HC, Pool 2, Round 4: Glasgow Warriors v Cardiff Blues

by **George Carlin** Mon Dec 02, 2013 11:21 am

First topic message reminder :

Glasgow Warriors HC, Pool 2, Round 4: Glasgow Warriors v Cardiff Blues - Page 5 Violen15

v Cardiff Blues HC, Pool 2, Round 4: Glasgow Warriors v Cardiff Blues - Page 5 502010

Friday 13 December 2013, KO 20:00
Scotstoun Stadium, Glasgow

Live on Sky Sports

Referee Pascal "I am not George Clancy" Gauzere (France)
Touch Judge 1 Patrick Pechambert (France)
Touch Judge 2 Jean-Luc Rebollal (France)
Fourth Official Philippe Bonhoure (France)
TMO Philippe Bonhoure (France)

Citing Commissioner John Cole (Ireland)

A. HC Form (last 4 games):

1. Warriors

6/12/13
Blues 29 - 20 Glasgow

20/10/13
Glasgow 20 - 16 Chiefs

13/10/13
Toulon 51 - 28 Glasgow

19/1/13
Glasgow 27 - 20 Saints

2. Blues

6/12/13
Blues 29 - 20 Glasgow

19/10/13
Blues 19 - 15 Toulon

13/10/13
Chiefs 44 - 29 Blues

19/1/13
Blues 26 - 14 Sharks

B. Table

	Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	BP	PTS
1	Toulon	3	2	0	1	80	56	2	10
2	Cardiff Blues	3	2	0	1	77	79	1	9
3	Exeter	3	1	0	2	69	63	3	7
4	Glasgow	3	1	0	2	68	96	1	5

C. Teams

1. Warriors

15 Hogg
14 Maitland
13 McGuigan
12 Dunbar
11 Seymour
10 Jackson
09 Matawalu

01 Grant
02 MacArthur
03 Welsh
04 Nakarawa
05 Kellock
06 Harley
07 Holmes
08 Wilson

16 Hall
17 Big Jerry
18 Kalman
19 Strauss
20 Fusaro
21 Cusiter
22 Weir
23 DTH

2. Blues

15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Richard Smith, 12 Rhys Patchell, 11 Harry Robinson, 10 Gareth Davies, 9 Lloyd Williams; 1 Sam Hobbs (c), 2 Kristian Dacey, 3 Taufa'ao Filise, 4 Chris Dicomidis, 5 Filo Paulo, 6 Macauley Cook, 7 Rory Watts-Jones, 8 Robin Copeland.

16 Marc Breeze, 17 Thomas Davies, 18 Benoit Bourrust, 19 James Down, 20 Ellis Jenkins, 21 Andries Pretorius, 22 Lewis Jones, 23 Dan Fish

D. Parliamo Glasgow:

Alphabetty Spaghetti - D.T.H. van der Merwe, wing
Angel - Gabriel Ascarate, centre
Angela - Jon Welsh, prop
Barry - Byron McGuigan, wing
Big Boab - (see Ginger Tackle Monster, the)
Big Mike - (see Coo, the)
Big Naka - Leone Nakarawa, lock/loosie
Bluto - Josh Strauss, loosie/no.8
Centre, the - (see Lesser Messiah, the)
Coo, the - Michael Cusack, prop
Cooseetah - (see Cus)
Cus - Chris Cusiter, scrum half
DTH - (see Alphabetty Spaghetti)
Flippy - (see Toonie)
Fozzy - Christopher Fusaro, loosie
Furra Lineeeee - Peter Horne, centre
Ginger Tackle Monster, the - Rob Harley, loosie
Guns - Tim Swinson, lock
Henners - Henry Pyrgos, scrum half
Hoggy - Stuart Hogg, full back/wing/centre
Ickle Jon - Jonny Gray, lock
Jedi - James Eddie, loosie
Lesser Messiah, the - Richie Vernon, loosie/no.8
Mark of Nazareth - (see Messiah, the)
Meatball, the - Duncan Weir, fly half
Messiah, the/ HC, Pool 2, Round 4: Glasgow Warriors v Cardiff Blues - Page 5 589312

