Aviva Premiership Round Fifteen

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Bath Rugby vs London Wasps
Location - The Rec
Light Rain Showers, 8 degrees, 18mph South Westerly winds

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Bath Rugby
Manager – inthefastlane

01. James Slipper	09. Fourie Du Preez
02. Agustin Creevy	10. Charlie Hodgson
03. Charlie Faumuania
04. Luke Romano	11. Hallan Amos
05. Sam Whitelock	12. Ma'a Nonu
06. James Haskell	13. Joel Tomkins
07. Liam Gill	14. Nopolini Nalaga
08. James Gaskell	15. Rob Miller

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16. Mike Haywood 17. Jake Cooper Woolsey 18. Ben Taufimena 19. Graham Kitchener 20.    Jerome Kaino 21. Richard Wigglesworth 22. Anthony Allen 23. Rhys Patchell

Overall: Look to play a territorial game with the boots of our half back pairing playing a key role. Aim to keep Wasps penned back in their half and look to build a platform off the line out.

Scrum: Set the scrum quickly and try to exert pressure on the Wasps with our strong front row backed up by the All Black Unit

Lineout: Look to make full use of a dominant All Blacks unit with Whitelock calling. Romano, Gaskell and Haskell will offer solid options. Look to mix it up and also have a go at snatching opposition ball

Breakdown: Not looking to be over committed at the breakdown but if a turnover is possible then be aggressive. Gill will be supported Haskell and Slipper at the breakdown

Defence: Agressive Banana Blitz Defence looking to put pressure on the half backs. FDP to sweep in behind.

In attack we will be looking to play a simple game of rugby. Our forwards will look to carry the ball hard and direct with the likes of Slipper, Faim and Haskell able to tuck It under their jumper and try and pierce a hole through the Wasps defence. In the conditions we will not try to play too much of an expansive game with no offloading. Nonu and Nalaga especially will also be used as a crash ball option. FDP will use his experience to dictate his decision making, looking to switch up the point of attack and with Hodgson will control our tempo. We have the big boots of Hodgson and FDP and they will look to use these in order to gain territory and increase pressure on Wasps. They will mix up their kicking.

Wasps Fatigue: A few of the key Wasps players are no doubt tired given their exploits this season
Bismarck Du Plessis has started ten of the last eleven games
Rob Hawkins has featured in all of the last eleven games
Aaron Smith has started the last twelve games
Marlande Yarde has started the last thirteen games
Alex Corbisiero has started 4 of the last 5, featured in 11 of the last 13 and started in 8 of these. He has also been injured since the beginning of October and is lacking real life form.
TJ has featured in all but 2 games this season
Delon joined on Monday

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London Wasps
Manager  Ozzy3213

01. Alex Corbisiero	09. Aaron Smith
02. Bismarck du Plessis	10. Camille Lopez
03. Frans Malherbe
04. Sitaleki Timani	11. Bryan Habana
05. Romain Millo-Chluski	12. Pat McCabe
06. Tom Johnson	13. JJ Englebrecht
07. Steffon Armitage	14. Marland Yarde
08. Duane Vermeulen	15. Delon Armitage

16. Rob Hawkins 17. Fraser Balmain 18. Tom Mercey 19. Johann Muller 20. Marcell Coetzee 21.Luke Wallace 22. Nathan Fowles 23. Gareth Anscombe

Basic Game Plan
In light rain we will mix our game up.  In our own half we will look for territory and in the Bath half we will look to run the ball.  When in Bath territory we will look to carry close to the ruck and suck defenders in, only going wide when it is opens up for us.  Our intention is to utilize our strengths, which are top kicking games in the backs, and then power and pace to strike within the Bath 22.  
In defence, as always we will be running a blitz defence.  Our focus will be on the gainline collisions and driving back in the tackle.  Line speed and no dog-legs will be key components for us.  Smith will sweep in behind the defensive line to counter any chips/grubbers.

Specifics

• Lineout.  On our ball in the main we will go safe throwing to the front or middle and looking to maul and suck in defenders to create space.  Defensively we will get the athletic Tom Johnson up at the front forcing Bath to take risks and throw long.
  
