cuthbert 23. Matt Hopper

Overall: Look for strong running rugby led by our half back combination who will look to control our tempo and keep us playing in the right areas.

In these conditions we don’t expect to experience many scrums. However when we do scrum look for Figallo and Moore especially to put pressure on Kischoff and Strauss.

At the lineout we will look to secure our own ball and challenge the Saints throw. Robson, Morga and Messam will be challenging in the air while Mostert will offer solid banker ball at the front.

As well as performing in the set piece we will be looking to get our forwards making some big carries in open play. We will be looking to burst into space and makes gains with the likes of Morgan, Mostert, Moore and Messam on the ball.

Look to attack the breakdown hard and fast with lots of bodies looking to slow down or turn over Saints ball. Hooper is absolutely brilliant at getting over the ball and he will be backed up by Messam and Morgan looking to nuisance of themselves.

Strong half back combination will be looking to control the tempo of our game. Will Genia will play his natural game mixing it up with his passing and his sniping runs. Dan Carter is our main playmaker and will look to use his vast array of talents to adapt to the game. He will look to get his running and passing game involved while his kicking offers another option.

The back five will be looking to make inroads with their attacking running. Nonu will be look to make strong runs, crashing through defences. He will look to draw in defences to offer more space for our other runners. Freaun is a player in a similar vain to Nonu and will be used for his ability to get over the gainline. Homer, Beale and Garvey will be looking to make use of the spaces with their movement.

Use a blitz defence with huge intensity to put pressure on Bath decision makers. Kurtley Beale will sweep in behind for any grubbers which we will either counter generously or have a run at the defence. Messam is gonna really look to get after Myler who we feel will struggle under the pressure of a tight game.

We will look to make full use of our bench. Marler + Taumoepeau are quality options who will look to get involved around the park and at scrumtime. Haskell will also come on and look to get involved in all facets of play against tired legs. Cuthbert + Hopper are players who can make something out of nothing and we will look to get their hands on the ball

Northampton Saints
Manager – SirJohnnyEnglish

01. Steven Kitshoff	09. Aaron Smith
02. Richardt Strauss	10. Stephen Myler
03. Paul Doran-Jones
04. Samu Manoa	11. Jamie Elliot
05. Andries Bekker	12. Gael Fickou
06. Phil Dowson	13. George Pisi
07. Calum Clark	14. Vasily Artemiev
08. Kieran Read	15. Ben Foden

16. A. Waller 17. D. Hartley 18. B. Mujati 19. C. Lawes 20. S. Ferris 21. L. Dickson 22. R. Lamb 23. S. Armstrong

Tactics

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 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 Smith & Myler and force Worcester to come at us from deep.

• 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 opposition territory, with 5 jumping options to use, we will look to play off the top and move the ball out to Myler 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.

• We will play an aggressive blitz on defence, playing on the edge of the offside line and coming up at pace, looking to isolate the ball carrier and stop any opposition momentum before it can get going.

• Smith will act as a sweeper and cover any chips or grubbers behind the defensive line.

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

• 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 Clark looking to get his 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.

Quins name side for crunch game against Tigers

Harlequins make 4 changes from the side which beat London Wasps at the last weekend with Joe Grey , Jamie Gibson , Semisi Taulava and Hudson Tonga'uhia dropping out of the starting 15. Into the side comes John Smit , Marcell Coatzee , Dave Denton and Wesley Fofana. On the inclusion of Denton and Fofana Driver had this to say:

''Dave hasn't played much the last 2 weeks and Scott Johnson has given him permission to have a 60 minute spell for us to prove him self so he'll be right up for this , Wes has played a lot of wing lately but speaking to Phillpe he wants to play him at 12 in the England game and having a week before PSA thinks it would be good for him to get 80 minutes in that position''


Harlequins

Manager – Driver

01.Marcos Ayerza	09.Richard Wrigglesworth
02.John Smit	10.Morne Steyn (K)
03.James Johnstone
04.Eben Etzebeth	11.Bryan Habana
05.Mouritz Botha	12.Hudson Tonga'uhia
06.Tom Croft (c)	13.Adam Ashley Cooper
07.Marcell Coatzee	14.Mark Cueto
08.Dave Denton	15.Jared Payne

16.Joe Grey 17.Chris Budgen 18.Will Collier 19.James Percival 20.Semisi Taulava 21.Bryn Hall 22.Tom Heathcote 23.Nick Abendonan

Tactics

Big pack to get ontop the Wasps front 5 and put them under the cosh at the Scrum and rucks with plenty of impact from the bench.

Scrummage for 80 minutes with strong scrummagers on the bench to come on if need

Steyn to test Tigers backs 3s position game with Kicks in behind with Habana and Cueto chasing with neither being on the small side.

Tonga/AAC to take the ball to the gain line and ask questions of the Tigers back line with Habana/Cueto/Payne coming into the line to cause problems

Croft to run our lineout whilst Coatzee and Croft will look to smash rucks to slow down and Wasps ball.

Jumpers from 4-8 in our pack giving John Smit plenty of targets with Etzebeth and Corft targeting the Tigers Lineout.

Wrigglesworth to control the tempo , feeding Morne Steyn the ball at the right times and using his own vision to snipe and put the ball in behind Tigera.

Blitz Defence to stop Tigers backs playing with Wrigglesworth sweeping behind

Impact from the bench will see this game through Grey will keep things calm up front , Taulava will come on and smash everything in front of him. . Hall and Heatcote are a exciting half back pair and will put plenty of pace onto the game.

---

If you want to mate. Was going to do the page this afternoon, a little under the weather. Ill get on with the table at some point, when the results are done

Yeah i'll sort it on Saturday night.

Also i'm moving away on 26th to work so my team might be in the old format until i sort some internet on my laptop.