HC, Pool 2, Round 4: Glasgow Warriors v Cardiff Blues - Page 5 589312

- Mark Bennett, centre
Niko - Nikola Matawalu, scrum half
Niko's Mate - Jerry Yanuyanutawa, prop
No Maits - Sean Maitland, wing
Rhubarb - Ruaridh Jackson, fly half
Ruck Inspector, the - Alastair Kellock, lock
Schlong - Sean Lamont, centre/wing
Sherlock - Tyrone Holmes, loosie
Shrek - Gordon Reid, prop
Toonie - Gregor Peter John Townsend MBE, head coach
Wee P - Pat MacArthur, hooker
Weegie from Fiji, the - (see Niko)

by **George Carlin** Mon Dec 09, 2013 1:23 pm

jimbopip wrote:
TJ wrote:I just looked at the stats. Glasgow shuld not have lost that game - how did they? 779 m run with the ball.

Cardff Kick/pass/run Glasgow
27 Kicks from hand 16
111 Passes 205
88 Runs 169
481 Metres run with ball 779
Attacking
40% (50%/28%) Possession (1H/2H) 60% (50%/72%)

Boys, boys... I know that statistics can be made to prove anything you want BUT the difference on Friday night was (a) Weir dropped a pass in goal which led to a try, (b) Kalman's pass was intercepted when we were chasing a late winner. Take those two aberrations / Brain farts out of the game and we were the better, although not smarter, team.
Baby..bathwater. Repeat until a sense of perspective is restored.

Jimbo - if we are reduced to Winning Morally then FES' theory that Glasgow fans are becoming increasingly Welsh is categorically proven. picard

by funnyExiledScot Mon Dec 09, 2013 1:26 pm

I agree Jimbo - if you look at Glasgow in the league, you've still had a strong season. I think it's about continuity as much as anything else. Toonie needs to give his strongest XV a fews games now to get settled. There's been to much chopping and changing this season, albeit I recognise much of it has been enforced.

Against Edinburgh, Glasgow will do well to watch a few tapes of us this season. Whilst Solomons has done much to strengthen the pack and our defence around the fringes, we've been torn to pieces in the wider channels this season. Quick ball and wide attackes have been our weakness so far, whereas last season it was through the middle where we were particularly weak.

Glasgow need to put this behind them and turn up next week. Whilst I suspect the HK is probably over anyway, sticking 5 points on the board in a HC fixture will do the club the power of good, and prove that they can perform in this tournament. Glasgow have too much potential to not make more impact on the HC.

by daidimview Mon Dec 09, 2013 1:34 pm

No surprise to know see committment and graft in defence, the common denominator and something that should have happened season ago - Dale McIntosh.

I think the other regions missed the boat here, Blues dithered for ages and someone from the other regions could and should have stepped in.

No one will fancy returning to the changing rooms after a shoite missed tackle with "the chief" waiting outside the tunnel, could possibly save Davies his coaching job.

by tatterd Mon Dec 09, 2013 1:39 pm

good point dai - hopefully the chief can carry on having a big impact. Blues need some consistency though

by jimbopip Mon Dec 09, 2013 8:16 pm

George Carlin wrote:
jimbopip wrote:
TJ wrote:I just looked at the stats. Glasgow shuld not have lost that game - how did they? 779 m run with the ball.

Cardff Kick/pass/run Glasgow
27 Kicks from hand 16
111 Passes 205
88 Runs 169
481 Metres run with ball 779
Attacking
40% (50%/28%) Possession (1H/2H) 60% (50%/72%)

Boys, boys... I know that statistics can be made to prove anything you want BUT the difference on Friday night was (a) Weir dropped a pass in goal which led to a try, (b) Kalman's pass was intercepted when we were chasing a late winner. Take those two aberrations / Brain farts out of the game and we were the better, although not smarter, team.
Baby..bathwater. Repeat until a sense of perspective is restored.
Jimbo - if we are reduced to Winning Morally then FES' theory that Glasgow fans are becoming increasingly Welsh is categorically proven.

There's lovely Whistle

by **George Carlin** Tue Dec 10, 2013 2:14 pm

OP updated for the next game.

by funnyExiledScot Tue Dec 10, 2013 2:46 pm

Nothing short of 5 points will do here, and you need to deprive Cardiff of a LBP. That still makes qualification hugely difficult, requiring a big performance at Exeter and a monumental effort against Toulon at Scotstoun, but a 5 point win in this game does leave the door open.