• Target Hodgson.  We will send big carriers down Hodgson’s channel and force him to defend.
  
• Breakdown.  When we carry in, we will flood the breakdown rucking well past the ball to free it up quickly and go again.  In defence, if we have made a passive tackle and the carrier has momentum we will not overcommit, but will maintain a strong defensive line.  If we win the collision and knock the carrier back we will look to get the second man in hard over the ball to turn it over.  Key for us is being selective.
  
• Attacking Play.  We will play in the right areas, using the boots of Lopez and Armitage to ensure we dominate the territorial battle.  We will put the ball into the corners time and time again and force Bath either into a kicking battle or to run from deep.
  

Key Points

• Form/Confidence/Momentum.  Bath have none, and we have it all.  Like Worcester in real life, even when you play well, if you are at the bottom, nothing really goes for you.  We hold all the cards.  
  
• Fatigue issues.  We have 4 or 5 players who Bath mention who have played a fair bit, but saying Hawkins has been involved in the past 11 games means nothing, as he’s been on the bench for 10 of them, so will hardly be fatigued.  We also have a two week break coming up as we are out of the Anglo Welsh, so the players know they have rest in sight and will be going hard again.
  

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Gloucester Rugby vs Harlequins
Location - Kingsholm Stadium
Light Rain Showers, 8 degrees, 20mph South Westerly winds

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Gloucester
Manager – mat

01. Nick Wood 09. Will Genia
02. Adriaan Strauss 10. Dan Carter (k)
03. Juan Figallo
04. Eben Etzbeth 11. Israel folau
05. George Robson     12. Juan de Jongh
06. Galan 13. Tevita kuridrani
07. Julian Salvi 14. Charlie Walker
08. Sam Dickinson 15. Israel Dagg

16. Jaimie George 17. Guthro steenkamp18. Coenie ousthuizen 19. Elliot Stooke 20. Tom Croft 21. Dan Robson 22. Cipriani 23. Matt banahan

Tactics:


In greasy but not that wet and windy conditions there is a chance to play a bit of rugby today.
However we are mindful of conditions and having the right players in those key 2,8,9,10 positions. Benches also play a huge role in these games and we see this a big plus for us.


Forwards win matches and we have picked a huge front 5 with Wc players to do the grunt and set the tone. Are big lumps are also very mobile with players like figallo and etzbeth being the best players in the world in their positions.

Set pieces

We will be looking to really put the heat on them at scrum time with figallo, Strauss and co aiming to at worst disrupt the scrum but at best take ball against the head.
On our own ball we will be aiming to anchor the scrum most times and give Genia an easy ride. In more attacking positions we will be looking to utilise a wheel to enable us the best attacking opportunity.

Line out
With there being a lot of kicking in this game the line out will be key. Etzbeth  Robson Dickinson is a stellar like up and will look steal lots of Bothas throws  and pressure generally
Throws

On our own ball we will vary catch and drive and off the top. Strauss has probably the best darts in world rugby and in 20mph winds you need his accuracy. We see our forward bench as far superior so these sapping line out drives will serve to drain Quins
General forwards
Aim of the game is getting front foot ball to allow the key players to dominate tempo and field position. We
Have lots of heavy ball carriers and will be doing lots of carrying close to the ruck. Particularly when against the wind where keep ball is all important. Galan is a wrecking ball and will be used a lot for hard yards

We will commit numbers to the break down as we have lots of big quick int players. Salvi will be looking t to dominate the breakdown.
We will be playing at full tilt knowing we have proven class off the bench in the forwards. In greasy conditions ball presentation and looking after it is key.

Backs
With forward generating great ball the backs need to use it right. In these conditions the 8,9,10 link is key and we have the right players in these conditions.

With the wind Carter will be kicking a lot more. He will look to push them back and play the corners and territory game. Knowing we have great line out jumpers and Strauss to throw will enable us to hopefully won the territory game. When in the right position on the field then we will look to play. We have wc backs and the ability to vary it. We can hit kuridrani hard and straighten or look to push it through the hands. Our back 3 has pace trickery and power. We will target the burns channel relentlessly

Against the wind it's required to run it more and advance down the pitch a get right field positions.  Here the forwards will take it on and Genia will
Move it the moment we get front foot ball.