By old i mean

1.Ayerza
2.Grey
3.Johnstone
4.Etz
5.Botha

That's not issue buddy, considering it is you afterall

Cool Guy you Flux lol

Bath Rugby
Manager – Bathite

01. N.Catt	09. M.Classens
02. C.Tolufua	10. O.Barkley (k)
03. O.Franks
04. J.Muller (c)	11. T.Biggs
05. F. VD Merwe	12. F.Steyn
06. F.Louw	13. E.Daly
07. J.Salvi	14. T.Bowe
08. S.Kalamafoni	15. I.Dagg

16. O.Tomascyuk 17. R.Batty 18. J.Golding 19. R.Eldsadt 20. M.Lund 21. C.Cook 22. S.Donald 23. C.Lualala

TACTICS TBC
As always, look to secure a platform up front. Two big scrummaging locks picked, along with world class Franks at cornerstone. Look to secure breakdown with two proven 7s. Great options off the bench with Eldstadt and Lund offering big physical impact against tired legs. Cook to inject some pace around the fringes and Lualala and Donald there if some experience is required.

Forwards
- Looking like a really weak opposition front row, so look to drive advantage here, starting a Franks
- Picked two opensides to dominate the breakdown. Both Salvi and Louw are great at the contact area
- If we cannot steal the ball at the breakdown, we will try to slow the ball and force Cooper to play on the back foot
- Franks, Salvi and Louw to mark the fringes tightly, keeping an eye on Simpson
- Kalamafoni to provide ball carrying threat, Louw operates as link man, Salvi first to every ruck to compete
- Muller will continue to make the lineout calls and look to challenge opposition throws for the steal

Backs
- Look to play in the opposition half, use the boots of Barkley, Steyn and Daly to gain yardage. If nothing on / slow ball, use Steyn, Tolufua, Louw and Kalamafoni on the crash
- Steyn to test Cooper's defence with taking the ball flat at the ten channel. He will lead the rush in defence with Classens sweeping up
- There is very little form and gametime in the Irish back three, look to test Tait at 15 with the high ball from Daly, Steyn and Dagg

01. A.Guillamon	09. D.Yachvilli
02. D.Dawiduk	10. F.Burns (k)
03. R.Harden
04. S.Whitelock	11. C.Sharples
05. W.James	12. R.Mills
06. A.Strokosch	13. R.Horne
07. S.Cane	14. J.May
08. JVN (c)	15. I.Balshaw

16. K.Britton 17. D.Murphy 18. A.Jones 19. A.Qera 20. L.Narraway 21. D.Robson 22. P.Lambie 23. J.De Jongh

Key Points

Power Pack
We have fielded a huge pack looking to bring the extra grunt needed to give us quick ball and to put pressure on their ball. The forwards will be looking to do alot of damage today running off Mills and Burns with their offloading game and also keep our set piece on top.

Excitement Outwide
Proven scorers from 9-15 all who can make something out of nothing (see May's 2nd try vs Saints). They will look to capitalise on Wasps' errors and utilise the overlap which the forwards will bring to the game.

Impact Bench
We have: Qera, Narraway, Robson, Lambie and JDJ to come off the bench and all are game changers who can continue our abrasive and energetic style of play to push us towards the big win.

Attacking

• We want to force errors from Wasps and will be targetting Geraghty by sending big runners down his channel.

• Yachvilli and Burns to play what's in front of them and look to release Mills or snipe as much as possible. If it isn't on then Lambie will stick it in the corners and, with Whitelock, Cane, JVN, Strokosch and Savage we have a number of jumpers to gain the ball back.

• Look for runners off of 10 and 12 channel to make the initial break before sending the ball out wide to Sharples and May.

• We will look to use our big pack to carry alot of ball and, if it isn't on then run off of 9 and take a couple of 'up the jumper' phases to drag defenders in.

• Our back three will look to come off their wings and hit the right angles.

• Impact bench to shore up our victory and to keep the scoreboard ticking, Narraway brings extra grunt and Qera will have a field day against tired legs at the breakdown, JONES WILL ONLY COME ON IF NEEDED AND FOR A MAX OF 10MINS IMPACT.

Set Piece

• Strong scrum which will get the edge up on the tighthead side and a good bench to come on as well to continue the pressure, 8-9-10 is a move we will use alot.

• We will use the maul to get ourselves up the pitch quickly and power over from short distance.

• Lineout has been mentioned previously where we have many strong jumpers here who will look to control attacking and defensive ones.

Defending

• Banana blitz defence targetting 10 so he has no time to kick or give quick ball to the centres, we will protect the channels to stop 9 sniping.

• Yachvilli will look to sweep and counter attack off any kick through's.

• We will hit the breakdown quick to give Canetime to get over the ball and obliterate any protection they have in place.

• If the turnover isn't on we won't commit and will fan out defending inside-out.

Saracens
Manager – ChequeredJersey

01. Matt Mullan	09. Jordan Burns
02. Schalk Brits	10. Charlie Hodgson (k)
03. Ben Tameifuna
04. Ollie Kohn	11. Tom Williams
05. Charlie Matthews	12. Anthony Allen
06. Jackson Wray	13. Conrad Smith
07. Richie McCaw (c)	14. Vereniki Goneva
08. Billy Vunipola	15. Chris Wyles

16. Jared Saunders 17. Rob Buchanan 18. Sekope Kepu 19. Bakkies Botha 20. Will Fraser. 21. Joe Robinson 22. Julien Dupuy 23. Leigh Halfpenny