I predict a Glasgow win, but I reckon it'll be 4 points and therefore not enough.

by AsLongAsBut100ofUs Tue Dec 10, 2013 2:55 pm

Pool 2 looks interestingly poised imo:

Pool 2 P W D L Pts
Toulon 3 2 0 1 10
Cardiff Blues 3 2 0 1 9
Exeter Chiefs 3 1 0 2 7
Glasgow 3 1 0 2 5

Toulon have two home games left and might reasonably expect to win both of them, leaving them on at least 18 points; Cardiff have just the one, which could see them on 13 points (ignoring BPs for the moment); Exe have also just the one, so might only reach 11; whereas the Warriors could feasibly join Cardiff on 13 points with two home fixtures remaining. Has any team ever qualified with as low a points total as 18, and presumbaly there would be no Amlin qf for the second placed team from this pool? So we'll need to see home-wins-as-the-norm change for this pool to really come alive, and bonus points could have a massive impact too

by Guest Tue Dec 10, 2013 3:26 pm

I think it's really, REALLY important to beat Cardiff in the aggregate and win one of our last two games even if we don't feel we will progress to the Amlin. Coming 2nd in this table has to be our secondary target if we cannot get out of the group because Glasgow need to learn how to play in and win their high pressure matches.

We have Cardiff coming up who are still in the hunt and then Toulon on the final weekend , both at home ; both teams will be pushing for big wins up in Scotstoun. We need to learn how to play those matches and win them. We should expect a Rabo semi final this year and it will be the same kind of affair - a high pressure match we need to win. Yes we came close with that last year but close isn't close enough.

I agree though, if we beat Cardiff 5-4 on the aggregate it means that our next match will either be against an Exeter there for the taking, bottom of the table OR an Exeter who themselves are still in the hunt at the top of the table - take them down and it would set up an 'anything-goes' final weekend to win the group.

by funnyExiledScot Tue Dec 10, 2013 3:27 pm

Glasgow need to win all remaining games in my view, collecting a minimum of 14 points. Can't see 18 points being enough for runner up, and I'm fairly confident Toulon will top the pool.

Glasgow basically need 10 points from the games against Cardiff and Exeter, and to beat Toulon at home. A bonus point win at Sandy Park is a massive ask. Anything less than 5 against Cardiff and Glasgow best focus on the league, starting with the two slam dunks against us useless MFLs.....

by TJ Tue Dec 10, 2013 3:30 pm

Glasgow need two bonus point wins. Only that will give them a chance. even then its slim

by AsLongAsBut100ofUs Tue Dec 10, 2013 3:47 pm

funnyExiledScot wrote:Glasgow need to win all remaining games in my view, collecting a minimum of 14 points. Can't see 18 points being enough for runner up, and I'm fairly confident Toulon will top the pool.

Glasgow basically need 10 points from the games against Cardiff and Exeter, and to beat Toulon at home. A bonus point win at Sandy Park is a massive ask. Anything less than 5 against Cardiff and Glasgow best focus on the league, starting with the two slam dunks against us useless MFLs.....

That's the spiggott, fES clap

by tigertattie Tue Dec 10, 2013 4:19 pm

it's a bit of a love in with FES and ASBO these days kiss

by AsLongAsBut100ofUs Tue Dec 10, 2013 4:44 pm

tigertattie wrote:it's a bit of a love in with FES and ASBO these days

Always has been, tattie, I taught that boy everything he knows

by **George Carlin** Tue Dec 10, 2013 5:17 pm

AsLongAsBut100ofUs wrote:
tigertattie wrote:it's a bit of a love in with FES and ASBO these days

Always has been, tattie, I taught that boy everything he knows

The Daily Mail released this paparazzo snap of FES and Asbo at Portobello Beach yesterday:
HC, Pool 2, Round 4: Glasgow Warriors v Cardiff Blues - Page 5 Men10

HC, Pool 2, Round 4: Glasgow Warriors v Cardiff Blues - Page 5 Men10

by 21st Century Schizoid Man Tue Dec 10, 2013 5:21 pm

Yes - we are out again so might as well get used to it ! Thanks Toonie 15% muppet

by jimbopip Tue Dec 10, 2013 5:46 pm

George Carlin wrote:
AsLongAsBut100ofUs wrote:
tigertattie wrote:it's a bit of a love in with FES and ASBO these days

Always has been, tattie, I taught that boy everything he knows
The Daily Mail released this paparazzo snap of FES and Asbo at Portobello Beach yesterday:

If you're thinking, "I'm jealous, but not sure of whom/ who of" the answer could be in the syntax.

by jimbopip Tue Dec 10, 2013 6:00 pm

21st Century Schizoid Man wrote:Yes - we are out again so might as well get used to it ! Thanks Toonie 15% muppet

In or out we need to get our mojo back. There's nothing wrong tat a couple of wins wont put right.
For me the second row is the really interesting area; Ickle Jonny, Niko's mate, Swinson, Ryder and Big Al. I would prefer Swinson, Gray and Naka as an impact sub. Cardiff's defensive line was very impressive last week and we need to batter them up front before going wide. This is where a supporting, attacking-minded 7 would come into his own: John Barclay why did we let you go?
Will Toonie stick with Meatball or look for more invention from Rhuaridh? I think he'll change them round. Otherwise I can see the backs being kept the same. Possibly bring Niko on after an hour as we did lack control and suffered from poor decision making.
If we lose at home then it's 30% Muppetman.

by 21st Century Schizoid Man Tue Dec 10, 2013 9:43 pm

If not the demi - Muppet at a whopping 50% !!!!!

by funnyExiledScot Wed Dec 11, 2013 1:59 pm

Losing John Barclay still doesn't stack up really. You certainly should have kept him.

GC - are you sure that's Portobello Beach??

by **George Carlin** Wed Dec 11, 2013 3:13 pm

funnyExiledScot wrote:Losing John Barclay still doesn't stack up really. You certainly should have kept him.

GC - are you sure that's Portobello Beach??

Give or take the odd welly, shopping trolley and used syringe, er, sure.

by 21st Century Schizoid Man Thu Dec 12, 2013 8:55 am

Team out today I assume. Usual crappy platitudes from players ,coaches etc about 'gone well in training', 'looking for a reaction', 'the crowd are our 16th man' etc etc blah feckin blah. All total PR crap coming straight from SRU HQ. Anyway here goes with my 23 :-
Hogg - needs to rediscover his form soon
Maitland - playing well and our best back
Semour - if fit
Bennett - if not poncing around with the 7s
Dunbar - good 1st 40 last week
Cusiter -control and structure
Jackson - can make take a pass

Grant
MacArthur
Welsh
Gray
Ryder - Swinson if fit
Strauss
Holmes
Wilson

Jedi, Low, Hall, Yaya, Naka, Niko M, DTH, Weir

by 21st Century Schizoid Man Thu Dec 12, 2013 9:16 am

Jedi, Low, Hall, Yaya, Naka, Niko M, DTH, Weir

These 3 could give us an explosion of Fijian mentalness late in the game !

by **George Carlin** Thu Dec 12, 2013 10:55 am

Glasgow team out.

15 Hogg
14 Maitland
13 McGuigan
12 Dunbar
11 Seymour
10 Jackson
09 Matawalu

01 Grant
02 MacArthur
03 Welsh
04 Nakarawa
05 Kellock
06 Harley
07 Holmes
08 Wilson

16 Hall
17 Big Jerry
18 Kalman
19 Strauss
20 Fusaro
21 Cusiter
22 Weir
23 DTH
HC, Pool 2, Round 4: Glasgow Warriors v Cardiff Blues - Page 5 V_blue10

HC, Pool 2, Round 4: Glasgow Warriors v Cardiff Blues - Page 5 V_blue10

by AsLongAsBut100ofUs Thu Dec 12, 2013 11:11 am

Worth adding: Not available due to injury: Mark Bennett (foot), Fraser Brown (neck), Mike Cusack (shoulder), Jonny Gray (ankle), Peter Horne (knee), Sean Lamont (ankle), Peter Murchie (shoulder), Tim Swinson (shoulder/chest)

So no second row cover, presumably Ginger Boab will move forward? McGuff in the centres? Shocked

Has the look and feel of a Toonie special!

by Tramptastic Thu Dec 12, 2013 11:20 am

There's been a lot of muttering about Toonie picking bad teams or the tactics being Toonies fault but I think a lot of last weeks bad play came from Matawalu trying to hard. Right now I'd pick Cusiter over him just for a little bit of consistency and bring Matawalu as impact off the bench - keep it that way until Glasgow start clicking again properly and then bring Matawalu in as a starter

by Guest Thu Dec 12, 2013 11:44 am

I know a lot of it has been forced but let's just keep Matawalu at 9 and he might stop making silly decisions.