Cross kick will be utilised with gear and folau to the fore. The up and under will also be tried.

We will operate a blitz with Genia sweeping. The aim is to
Get to burns and put him
Off. His confidence is low with him being behind mills and 36 for the 10 shirt at glos
So we are going to pick on this.

Key points

Home advantage at kingsholm
2,8,9,10 axis
Really target their 10/12/
Dominant set of backs to score the tries when we try and move it
Lineout options and Strauss throw give us line out edge
Bench options to take game away
Back 3 to counter loose balls. Most dangerous back 3
In the league
Look to get Marshall on he has never played a game of union

Pressure their kicking game with Freddie burns being bang out of
Form
Kick all goals]

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Harlequins
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Tony Woodcock	09. Ruan Pienaar (k)
02. Gary Botha	10. Freddie Burns
03. John Afoa
04. Bakkies Botha	11. Luke Morahan
05. Pieter Steph Du Toit	12. Dan Bowden
06. Mamuka Gorgodze	13. Jonathan Joseph
07. Michael Hooper (c)	14. Joe Tomane
08. Pierre Spies	15. Ollie Lindsey-Hague

16. Rob Buchanan 17. Gjorgi Jgenti 18. Kieran Brookes 19. George Kruis 20. Jamie Gibson 21. Nick Easter 22. Karl Dickson 23. Benji Marshall

Tactics

Game plan based upon our pack and 9, 10 and 12 axis controlling the game. We have picked a 9,10,12 all with excellent boots to get us into the right areas of the pitch when we are in our own half. In the opposition half we will play our usual patient attacking game using the array of strong carriers in our pack to carry off 9, 10 and 12 before getting the ball wider when we have quick ball and gaps begin to appear in the Gloucester defence and we can put Joseph and our back three into space.

We will look for our physical pack to win the collisions when carrying and keep the legs pumping after contact to get us over the gain line. We will look to carry in numbers so as to offload if its on or to get quick ball back from the ruck. Look to have options of 9, 10 and 12 with Burns and Bowden standing flat and taking turns at first receiver to keep the Gloucester defence guessing.

At the line out we will look to shorten the line and keep Spies and Hooper in the midfield as crash ball options. We will look to use two or three men at each ruck to clear the ball and allow quick and clean ball from which Pienaar can begin to pull the strings. We will look for the first men to compete at the breakdown when Gloucester are in possession before using the like of Botha, Woodcock and Gorgodze to use their weight to slow down and disrupt Gloucester ball.

Our defensive line will look to be quick and put considerable pressure on Carter who is the main kicking and creative option in the Gloucester midfield. Get to him and we can begin to exert control. When we can double up in the tackle so as to win the collision, make a choke tackle or turnover the ball.

Key Points

Aggression - We are going to look to be aggressive and physical with Gloucester and not give them a second. Big hits from our huge physical pack looking to put Gloucester on the back foot.

Breakdown - When Gloucester are in possession we will work really hard to slow down their ball either through having the first man their or by disrupting with our big units slowing the ball and disrupting Genia. If we can get to Genia or Carter then their is huge pressure on the other to control the field position and the Gloucester attacks.

- 9,10,12 axis - Three guys who can control the tempo, field position and our attacking games. They can share these pressures and keep the Gloucester defence guessing as to our next phases of play. We will look to kick behind Charlie Walker and test him with high balls with winger come full back Luke Morahan on his wing to test him under the high balls as well as look to test his defence one on one.

- Look to get JJ running lines to test out Kuridrani's positioning. JJ's forte is cutting lines and the outside break so we will look for him to really test out his opposite numbers position.
 
- Discipline - Keep our discpline so as to not allow Gloucester easy opportunities to release the pressure we are trying to put on. Kick all points opportunities.