Tactics-

Exeter are putting a big pack out against us, our pack will have a reasonable amount of bulk to hold them off in the tight but will all be comfortable ball in hand and at passing the ball too. We will use our mobility to run their forwards (and backs) off their feet and then try to punch holes once exhaustion kicks in. We will hit the breakdown as a unit, with McCaw stealing/slowing the ball, Vunipola clearing out and Wray doing both, but we will offload when appropriate and when supported to switch the direction of attack to tire the defenders. We will move quick ball as quickly as possible and switch between series of picks with the forwards in alternating directions with getting the ball to the backs. Nobody be afraid to pass or recycle the ball today, and I need McCaw (or if he can't make it, Brits) to chase the ball, to act either as the first man at the ruck or as a linkman between pack and backs. If we need to kick slow ball, kick it high and chase it all day. Once the ball gets to our backs, in the first half I want players to offer an inside line for the pass, especially the wingers, and look to pass whenever they have drawn the man. Burns will be looking to sweep up any loose ball this high octane style might lead to. Even if there are mistakes this will tire the opposition and we will look to make them run in defence whenever possible. In the second half we will capitalise on any tiredness shown and run straight at any gaps in the backline or at the fringes of rucks, in the knowledge that if our pack gets tired we have big carriers on the bench in Kepu, Buchanan, Both and Robinson, another breakdown man who will allow McCaw to play a more carry/linking focused game, 2 kickers who can slow the game down if attack doesn't pay and it is too loose, one of whom is a strike winger who can take advantage of fatigue.

Defence- blitz led by Smith, stop the Exeter backline making any momentum. Wray to harry TJ, Billy target their backrow and McCaw to put Wilko under pressure. Must be guards at every ruck.

Scrum- We will get parity at least in the scrum, the Ex pack may be bigger but ours is technically very sound. If we get a shove on, use the momentum as a platform for Billy to run, with Wray and the winger (blind) or McCaw and Allen(open) on his shoulders to keep the move going.

Lineout- jump at the front on Ex's throw to put the inexperienced Spurling off. Be ready for a lot of mauling, and I'd expect a lot of ball to go to Mafi. On our throw, alternate the options a lot, we have 4 good options but no stand out jumper which means they'll struggle to guess where we are throwing. Brits to call it in.

Kicking- unless there is a lot of space to exploit behind the back 3, run back kicks, and kick with height.

Attack- as above, but in essence keep the ball moving and get the wingers switching inside Smith or coming in off the blind wing.

2 teams to put in, must remember!!

Exeter Chiefs
Manager – Pooly (Caretaker)

01. Tendai Mtawarira	09. TJ Perenara
02. Scott Spurling	10. Jonny Wilkinson (k)
03. John Afoa
04. Loius Deacon	11. Matt Jess
05. Pascal Pape(c)	12. Sireli Naqelevuki
06. Steve Mafi	13. Richard Kahui
07. Steffon Armitage	14. Cory Jane
08. Ernst Joubert	15. Isa Nacewa

16. Brett Sturgess 17. Simon Alcott 18. Hoani Tui 19. James Horwill 20. James Scaysbrook 21. Kevin Barrett 22. Ian Humphreys 23. Israel Folau

Tactics

- Look to set a tone in the set piece with big front 5 unit & two big scrummaging locks
- Dominate collisions and allow TJ fast ball to attack with
- Look to ruck over the ball and allow Steffon to get in amongst things
- Wilko to take 3 points on offer
- Look to keep ball in hand and work through the phases

Northampton Saints
Manager – SirJohnnyEnglish

01. Steven Kitshoff	09. Aaron Smith
02. Richardt Strauss	10. Stephen Myler
03. Paul Doran-Jones
04. Samu Manoa	11. Jamie Elliot
05. Andries Bekker	12. Gael Fickou
06. Phil Dowson	13. George Pisi
07. Calum Clark	14. Vasily Artemiev
08. Kieran Read	15. Ben Foden

16. A. Waller 17. D. Hartley 18. B. Mujati 19. C. Lawes 20. S. Ferris 21. L. Dickson 22. R. Lamb 23. S. Armstrong

Tactics

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 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 Smith & Myler and force Worcester to come at us from deep.

• 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 opposition territory, with 5 jumping options to use, we will look to play off the top and move the ball out to Myler 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.

• We will play an aggressive blitz on defence, playing on the edge of the offside line and coming up at pace, looking to isolate the ball carrier and stop any opposition momentum before it can get going.

• Smith will act as a sweeper and cover any chips or grubbers behind the defensive line.

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

• 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 Clark looking to get his 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.

WASPS TACTICS


01.Zak Taulfao 09.Piri Weepu
02.Dimitri Swarzeski 10.Shane Geraghty
03.Nicolas Mas 11.Tom Varndell
04.James Cannon 12.Billy Twelvetrees
05.Ross Flippio 13.Chris Bell
06.Tinis Du Plessis 14.Ugo Monye
07.Matt Everard 15.Richard Haughton
08.Pedrie Wannerburg

REPLACEMENTS: 16.Tim Payne 17.Chris Brooker 18.Boris Stankovich 19.George Skivington 20.Jaque Burger 21.Danny Care 22.Jimmy Gopperth 23.Charlie Ingall

TACTICS: We're looking to play more of a physical game today, with the bench mainly being forwards to come on.....have taken a bit of a gamble by playing some of my 6 nations players but not all of them...they wont play the full game and will be replaced in the 2nd half. The forwards will look to gain ground with the ball, and look to tire the opposition defence. When the opposition gets tired, the backs will look to gain the ball and run at the defence, and score points. Geraghty will look to kick drop goals when given the opportunity.

Worcester Warriors

Manager – InTheFastLane

01. George Porter	09. Will Genia
02. Stephen Moore	10. Dan Carter
03. Juan Figallo
04. Gerhard Mostert	11. Tom Homer
05. George Robson	12. Ma’a Nonu
06. Liam Messam	13. Robbie Freaun
07. Michael Hooper	14. Marcel Garvey
08. Ben Morgan	15. Kurtley Beale

16. Will Radian 17. Joe Marler 18. Tevita Taumoepeau 19. Nile Dacres 20. James Haskell 21. Shaun Perry 22. Alex Cuthbert 23. Matt Hopper

Overall: Look for strong running rugby led by our half back combination who will look to control our tempo and keep us playing in the right areas.