However, I do agree with your point too - if I were the coach I would be picking Cusiter as my starter for these must win games and Niko for those games we *should* win as the player that sparks the moves for TBPs.

by Guest Thu Dec 12, 2013 11:45 am

Jackson called back in. Right decision? I'm not sure.

by jimbopip Thu Dec 12, 2013 12:58 pm

With the possible of McGuff at 13 the backs look creative.
The back row looks solid and able to slug it out, though I'm still not convinced Holmes is a very creative seven. However, priority must go to actually winning the ball at the breakdown otherwise everything else is academic.
Naka at second row is interesting. I feel we went wide too soon, too often last week and were constantly running into a pink wall. Hopefully Wilson and Naka will keep the Blouses pack a lot more on their toes and Niko will keep their back row away from the centres.
If that happens then Dunbar and Jackson should have enough time and space to unlock their defence.
Interestingly, most posters were saying to bring Naka, Niko and Jackson on AFTER the hard graft had been done whereas Toonie seems to want chaos from the start and Strauss, Cooseater and Wee Dunkie to come on and put the game safely to bed.

by Newsilure Thu Dec 12, 2013 2:18 pm

Cardiff Blues: 15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Richard Smith, 12 Rhys Patchell, 11 Harry Robinson, 10 Gareth Davies, 9 Lloyd Williams; 1 Sam Hobbs (c), 2 Kristian Dacey, 3 Taufa'ao Filise, 4 Chris Dicomidis, 5 Filo Paulo, 6 Macauley Cook, 7 Rory Watts-Jones, 8 Robin Copeland.

Replacements: 16 Marc Breeze, 17 Thomas Davies, 18 Benoit Bourrust, 19 James Down, 20 Ellis Jenkins, 21 Andries Pretorius, 22 Lewis Jones, 23 Dan Fish

We found it so easy last week that we are only bothering to put out one center this week! Reality = Blues injury list now includes all bar one of the clubs centers.

by 21st Century Schizoid Man Thu Dec 12, 2013 3:46 pm

So Bennett got injured paying for the sodding useless, pathetic, rubbish 7s - brilliant Townsend you tube !

by funnyExiledScot Thu Dec 12, 2013 3:52 pm

Ineffable wrote:Jackson called back in. Right decision? I'm not sure.

Good decision in my view. 4 tries required, so wee Dunky thumping the ball around the park (when he isn't dropping it) is probably not the best idea.

Not a bad team, although DTH on the bench seems odd given the requirement for a 5 pointer. Best finisher in the Glasgow squad in my view.

by 21st Century Schizoid Man Thu Dec 12, 2013 4:03 pm

DTH had a pretty poor game last week so needs a bit of a shake. Jackson good decision (for once) as DW was also poor last week. Cusiter must be getting forced out as he is the biggest earner - if he can't get into the 15 after the shambles in Kaaahdiff when can he ? Do not have a good feeling about this !

by 21st Century Schizoid Man Thu Dec 12, 2013 4:15 pm

"...when asked about Glasgow's rotation policy, Townsend made the following comment "we won a few games on the bounce at the start of the season and the supporters and opponents really started to believe that this team was going places. While we were beginning to learn what our strongest team might be, the coaches and I agreed that we also had to understand what our weakest line-up might look like so we didn't inadvertantly select it in an important game at the business end of the season." When it was pointed out that losing games may mean that there was no "business end" of the season for the Warriors, Townsend nodded enigmatically. When asked about this week's selections in particular, Townsend offered "Niko's form has been inconsistent since he returned from injury; his decision making has taken a step back and he's put the team under pressure at important points in games. So, we've moved him up to scrummie, where he will have countless additional opportunities to make crucial decisions during the game. We like the balance of having him on the pitch and Cus, our experienced veteran, on the bench. I think it's clear DTW has been playing very well, but we've not seen enough of his linking play with Big Al in the second row, whose aggression and power is important for us this week. Sure Swinson and Gray are better players, but they are also guilty of not linking with DTH." Asked about Struass being on the bench, Townsend laughed and said "Strauss is probably our best back row, but everyone knows that Cardiff can take advantage of guys with mousers, so Wilson and Harley, who are clean shaven, just nudge ahead. We're excited by their skills and clean upper lips -- it evens up the playing field."