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Saracens vs Exeter Chiefs
Location - Allianz Park
Sunny Intervals, 8 degrees, 16mph South Westerly winds

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Saracens
Manager – Pooly

01. Alex Waller	09. Nick White
02. Keven Mealamu	10. Morne Steyn
03. Jannie Du Plessis
04. Louis Deacon	11. Miles Benjamin
05. Victor Matfield	12. Tom Taylor
06. Carl Fearns	13. Jonathan Davies
07. George Smith(c)	14. Chris Ashton
08. Chris Masoe	15. Lee Byrne

16. Chris Whitehead  17. Max Lahiff  18. Clement Ric 19. Rob Simmons  20. Brad Shields 21. Chris Cook  22. George Lowe  23. Adam Thompstone

Tactics:

TARGET SCRUM - Work on Barrington with JdP looking to drive through and put him off his game. With so many new front row players (this is the first time this unit has played together) we feel we can get at their lack of game time and cohesion. The replacement props for Exeter were signed in the last 10 days and have little time to get to know their team mates.

LACK OF SQUAD COHESION - Half of the Exeter 23 has been signed over the last month or two. There have had little chance to settle in and learn each others game. On contrast we're a settled side with the odd player introduced into a cohesive unit.

TARGET TEAM DEFENCE - Look to work the Exeter defence, especially in their own half. With the large amount of new players we'll be looking to get at unfamiliarity between units.

HOME ADVANTAGE & FORM - We're in outstanding form at home and play the type of game that is tough to beat. In Steyn/White we have the perfect halfback combo to help us play in the right areas of the pitch.

TARGET LINE OUT - If Matfield can close Parling down we can limit Exeters options at the line out with few jumpers in the backrow. If weakness seen we'll look to hit the corners and compete.


General - We've selected a team packed with power and physicality and will look to dominate the contact and get over the gain line. We'll be playing a high tempo physical game from the off, look to smash the opposition back and get into the rucks/maul's and drive through. We'll look to tie the opposition in and then get at their backline, more so in the their half. Look to keep it tight in the forward pack and grind through work.

Scrum - Look to get a platform from the off with a strong scrummaging unit. Strong front 5 with big locks will look for the big push once the ball is in and drive the opposition back. Our LH and Hooker will look to target TH and try to get between him and Hooker to allow TH to work on LH If no weakness seen will use as restart.

Line out - Matfield will fit straight in after being the teams line out coach since retiring in 2011. Look to play it safe and use the rolling maul to good effect. Our big pack should have a lot of joy here and will tie in the opposition defence. We'll look to contest on opp throw especially when sub get on the pitch as we feel we can really pressure him. Matfield will look mastermind taking the opposition throw apart throughout the game.

Defence - High intensity and big hits, looking to drive past the ball player. Huge physical pack that can look to dominate the collision and breakdown allowing Smith etc a chance to slow down/steal ball. Scrum half to sweep behind the defensive line.

Attack - Keep things simple in our own half then look to unleash backs in opp territory. Scrum half to inject pace from the breakdown and have Lowe on his shoulder. Huge carrying backrow to get us over the gain line after front 5 set a platform.

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Exeter Chiefs 

Manager – Fluxy

01. Richard Barrington	09. Morgan Parra (k)
02. Jack Yeandle	10. Toby Flood
03. James Johnstone
04. Brad Thorn	11. Tom Varndell
05. Geoff Parling (c)	12. Scott Williams
06. Liam Messam	13. Marcelo Bosch
07. Calum Clark	14. Zac Guildford
08. Nick Williams	15. Matt Tait

16. Tatafu Polota-Nau 17. Tendai Mtawarira 18. Matt Stevens 19. Patricio Albacete 20. Will Fraser 21. Hadyn Thomas 22. Juan Martin Hernandez 23. David Strettle

Key Points

• Barrington and Yeandle have played together before and have had weeks to train with JJ, so lack of cohesion no issue for us.
  
• Target the halfbacks - first time they have played together, and this will force Steyn to kick away possession
  
• Some new faces, but Sarries have untested combos too. First time partnerships at halfback and at centre will create holes. Matfields first competitive game in two years as well. 
  
• Parra will kick all points available, he can kick from within their half, so this indicates that Sarries should be wary of giving away penalties.
  
• Play a simple game - keep hold of the ball and use the phases to suck in the defence. (they can't score, if they don't have the ball!)
  
• Momentum is with us, two wins on the trot and a side in from - winning is a habit and we having a strong gameplan to implement.
  