In these conditions we don’t expect to experience many scrums. However when we do scrum look for Figallo and Moore especially to put pressure on Kischoff and Strauss.

At the lineout we will look to secure our own ball and challenge the Saints throw. Robson, Morga and Messam will be challenging in the air while Mostert will offer solid banker ball at the front.

As well as performing in the set piece we will be looking to get our forwards making some big carries in open play. We will be looking to burst into space and makes gains with the likes of Morgan, Mostert, Moore and Messam on the ball.

Look to attack the breakdown hard and fast with lots of bodies looking to slow down or turn over Saints ball. Hooper is absolutely brilliant at getting over the ball and he will be backed up by Messam and Morgan looking to nuisance of themselves.

Strong half back combination will be looking to control the tempo of our game. Will Genia will play his natural game mixing it up with his passing and his sniping runs. Dan Carter is our main playmaker and will look to use his vast array of talents to adapt to the game. He will look to get his running and passing game involved while his kicking offers another option.

The back five will be looking to make inroads with their attacking running. Nonu will be look to make strong runs, crashing through defences. He will look to draw in defences to offer more space for our other runners. Freaun is a player in a similar vain to Nonu and will be used for his ability to get over the gainline. Homer, Beale and Garvey will be looking to make use of the spaces with their movement.

Use a blitz defence with huge intensity to put pressure on Bath decision makers. Kurtley Beale will sweep in behind for any grubbers which we will either counter generously or have a run at the defence. Messam is gonna really look to get after Myler who we feel will struggle under the pressure of a tight game.

We will look to make full use of our bench. Marler + Taumoepeau are quality options who will look to get involved around the park and at scrumtime. Haskell will also come on and look to get involved in all facets of play against tired legs. Cuthbert + Hopper are players who can make something out of nothing and we will look to get their hands on the ball

Leicester Tigers
Manager – Sgt_Pooly

01. Thomas Domingo	09. Karl Dickson
02. Bismark Du Plessis	10. Toby Flood
03. Martin Castrogiovani
04. Luke Romano	11. Digby Ioane
05. Geoff Parling	12. Berrick Barnes
06. Siya Kolisi	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Sam Warburton(c)	14. Christian Wade
08. Jacque Cronje	15. James O’Connor

16. Jamie George 17. Aaron Jarvis 18. Luke Cowan-Dickie 19. Tom Price 20. Maurie Fa’saivalu 21. Ben Youngs 22. George Ford 23. Marlon Yarde

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.

In the damp conditions look to target scrum and keep ball in so can get squeeze on opposition. See us having a big advantage here so will look to exploit.

We’ll look to target the lineout throughout with numerous options and attack the opposition throw, esp in the opp half.

Flood/Barnes 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
- 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
- Warburton/Kolisi to marshal breakdown and slow/turnover opp ball
- Target scrum all game and take points on offer
- Look to give 6n players a half and refresh pack
- Look to get backs into game whenever possible
- Kolisi tasked with cutting Steyn down and putting him under pressure. If we we can stifle Quins play we can see their backs struggling
- With Steyn favouring to kick for corners will look to Parling to take apart Quins lineout as they have no lineout leader

CF wrote:WASPS TACTICS


01.Zak Taulfao 09.Piri Weepu
02.Dimitri Swarzeski 10.Shane Geraghty
03.Nicolas Mas 11.Tom Varndell
04.James Cannon 12.Billy Twelvetrees
05.Ross Flippio 13.Chris Bell
06.Thierry Dusatoir (c) 14.Ugo Monye
07.Matt Everard 15.Mike Brown
08.Pedrie Wannerburg

REPLACEMENTS: 16.Tim Payne 17.Chris Brooker 18.Jeremy Castex 19.George Skivington 20.Jaque Burger 21.Danny Care 22.Jimmy Gopperth 23.Charlie Ingall

TACTICS: We're looking to play more of a physical game today, with the bench mainly being forwards to come on.....have taken a bit of a gamble by playing some of my 6 nations players but not all of them...they wont play the full game and will be replaced in the 2nd half. The forwards will look to gain ground with the ball, and look to tire the opposition defence. When the opposition gets tired, the backs will look to gain the ball and run at the defence, and score points. Geraghty will look to kick drop goals when given the opportunity.

Dusatoir & Brown are injured

its a good thing, they're not in my side then

CF wrote:WASPS TACTICS


01.Zak Taulfao 09.Piri Weepu
02.Dimitri Swarzeski 10.Shane Geraghty
03.Nicolas Mas 11.Tom Varndell
04.James Cannon 12.Billy Twelvetrees
05.Ross Flippio 13.Chris Bell
06.Tinis Du Plessis 14.Ugo Monye
07.Matt Everard 15.Richard Haughton
08.Pedrie Wannerburg

REPLACEMENTS: 16.Tim Payne 17.Chris Brooker 18.Jeremy Castex 19.George Skivington 20.Jaque Burger 21.Danny Care 22.Jimmy Gopperth 23.Charlie Ingall

TACTICS: We're looking to play more of a physical game today, with the bench mainly being forwards to come on.....have taken a bit of a gamble by playing some of my 6 nations players but not all of them...they wont play the full game and will be replaced in the 2nd half. The forwards will look to gain ground with the ball, and look to tire the opposition defence. When the opposition gets tired, the backs will look to gain the ball and run at the defence, and score points. Geraghty will look to kick drop goals when given the opportunity.

Jeremy Castex is injured

he's only on the bench so not that fussed to be honest.

Can you remove him fella, you'll lose 5pts from total score if not.