WTF is that all about from Townsend Shocked

Experimenting to find his worst 15 FFS !

by Guest Thu Dec 12, 2013 4:18 pm

Newsilure wrote:Cardiff Blues: 15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Richard Smith, 12 Rhys Patchell, 11 Harry Robinson, 10 Gareth Davies, 9 Lloyd Williams; 1 Sam Hobbs (c), 2 Kristian Dacey, 3 Taufa'ao Filise, 4 Chris Dicomidis, 5 Filo Paulo, 6 Macauley Cook, 7 Rory Watts-Jones, 8 Robin Copeland.

Replacements: 16 Marc Breeze, 17 Thomas Davies, 18 Benoit Bourrust, 19 James Down, 20 Ellis Jenkins, 21 Andries Pretorius, 22 Lewis Jones, 23 Dan Fish

We found it so easy last week that we are only bothering to put out one center this week! Reality = Blues injury list now includes all bar one of the clubs centers.

I actually think Patchell has all the attributes to make a decent 12. The ability to break the line and offload and gives us a second kicking option as well.

by AsLongAsBut100ofUs Thu Dec 12, 2013 4:19 pm

21st Century Schizoid Man wrote:
"...when asked about Glasgow's rotation policy, Townsend made the following comment "we won a few games on the bounce at the start of the season and the supporters and opponents really started to believe that this team was going places. While we were beginning to learn what our strongest team might be, the coaches and I agreed that we also had to understand what our weakest line-up might look like so we didn't inadvertantly select it in an important game at the business end of the season." When it was pointed out that losing games may mean that there was no "business end" of the season for the Warriors, Townsend nodded enigmatically. When asked about this week's selections in particular, Townsend offered "Niko's form has been inconsistent since he returned from injury; his decision making has taken a step back and he's put the team under pressure at important points in games. So, we've moved him up to scrummie, where he will have countless additional opportunities to make crucial decisions during the game. We like the balance of having him on the pitch and Cus, our experienced veteran, on the bench. I think it's clear DTW has been playing very well, but we've not seen enough of his linking play with Big Al in the second row, whose aggression and power is important for us this week. Sure Swinson and Gray are better players, but they are also guilty of not linking with DTH." Asked about Struass being on the bench, Townsend laughed and said "Strauss is probably our best back row, but everyone knows that Cardiff can take advantage of guys with mousers, so Wilson and Harley, who are clean shaven, just nudge ahead. We're excited by their skills and clean upper lips -- it evens up the playing field."

WTF is that all about from Townsend Experimenting to find his worst 15 FFS !

by jimbopip Thu Dec 12, 2013 4:53 pm

Schiz, you have surpassed yourself with this one. Guilty of not linking up indeed.

by 21st Century Schizoid Man Thu Dec 12, 2013 5:26 pm

Aye - in other words we are out of Europe (as feckin usual) and tomorrow is an experimental 15. You could not make this crap up !

by jimbopip Thu Dec 12, 2013 5:35 pm

When asked about his on-field decision making strategy, and how this integrates into the team's overall game plan, Niko Matawalu opined,
"As a serious student of the game my approach to scrum half play was shaped by the great French sides of the mid-seventies who would always say, is that a butterfly there? In December? The Glasgow weather is really unpredictable you know. That and you should never deviate from first principles or you could end up looking like you're drowning out there. And don't get me started on swimming on a full stomach. On which subject have you seen Mike Cusack lately?"

by 21st Century Schizoid Man Thu Dec 12, 2013 5:42 pm

Yes I would rather DTH linked up with Jackson, Weir, Dunbar, Matawalu and Cusiter tbh

by **George Carlin** Thu Dec 12, 2013 7:24 pm

Wilson, Big Naka and Kellock, eh? Clear strategy then - fast running and offloading. Blues had a great spread defense that conained us really well so the way to counter that is to punch up the middle and offload, drawing more defenders in on the scramble and freeing space out wide.

Was very successful last year, but then again, so were a lot of things which haven't been repeated this year yet. We are sacrificing quite a bit of bulk (Naka is more than 10kg lighter than Jonny Gray) but if there's'one unit with few problems this year it's'our front row. Lovely to see Welsh back - don't care any more whether he's'loose or tighthead.

Happy with Jackson starting - we need tries. It's'do or die now. Presumably Hogg will kick.