Game plan

A few close games in the pasts weeks means that the we are carrying some real momentum into games and believing that we can beat anyway at the moment. 
Selected a physically strong side to compete with the physicality of the Sarries side. With the conditions looking quite good we will look to keep ball in hand and use phases to implement a simple territorial game and look to be playing with the ball within the opposition 22. 
Every time we are in the opposition 22 we will look to at least leave with the three points to keep the score board ticking over and to build a lead. 
Simple set-piece game which we look to dominate our own ball, and contest every opposition put in. The pack that has been selected is mobile and strong around the park, especially in the tackle, on the floor and ball in hand. 

Attack

• Parling will lead the line out and look to set rolling mauls to keep hold of possession and make Sarries give away penalties. Look to set the maul first then drive, and try to keep resetting the maul. 
  
• Williams will look to make runs at Steyn and exploit the lack of size, as these conditions Williams excels in.
  
• Pack filled big carriers to provide a number of options in the tight exchanges. Look to keep moving the point of attack with clever offloads and forward interplay. Look for forward pods outside the third guard in the line to really stretch their defences and get over the gain line to create momentum.
  
• Look to flood the breakdown and clear out bodies, to keep ball clean so that the halfbacks can dictate the game. (Eg AB's or Eng vs AB 2012 style) Doesn't mean we need to play an out and out seven if the whole side chips in at the breakdown
  

Defence

• We will use a Blitz drift line in defence to cut down Steyn's options and push him inside towards our back-row.
  
• Parra to sweep behind the defensive line, and to counter any loose kicks or turnover ball - either by quickly shipping it wide to the back three, or kicking in behind their back three.
  
• The whole pack is mobile and capable of getting over the ball at the breakdown. Look to powerfully clear opponents out of the ruck, and use the strong tackling to keep chopping down the Bath runners.
  
• If we kick in behind their back-line or back three, we look to at least make them have to turn into an advancing black line which will not allow the receiver time to make decision or escape with clean ball. Every kick to be chased, the kick is as only as good as the chase
  

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Worcester Warriors vs Sale Sharks
Location - Sixways Stadium
Light Rain Showers, 8 degrees, 19mph South Westerly winds

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Worcester Warriors
Manager-CJ

01. Nathan Catt	09. Tawera Kerr-Barlow
02. Richard Strauss (c)	10. Francois Trinh-Duc (k)
03. BJ Botha
04. Danie Roussouw	11. Sean Maitland
05. Mouritz Botha	12. Kyle Godwin
06. Ashley Johnson	13. Casey Laulala
07. John Barclay	14. Mark Cueto
08. Tom Guest	15. Willie Le Roux

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16.  Brett Sturgess 17. Dave Ward 18.  Oliver Tomaszczyk 19. George Skivington 20. Phil Dowson 21. Michael Classen 22. Anthony Allen 23. Jamie Elliot

Tactics-

In the rain, our work at the breakdown will be vital. Barclay to act as a specialist here looking to disrupt ball and get to as many rucks as possible to speed ours up, backed up by the other backrowers and Roussouw both on the floor and clearing out. Commit small numbers unless the ball can be turned over then flood the breakdown.

Attack

The Sale pack is quite large so we will look to work them hard and move them around. Attack the fringes in groups of 3 on slow ball to sap their strength without getting into a dog-fight. Support and immediately setting up again is vital.

IN the backs, Sale have lots of small players. Even if they make tackles, we can make yards over the gainline on every carry. On quicker ball, get big forwards like Strauss, Botha and Johnson (or direct running from Laulala) running onto inside pop balls off 10 and 12, targeting Gilroy and the 10-12 channel. Then after a few phases of tiring hits and working their forwards, using our quicker carriers like Guest and the back 3 to attack space and make breaks.

Abendanon often leaves space at the back. Godwin and FTH are great kickers, so chip and grubber through with our rapid wingers to test the back 3 and test them under the high ball in the middle of the pitch with our FB-trained back 3 contesting. If nothing else in this weather mistakes are likely.