Injured players are not to be in team sheets.

fine!!

i'l put stankovich in for him instead.

Also boys, I might shoot myself in the foot by saying this but fatigue at this time of the season will be taken into account in my predictions. Got a bit of spare time tomorrow!

I'm doing you a favour CF, Bathite got points removed last week as nobody spotted it beforehand.

flux as i stated in my tactics, the players in my side who played 6 nations, wont play anywhere near the full game.

Wasn't worried about that mate. Some teams might have played a few lads for 12-15 games straight. Takes it out of someone to do that.

i have nothing left to play for, so rotating my side every week now lol...

hopefully next season, when i actully start the season as manager i will make changes and make the side my own.

London Irish

Manager – Mad for Chelsea

01. Dean Greyling	09. Joe Simpson
02. Scott Lawson	10. Quade Cooper
03. Paulica Ion
04. Bryn Evans	11. Sailosi Tagicakibau
05. Nick Kennedy	12. Daniel Bowden
06. Tom Guest	13. Aurelien Rougerie
07. David Pocock (c)	14. David Strettle
08. Imanol Harinordoquy	15. Matt Tait

16. Rob Herring, 17. Fraan Rautenbach, 18. Gethin Jenkins, 19. Simon Shaw, 20. Andy Saull, 21. Darren Allinson, 22. Brock James, 23. Anthony Watson

Tactics:

Mediacl joker Dean Greyling makes his debut, his scrummaging power needed to match a powerful Bath scrum. Similarly, Bryn Evans comes into the second row (Shaw has started a few games recently and at his age can't keep doing that all year). Meanwhile Dan Bowden takes over the IC role to act as a second play-maker to Quade Cooper, who makes his return at FH as we put out an ultra attacking backline. Scott Lawson starts at hooker, his work around the park should be a bonus. The gist of the tactics is pretty simple: secure a platform with quick ball, and if it's on, go for it.

- look to dominate the breakdown. Bath has picked two open-sides to try to negate the Pocock effect but we're backing Pocock to deal with this and there's a possibility Bath's backrow may be unbalanced as a consequence. If things are going very badly we can always fight fire with fire with Saull on the bench.

- Bath look set to play a kicking game, so have a few men back to field the kicks. Our back three are all great open field runners, so if the Bath kick-chase isn't spot on we'll look to counter-attack.

- plenty of line-out options, both to secure our own ball and to put pressure on theirs (Kennedy one of the best readers of the opposition line-out in the game).

- Bowden as a second play-maker alongside Cooper, as has worked well for Australia in the past (Beale and/or Barnes). Him and Tait can also take some of the pressure off Cooper with their kicking games.

- If slow ball, use the big ball carriers (Greyling, Evans, Harinordoquy in the forwards, Rougerie on the crash ball in the backs) to get over the gain line and secure quick ball on the following phases.

- The backrow are all good handlers and should provide a good link between forwards and backs.

London Welsh

Manager – Fluxy

01. Rhys Gill	09. Will Chudley
02. David Paice	10. Nick Evans(k)
03. Frans Malherbe
04. Dean Mumm	11. Topsy Ojo
05. Paul O'Connell (C)	12. Dominic Waldlouck
06. Tim Johnson	13. George Lowe
07. Hienrich Brussow	14. Horacio Agulla
08. Nick Easter	15. Maxime Medard

16. Tom French 17. Dave Wilson 18. Tom Lindsay 19. Steve Borthwick 20. Louis Picamoles 21. Paul Hodgson 22. Tom Casson 23. Adam Thompstone

Tactics

We look to impose ourselves from the off and let the opposition 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 opportunity. 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 and Evans, and they know what will be required to get we want from the game - a win. With the terrible conditions, they also know how we will want to play our game. We will look to force Sharks to play from in their 22 and use our strong lineout and kicking game to pressure them. After good form in Europe, we will continue to build on our great position in the league.

Tactics

• Gill and Malherbe are solid technicians and will secure our own feed, to provide first phase possession for our backs. We have strong props on the bench as well, so we should not be outclassed throughout the game.
  
  
• With a strong lineout, O'Connell will lead the lineout and use himself as banker ball at the front of the line with Mumm jumping in the middle. If winning own ball POC will look to call full number lineouts to tie in the Sharks fowards.
  
  
• Our whole pack is mobile and capable of snaffling ball at the breakdown. We will look to offload in the tackle to keep moving the point of attack and tire out the big Sharks pack.
  
  
• The backrow will target the halfbacks, allowing them no time on the ball, which will lead to them rushing and making handling errors and mistakes.
  
  
• We will look to keep the ball alive, preventing them from setting any defensive lines. Evans will direct traffic with the use of quick pods systems outside the guards of the rucks, and target any of our forwards against their backs.
  
  
• We will use a banana drift line in defence to cut down Cruden's options and push him inside towards our backrow.
  
  
• Evans has some dangerous backs out side him, and will look to use them at every valid opportunity after we have tied in forwards or created mismatches in the defensive line.
  
  
• Look to use our strong bench for impact later in the game. To get an advantage in the scrum, and collisions with big impact players.
  
  
• Evans will kick all points, he can kick from within their half, so this indicates that Sharks should be wary of giving away penalties.
  
  
• At home we make it a struggle for anyone to even get a LBP at our fortress.

Predo's open

Bath 17-19 Irish

Set piece: See Bath getting nudge on in scrum but having issues in lineout with Tolufa throwing and no real lineout leader. Irish having Hari & Kennedy attacking could cause issues.
Front 5: A bit more around the park for Bath
Backrow: Irish the better unit, big step up at 7/8
HB's: Simpson shading Classens, Cooper a step up on Barkely.
Centres: 2 good units, not sure of Daly defensivley against Rougerie.
Back 3: Not much in the wings, Dagg a step at 15.
Bench: Bit more forward power for Irish.