Should be epic and high scoring at the least.

by GLove39 Thu Dec 12, 2013 8:01 pm

Surprised to see Ryan Wilson there. Wonder what state his mind must be in. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-25358465

by **BigGee** Thu Dec 12, 2013 9:18 pm

Well I guess a few changes had to happen after last week. Weir despite doing a lot well made a couple of howlers that may have cost us the game so can't really complain about warming the bench. If he could just put a couple of consistent performances together, the jersey could be his! Niko is lucky not to be joining him and I just hope he has been told to stop trying to do it all by himself. If he does that again then he needs to be hooked and Cus gets on early.

The front row did not really get on top the way it should last week, hence Welsh, who is the better scrumager comes in, no real complaints about that. same with McArthur, who should have something to prove having effectively been dropped the week before after a poorish game against the Spreys.

Ryder looked good off the bench against the Spreys, but like many others did not take his chance when he got a start. Big Naka looked good off the bench so he gets the nod this time. I guess Toonie not quite ready to drop Big Al, but it can't be to far away. He needs to show some form or some leadership, preferably both. Second row is a very competitive position now and we can't afford any passengers when there are better options, even if they are the captain. He has earned a bit of slack for what he has done before but there can't be a lot left now.

Wilson has had a couple of good games off the bench so needs and deserves a start. Hopefully his mind is on the job! Strauss will come on at some point to add some serious impact and Fusaro will have a lot to prove after the embarrassment of being hooked the wrong side of half time.

Dropping DTH to the bench is the other controversial choice in the backs. Well he can cover centre as well, which is why Ascarte is out and at the end of the day did not play that well last week either. He will be on at some stage again hopefully with plenty to prove!

I hope this gives the message that no one is undroppable as no one should be, even Big Al. This is a big squad with a lot of good players in it, to hold your place in it you really should perform.

I just want to see a reaction and a performance this week. The result may or may not be significant in the longer term towards progression in the competition, some of that may now be out of our hands. This should be just about pride and the recognition that we let ourselves down last week. This is the chance to put it right again straight away and finally get the season on track.

by 21st Century Schizoid Man Thu Dec 12, 2013 10:32 pm

BigGee,

excellent précis of the situation and more importantly form. Agree totally but Wilson really is a big tough fecker and will react well. How Big Al survives is more perplexing. I know he owes Glasgow rugby nothing but last week was rather poor and it is not unique this season.
Despite last week it looks like a near sell out so please fellas do not feck this up - at least have a modicum of personal and professional pride. Otherwise patience is being stretched to breaking point.

by wales606 Fri Dec 13, 2013 10:49 am

IronMike wrote:
Newsilure wrote:Cardiff Blues: 15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Richard Smith, 12 Rhys Patchell, 11 Harry Robinson, 10 Gareth Davies, 9 Lloyd Williams; 1 Sam Hobbs (c), 2 Kristian Dacey, 3 Taufa'ao Filise, 4 Chris Dicomidis, 5 Filo Paulo, 6 Macauley Cook, 7 Rory Watts-Jones, 8 Robin Copeland.

Replacements: 16 Marc Breeze, 17 Thomas Davies, 18 Benoit Bourrust, 19 James Down, 20 Ellis Jenkins, 21 Andries Pretorius, 22 Lewis Jones, 23 Dan Fish

We found it so easy last week that we are only bothering to put out one center this week! Reality = Blues injury list now includes all bar one of the clubs centers.

I actually think Patchell has all the attributes to make a decent 12. The ability to break the line and offload and gives us a second kicking option as well.

He was poor at 12 when played there last season.

He is better the more he gets the ball.

It's a desperate situation, but I would have played Davies at 12.

4 centres out injured, so we are left with playing our only 2 flyhalves and a pretty inexperienced centre :/ - not much choice though, we have very little depth in the midfield atm.

We are also still missing 6/8 of our starting pack!

by Newsilure Fri Dec 13, 2013 11:28 am

wales606 wrote:
IronMike wrote:
Newsilure wrote:Cardiff Blues: 15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Richard Smith, 12 Rhys Patchell, 11 Harry Robinson, 10 Gareth Davies, 9 Lloyd Williams; 1 Sam Hobbs (c), 2 Kristian Dacey, 3 Taufa'ao Filise, 4 Chris Dicomidis, 5 Filo Paulo, 6 Macauley Cook, 7 Rory Watts-Jones, 8 Robin Copeland.