Defence

Blitz led by Laulala, looking to cut their backline’s running space and forcing the chip to our ready back 3. Fringe defence vital

Scrum

Look to secure solid ball on our own feed then use it as a platform so that Guest has the option of running to set up an immediate attack on Barrett’s defence.

Lineout

Contest every throw, pressurising Retallick as their safest option. Vary our throws and look to secure clean ball off the middle, Guest and Johnson are good extra options.

Kicking

As above test them under the high ball and through ball. Try and kick for possession and contest every kick as our options here are good and if they are forced to return fire we have a very solid back 3 here. Take all points at goal

Subs

Only use subs if we need to change the game or players are exhausted and fading. Ward is an excellent option for competing on the floor, and Allen can change our focus into more of a running attack rather than Godwin’s excellent kicking and passing game.

Key points:

Target the breakdown with our in form 7 and good skills throughout the pack
Target their back 3 against ours with our kicking game
Move their pack around
Look for yards by running at their 10-12
Try to force them to engage in a kicking battle

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Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Marcos Ayerza	09. Kieran Marmion
02. David Paice	10. Beauden Barrett
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. Kane Douglas	11. Craig Gilroy
05. Brodie Retalick	12. Kyle Eastmond
06. Alex Tulou	13. George Pisi
07. Fulgence Quedragao	14. Semesa Rokoduguni
08. Victor Vito	15. Nick Abendanon

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16. Ross Harrison 17. Tommy Taylor 18. Luc Ducalcon 19. Christian Day 20. Matt Kvesic 21. Ben Spencer 22. JJ Hanrahan 23. Will Addison

Specifics

- No intention of a kicking battle. Back three told to run the ball back at dog legs in the chase.
- Really get at the scrum with technical props on form and a big back five to push. Zirka to get at Catt in particular.
- Barrett to use clever chips and grubbers for Eastmond and co to run onto with no sweeper on the Worc blitz to cover.
- Extra leeway at the breakdown. Trinc-Duc does not kick for Montpeiller. Averages around 50%!  
- Quedragao defending between the 10-12 channel (as always!) allows him to be first on the scene at the breakdown.

Tactics

Although greasy it’s not that wet and as such there is a chance to play some rugby. We will play a fast paced, high intensity game using big carriers in the pack to get over the gain line to create space for our halfbacks. We will look to get our back three onto the ball as much possible of offloads and inside balls.

- Target the scrum. Good technical front row supported by plenty of grunt will look to get on top and win penalties.

- Attack from the lineout. Four genuine jumping options allows us to mix it up and really use the lineout as an attacking platform. With a big pack out we will look to get the maul going to make serious ground.

- Look to mix up play. Barrett & Eastmond to interchange at first receiver and change the point of attack. Marmion provides a threat snipping around the base.

- No sweeper on Worc blitz. Barrett will look to use intelligent chips and grubbers to put our pacy runners in behind the Worcester blitz.

- Get the back three involved. Roko, Gilroy and Bendy all to run lines looking for the inside ball or offload to get in behind the opposition defence.

- Hit the breakdown hard. Look to our dynamic front five to clear the ruck and allow Quedragao to really attack the breakdown.

- Straight line blitz defence focusing on a quick line speed to isolate the ball carrier before the gain line. Quedragao will defend between the 10-12 channel to double up and also be first on the scene at the breakdown. Marmion to sweep in behind to cover chips and grubbers.

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London Irish vs Leicester Tigers
Location - Madejksi Stadium
Sunny Intervals, 8 degrees, 17mph South Westerly winds

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London Irish

01. Tom Court	09. Rory Kockott
02. ChristopherTolofua	10. Nick Evans (k)
03. Antoine Guillamon
04. Nick Kennedy	11. JSD
05. Stuart Hooper	12. Chris Bell
06. Matt Garvey	13. Conrad Smith
07. Thierry Dusatoir	14. Nick Cummins
08. Scott Higginbotham	15. Robbie Henshaw

16. Tom Lindsay 17. Ben Franks 18. Will Coller 19. David Sisi 20. Jackson Wray 21. Jack Moates 22. Luke McAlister 23. Henry Trinder

Tactics:


SET PIECE
We have picked a scrummaging pack in wet conditions and Higginbotham and Garvey will provide grunt. We have four lineout jumpers and will keep it simple today not putting too much pressure on Tolofua's throws, we will jack 2 up in their half on opposition ball.