Overall: Irish shade things except scrum and physicallity of front 5. If wet conditions I'd go with Bath but Irish have some class about them and will sneak this one.

Wasps 17-18 Gloucester

Set piece: Bit more for Wasps in the scrum with Gloucester getting better lineout ball.
Front 5: A little bit more for Gloucester around the park here.
Backrow: Good unit from Gloucester, they'll provide the halfbacks with a better platform.
HB's: A bit more for Gloucester, see them dictating play a bit more
Centres: Not much in this, a tight battle
Back 3: Again not a lot in it
Bench: A little bit more impact for Gloucester

Overall: A pretty tight affair. Wasps miss some of their big guns and just see Gloucester getting the edge on in key areas.

Worcester 26-21 Northampton

Set piece: Nothing in this really. See Worcester getting little scrum edge and Saints a bit more in lineout but it'll even out throughout game.
Front 5: 2 good units around the park, not much in it.
Backrow: 2 cracking units. Think Worcester have the better flanks but Saints more at 8, Worcester probably shade it though.
HB's: Worcester fantastic
Centres: 2 good units but more for Worcester, great pairing
Back 3: Worcester just shade with Beale the standout
Bench: Saints a bit more impact

Overall: Cracking 6N sides. See Worcester having enough at home in the pack and the backs to really put it away. Good game.

Bath 23 London Irish 19

Set Piece/Front 5; Just to Bath with Muller more likely to attack the opposition throw and Franks could give the Greyling/Lawson with Lawson pants in the scrum. FVM brings a lot of power to front 5.
Back row; Tough one to call but Guest looks good every time i see him play this year. Pocock and Hari the stand outs so swing this the way of the paddy.
HBs; Irish but Barks in great form.
Centres; Bath Steyn could have big season being Sharks skip , Daley in great nick. Bowden not playing well enough and Rougie a passanger at Clermount now.
WG:Back 3 to bath with Bowe and Dagg
Bench; Irish more impact
Tactics; Not sure Bath have the most Dynamic backs to use turnover ball from the two 7s. Irish have simple game plan and will execute it well but Bath at home have a bit too much.

London Welsh walkover Sale Sharks

Saracens 19 Exeter Chiefs 19

Tough one this to call so i sat on the fence.

Scrum: Spurling is a inexperienced Brits so struggles hear , Better props for Chiefs and more powerful row both Botha sorts Sarries out second half. Chiefs

Lineout: Deacon will run the show and put plenty of pressure on Matthews , Can see Sarrie throwing a lot to McCaw at the tail to counteract this. Sarries.

Breakdown: McCaw 1 Steffon 0

HB:Chiefs ideal for away day , control the tempo and game.

CE:Sarries better with Smith dancing his way through

WG: More in the chiefs back 3

Botha and Halfpenny coming on keep Saracens in this game.

I typed out my team and everything. Must have not clicked send.

London Wasps 20 Gloucester 35

A fresh Glaws front row will really get on top of Wasps with Szarkawaski and Mas both struggling lately for France. Locks also the Glaws by canter , is Ross Fillipo still playing? Sam Cane will win shelfs full of ball for Gloucester and Joe Van Nikirk will get plenty from running at Gereghty. 9,10,11,13,14,15 I'd take the Gloucester player everytime but 12T has played a lot of high tempo rugby for England. Plenty of domination up front lets Glaws backs do some real damage.

Worcester Warriors 22 Northampton Saints 20

Front 5 are tough to call but PDJ will get onto Porter , whilst Bekker will pick plenty of Wuss ball off, Back row marginally to wuss. Half backs 1 a piece , Really don't get the Genia fuss? Wuss backs more dangerous and will score trys. close game

Quins 26 - 14 Tigers
Front Row - Big win to Quins, with Castro suffering after 2 big games for Italy and BDP out of action for a long time.
Second Row - Romano thrown straight into the side, so won't be up on the lineout calls and needs to be bedded in. Croft a good jumping option, despite lack of form. Botha loses out to Parling slightly, but Etzebeth wins over Romano for me even if both on top form
Back Row - Again form is important and Warbs has been very quiet, Denton to a lesser extent. Quins win the 7 battle, the rest is pretty even
Half backs - Not a huge fan of either 10s, but Quins have set up tactically to get the best from Steyn. Not much in the 9s at all
Centres - Probably edged to Tigers, although I think Barnes will struggle with physicality of Tongh.
Back three - I like Quins tactic of kicking to the back three, as Digby and Wade don't have great kicking games. With Habana on the kick chase, this will be more of a threat as well. Tigers better in attack on quick ball, but don't think their pack and Flood will get much of it

Welsh 30 - 0 Sale
WALKOVER

Sarries 25 - 21 Chiefs
Front row - Not much to separate here and that's the same on the benches as well. The stand out is Spurling at hooker, who has next to zero game time. Tameifuna has played enough games to be bedded in ok now. Edge to Sarries.
Second row - Some great experience and power for the Chiefs, with Matthews the stand out guy under real pressure here, however, Spurling's throws could be got at.
Back row - Really hard to seperate at 6 and 8, but Captain tackles will do a big job on Steffon.
Half backs - to Exeter by quite a bit, as both players are better and Burns will struggle.
Centres - prefer Sarries by a long way, with Kahui out injured and Conrad is the man!
Back three - way more firepower for the chiefs, although the Jane injury is going to hurt them

Sarries edging battles throughout means they have enough for a narrow win

Bath 24-20 Irish
SP: Bath strong up front, Kennedy will cause lineout problems.
BK: Form vs Internationals...evens.
HB: Steady from Bath, Irish could get more from creative hb's.
AT: If Bath get good ball they'll break through, Irish steady.
DE: Tait got showed up a bit at fullback.
BE: More from Irish.
TA: Good gameplan from Irish keeps it close, need to know a bit more about how Bath will use their backs.