Replacements: 16 Marc Breeze, 17 Thomas Davies, 18 Benoit Bourrust, 19 James Down, 20 Ellis Jenkins, 21 Andries Pretorius, 22 Lewis Jones, 23 Dan Fish

We found it so easy last week that we are only bothering to put out one center this week! Reality = Blues injury list now includes all bar one of the clubs centers.

I actually think Patchell has all the attributes to make a decent 12. The ability to break the line and offload and gives us a second kicking option as well.

He was poor at 12 when played there last season.

He is better the more he gets the ball.

It's a desperate situation, but I would have played Davies at 12.

4 centres out injured, so we are left with playing our only 2 flyhalves and a pretty inexperienced centre :/ - not much choice though, we have very little depth in the midfield atm.

We are also still missing 6/8 of our starting pack!

I think Patchell is just a good player so he will do ok at 12 and could probably make a career there but it will not make best use of his talents and its not where he has spent all his time practicing. With so few players to pick from and a vital HC game not being the right place to experiment in then Patchell and Davies seem the only realistic options to fill the 10 and 12 positions. I respect Davies for his work ethic and commitment but he is not a class 10 or 12 and ideally I would like to have seen a better player such as Fish on the pitch from the start, Halpenny at 12 and Fish at 15 maybe ...... but thats something we should try in the Rabu not the HC

by wales606 Fri Dec 13, 2013 11:32 am

Newsilure wrote:
wales606 wrote:
IronMike wrote:
Newsilure wrote:Cardiff Blues: 15 Leigh Halfpenny, 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13 Richard Smith, 12 Rhys Patchell, 11 Harry Robinson, 10 Gareth Davies, 9 Lloyd Williams; 1 Sam Hobbs (c), 2 Kristian Dacey, 3 Taufa'ao Filise, 4 Chris Dicomidis, 5 Filo Paulo, 6 Macauley Cook, 7 Rory Watts-Jones, 8 Robin Copeland.

Replacements: 16 Marc Breeze, 17 Thomas Davies, 18 Benoit Bourrust, 19 James Down, 20 Ellis Jenkins, 21 Andries Pretorius, 22 Lewis Jones, 23 Dan Fish

We found it so easy last week that we are only bothering to put out one center this week! Reality = Blues injury list now includes all bar one of the clubs centers.

I actually think Patchell has all the attributes to make a decent 12. The ability to break the line and offload and gives us a second kicking option as well.

He was poor at 12 when played there last season.

He is better the more he gets the ball.

It's a desperate situation, but I would have played Davies at 12.

4 centres out injured, so we are left with playing our only 2 flyhalves and a pretty inexperienced centre :/ - not much choice though, we have very little depth in the midfield atm.

We are also still missing 6/8 of our starting pack!

I think Patchell is just a good player so he will do ok at 12 and could probably make a career there but it will not make best use of his talents and its not where he has spent all his time practicing. With so few players to pick from and a vital HC game not being the right place to experiment in then Patchell and Davies seem the only realistic options to fill the 10 and 12 positions. I respect Davies for his work ethic and commitment but he is not a class 10 or 12 and ideally I would like to have seen a better player such as Fish on the pitch from the start, Halpenny at 12 and Fish at 15 maybe ...... but thats something we should try in the Rabu not the HC

Or Cuthbert 13, Halfpenny 14, Fish 15

But I agree, that would be something to try out in a rabo game, not a must win HC clash.

by **George Carlin** Fri Dec 13, 2013 12:03 pm

I don't know his stats but is Patchell robust enough to take first phase first contact at 12?

You could take two of him and the resul would still fit neatly inside one of Jamie Roberts' jerseys. Nobody is doubting his credentials as a skilled footballer.

by XR Fri Dec 13, 2013 12:12 pm

He doesn't shy away from tackling, that's for sure. And let's not compare him to Jamie Roberts in any way...Patch, in games, has shown that he gives a damn about what's going on in game. Something Mr Roberts will have to do in France, he won't be able to stand in the backline with hand on his hips not doing anything.

by Newsilure Fri Dec 13, 2013 1:04 pm

I think Patchell is actualy bigger than Hewitt who he is replacing, he just hasn't spent enough years in the gym yet to look as rhobust as many players. He certainly tackles well and so if he gets the positioning right he wont be a weakness.

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