Quins 28-23 Tigers
SP: Big scrummaging unit from Quins here.
BK: At the moment think Quins have a bit more with Warburton struggling for confidence.
HB: 2 steady pairings.
AT: Quins 12 the only standout weakness.
DE: Strong for both.
BE: Ok from both, nothing special.
TA: Don't think Tigers will get the set piece dominance they want, Quins working well to kick-chase with Habana good at this.

Sarries 22-16 Chiefs
SP: Spurling the obvious weakness here.
BK: Can't split it alot but McCaw may get one over Armitage.
HB: Exeter by quite a bit.
AT: Sarries can be more dangerous.
DE: Ok for both.
BE: Strong Sarries bench.
TA: More from Sarries with good targetting of Chiefs.

Warriors 34-31 Saints
SP: Saints can get more from this.
BK: Huge here from Warriors.
HB: Worcester good but need to see Genia some time soon! Saints are steady.
AT: Good from both, think Beale will edge it from Foden.
DE: Ok here.
BE: Great impact from both.
TA: Good set up from both, good sides for both, big scoring.

Bath 22 - 20 London Irish

Bath will get a nudge on, as I can see Catt getting the better of Ion with Franks anchoring the otherside. Lineouts are evn as Muller and Kennedy are both strong here. Backrows are close with form and quality aside, and the breakdown is equal with Louw negating Pocock. bath have some decent control from the base, but there is some more creativity from the Irish halfbacks. Outwide its close, both can attack and defend. Benches are even on impact, I just see the control of the halfbacks and some Steyn penatlies will seal a decent home win

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Harlequins 30 - 25 Leicester Tigers

Up front Tigers have quality but will suffer as Castro has played two big games Italy, and this nudges advantage to Quins. Lineouts are about even, Parling will be alright here, but more anonymous around the park as again he has played two big games England. Breakdown is about even, Warburton has been in poor form recently but Kolisi will be decent. Denton has played a bit for Scotland but needs to the time to prove himself for Scotland so can see him out shining Cronje.
Halfbacks are even, though Flood has been in some good form and will use a very dangerous backline well. But Quins aren't to bad themselves. To me Quins will choke the life out of Tigers up front and use this to starve Tigers backline allowing them to dictate the pace at home and win a very good game.

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Saracens 21 - 19 Exeter Chiefs

Both have strong props and not the best scrummaging hookers, but a slight edge to the international quality of the Chiefs props. secondrows are evens Chiefs pair will help out in the scrum and lineout but Sarries pair are balanced well enough. Backrow I have lent towards more Sarries, its a decent unit, but as is the Chiefs one. McCaw just galvanises the forwards though. Sarries slightly marked down in the halfbacks, but centres are even with both hvaing good players. backthrees are again close but edge to Chiefs. The bench late on for Sarries will make a big impact, as quite a few of the Chiefs players have already played a lot of games this season.

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Worcester Warriors 28 - 26 Northampton Saints

Decent battle up front, slight nick to Saints in the scrum but lineout is about eve. Breakdown I will edge to Hooper and Wuss with Messam helping out. I would have maybe used Clark, Manoa and Dowson just to clear them off the ball to help Saints out here. Read is a great presence for Saint however and levels out the backrow ability around the park. Halfbacks clear edge to Wuss along with their spine of their backline. Think this will overawe the Saints backline and help Wuss on their way. Two decent benches, bit more for for Wuss though, and they see off a great win at home!

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London Wasps 16 - 25 Gloucester

Quality wise Wasps would egde in the frontrow, but due to Swarz and Mas both playing two hard games for France, Glos will nick it. Secondrows are close Whitelock will shine here, but he has played a lot of games for Glos this season. The backrow goes to Glos, Cane and JvN will make in roads against Wasps, with Wannenburg barely holding a light in a lost cause. Better in the halfbacks for Wasps, and Weepu can attack well here. Glos however have two players that have been in some good form for the clubs and that will help decide this contest. 36 playing two games for England marks him down, and edges the centres to Glos, and the backthree. Wasps strong bench will help to close the gap. But it is a little too late.

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Wasps 13 - 22 Glos
Front Row - Quite a bit to Glos, with Mas and Swarz knackered. Glos got it right by using Jones off the bench.
Second Row - Again to Glos, with plenty of power and athleticism, just a step up in class
Back Row - much like the second row, there's an obvious step up in class
Half Backs - prefer both players. Weepu maybe in for a good season after slimming down, but Burns in great form and Yach a great controlling influence
Centres - not much in it, but 2 new ish partnerships might not gel that well
Back Three - would go to Wasps, but I can't rate Haughton at FB, think he'll struggle defensively.
Too much southern hemisphere quality in the Glos pack for the home side, who have been hit hard by the internationals and injuries

Bath 20-17 London Irish

Scrum: Neither scrum is particularly destructive but Franks will draw penalties from Greyling.
Lineout: Little more quality to the Irish jumpers and they will do better on attacking ball.
Breakdown: Good battle. Both sides will see turnovers but Bath will slow ball down more.
HB's: More spark from Irish. Without conditions I’ve assumed it’s dry? Bath would do better in the wet.
Attack: Lack of a creative spark to the Bath attack.
Defence: Irish are weak from 9-12 and Bath should make good ground.
Bench: Jenkins marked down after starting both Welsh games. Not much overall between the two sides.
Tactics: Not much detail to either side. Nothing on attacking structures from either. Apart from the territorial approach from Bath its hard to see how either side aim to play. Slow ball for Irish today is their undoing. See Pocock having to cover the 9-12 channel a lot on defence which allows Bath a lot of reign at the breakdown.


Harlequins 24-22 Leicester

Scrum: Good battle at scrum time. Bit early for Romano to be asked to lock the TH side down.
Lineout: Quins without a leader struggle against Parling but he is marked down for fatigue so this isn’t a big advantage.
Breakdown: Fairly evens with both front 5s very adept at ruck time.
HB's: Assume its dry again. Quins more suited to the wet.
Attack: A lot of pressure on Payne to be the playmaker for Quins but both sides have the ability to break the defence.
Defence: No real weaknesses in either side defensively but no defensive tactics is a big mark down for Tigers.
Bench: Youngs marked down after two energetic games for England. Nothing between the sides after him.
Tactics: Both game plans are solid but Tigers don’t get the lineout dominance they expect. Not an awful lot between the sides but Quins at home against a Tigers side a bit toothless on defence win out.


London Welsh 30-0 Sale

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Saracens 28-21 Exeter Chiefs

Scrum: Cracking battle with some great scrummagers on show.
Lineout: Edge to Chiefs. See Deacon & Pape capable of reading the Sarries calls.
Breakdown: Good battle. McCaw edges the 7s battle but Armitage gets more support from his team mates.
HB's: Chiefs stronger with Burns not at this level yet.
Attack: Chiefs lacking a playmaker in the midfield area puts pressure on TJ to make something happen.
Defence: Goneva susceptible to the high ball. No system in place for Chiefs.
Bench: Not sure on the Sarries cover for 10.
Tactics: No detail to Chiefs is a big mark down and hurts Chiefs in what is a close game otherwise.


Wasps 12-30 Gloucester

Scrum: Edge to Glaws. Can’t see how the two French lads would be anyway up for this game.
Lineout: Don’t think Glaws are the strongest here overall but not sure on Wasps options and feel Glaws will edge this game.
Breakdown: Cane gives Glaws a massive edge with their front 5 doing a lot more work then Wasps.
HB's: Nothing between the 9s but Glaws a class above at 10. Wasps maybe would have been better of with Care at 9 and Wipu at 10
Attack: Nothing between the sides. 36 is marked down.
Defence: With 36 marked down Wasps are weak at 10-12 and Glaws will gain plenty of ground.
Bench: Some pretty good impact of both sides but Harden will need a rest next week after a big effort today playing nearly the full 80.
Tactics: Like the style Prop Much more to Glaws game plan which is quite solid. Prop one of the better tactioners in the league at the moment. See the Glaws pack setting the foundations for a big big win.

SirJ that tactics format makes it so much easier!!

Worcs 26 - 23 Saints
Front Row - saints win this battle, with PDJ on top and Strauss holding his own at hook
Second Row - not much between the pairs here. Bekker leads the line brilliantly, but the Worcs 2 are no slouches. Not sure who runs their lineout though.
Back Row - big win to the home side here, with plenty of form and quality. Saints no slouches, but I'm not convinced by Clark at 7 and Dowson in general!
Half Backs - worcs big guns win this one, although smith pushing genia hard
Centres - two new recruits will mean that neither pair are fully settled, but Nonu might show up Fickou, especially with his Carter link.
Back Three - more firepower and form for Worcs, despite homer on the wing, but his boot is useful
Worcs win this in the back row and half backs, with a good bench to secure it

Harlequins 22-25 Leicester

Scrum: Even battle in the scrum with Castro suffering from a bit of tiredness.
Lineout: Quins have a small edge here with a few more options.
Breakdown: very slight edge to Leicester through Warburton.
HB's: Quins pair more controlling, but I see more creativity from Leicester.
Attack: Leicester for me have a decent advantage, their backline looks a lot more creative to me with the added playmaker options of Barnes and O'Connor.
Defence: both teams solid in defense, Quins maybe with a very slight edge.
Bench: slightly more impact from the Quins forwards, but also slightly more impact from the Leicester backs, so pretty even.
Tactics: Two solid game plans. Leicester don't get the advantage they're expecting in the set piece, but their superior backline sees them take a narrow win.

London Welsh 30-0 Sale default

Saracens 25-17 Chiefs

Scrum: great battle, with the Sarries props giving them a very slight edge.
Lineout: not great units, but I see Chiefs putting a little more pressure on the Sarries line-out than vice versa.
Breakdown: again, a good battle, but McCaw gives Sarries the edge.
HB's: The Chiefs have the edge, particularly at SH.
Attack: both have some good options, but the Sarries centres will make more happen.
Defence: I think Smith runs the better defensive line, so Sarries with the advantage.
Bench: Sarries with more impact
Tactics: Chiefs hurt by a lack of detail. Overall I think Sarries have a bit too much.

Wasps 21-30 Gloucester

Scrum: if both were fit and firing Wasps would have the advantage, but I think the French duo are too tired and Gloucester end up with a slight edge.
Lineout: neither unit is great, pretty even.
Breakdown: Gloucester with a decent advantage, the Wasps backrow isn't that strong.
HBs: two interesting pairings, a bit more quality in Gloucester's.
Attack: two exciting back threes though not sure about Haughton, but Wasps have the more creative centre pairing, and this gives them a small edge.
Defense: both sets of wingers a little weak here, but Gloucester's tactics gives them the edge.
Bench: pretty even, two very strong benches.
Tactics: I like the Gloucester tactics, think Wasps could have been more detailed. Gloucester with a decent win

Worcester 30-25 Saints

Scrum: Saints have the edge, mostly through PDJ.
Lineout: two good units, even battle.
Breakdown: Saints have a good unit, but Hooper and Messam give the advantage to Worcester here.
HBs: decent advantage to Worcester, Myler is decent but not on Carter's level.
Attack: Saints centres more exciting, Beale and Carter even things out.
Defense: Worcester look the more solid unit.
Bench: both have plenty of impact, but Marler and Cuthbert suffer from tiredness, so an edge to Saints.
Tactics: good set from both. Good game, with plenty of action, and Worcester's HBs make the difference in a good win.