BREAKDOWN
looking to control our BREAKDOWN and give Kockott time on the ball. Dusatoir will only compete if available but we will aim to fan out.

HALF BACKS
Controlled ball with good tactical players looking to use the conditions to their advantage, they will start with a tight game for three phases then spread.

ATTACK
Controlled with strong runners and will look for simple passes and our back three cutting back on inside shoulder at times, our pack will give options off of 10 and 12 to get over the gainline.

DEFENCE
Controlled and hard hitting. Look to snag 9 to stop quick ball and for Dusatoir to get into 10's face to stop quick ball, any high balls will be secured and kicked back into space or off the park, if it's on we run.

BENCH
Strong impact with a strong carrying front row replacements to come on and further control. The bench can up the tempo with McAlister and Trinder playing heads up rugby in the last quarter to drag open a tired defence.

OVERALL
Tight game initially and play for territory in these conditions, take the points when available but back ourselves if it's on.

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Leicester Tigers
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

01. Andrew Sheridan	09. Kahn Fotuali'i
02. Stephen Moore	10. Jonny Wilkinson (k)
03. Dan Cole
04. Nathan Hines	11. Sitiveni Sivivatu
05. James Horwill (c)	12. Dominic Waldouck
06. Sean O'Brien	13. Rene Ranger
07. Jacques Burger	14. Drew Mitchell
08. Joe van Niekerk	15. Pat Lambie

16. Harry Thacker 17. Benn Robinson 18. Cencus Johnston 19. Kearnan Myall 20. Ernst Joubert 21. Micky Young 22. Javiah Pohe 23. Ugo Monye

Tactics:

We will play to our strengths and play a game built around our intelligent HB's controlling the game and the power and strength of our side.

- Attack at all scrums with our huge pack - Cole and Sheridan to look to really get into the opposition. An area we will look to target if winning.

- Attack at all lineouts. Use JvN or Hines at the front and Horwill off the top as our three key options.
Shortened lineouts with Burger in midfield as crash or decoy option.

- Put serious pressure on Tolofua' throws with Hines at the front on all Irish's throws.

- Target the breakdown - huge emphasis on our work at the breakdown today and we will always look to turnover possession. With Burger and SOB, and the likes of Cole and JvN too, we feel our breakdown play could be crucial today.

- Gigantic pack made up of massive line-breakers, used in the tight to tire down the Irish defence. The likes of SOB, Burger, JvN, Hines, Moore and Horwill to be used to target the Irish 10/12 channel.

- In attacking play, we will look to get runners attacking the gain line looking for gaps. We do want to control the game, mixing up the point of our attack and looking for where the gaps are.

- In attacking play, we will play with the option of 2 first receivers in Wilko and Lambie. We want to control the game, mixing up the point of our attack and looking for where the gaps are.

- Target the Irish back three if looking vulnerable with form issues there. Look to the in-form Lambie to win the 15 battle and give us counter-attacking options as much as possible.

- We will look to employ a blitz defence, focusing on a quick line speed to hit the ball carrier before he gets to the gainline. We have aggressive forwards to carry out this instruction. Fotuali'i to sweep behind with an eye on short kicks.

- Wilkinson to kick all penalties.

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Newcastle Falcons vs Northampton Saints
Location - Kingston Park
Light Cloud, 7 degrees, 19mph South South Westerly winds

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Newcastle Falcons

01.Matt Mullen	09.Ben Youngs
02.Dane Coles	10.Aaron Cruden(K)
03.Owen Franks
04.Ed Slater	11.Cory Jane
05.Juandre Kruger	12.Brad Barritt
06.Ben Mowen	13.Jean De Villers
07.Richie McCaw	14.Charles Pitatau
08.Kieron Read (C)	15.Adam Ashley Cooper

16.Darren Dawiduik 17.Soana Tonga'uhia 18.Scott Wilson 19.Jonny Grey 20.Dave Ewers 21.Dave Lewis 22.Henry Slade 23.Charlie Sharples


Falcons tactics


game plan: We've gone for a monster pack to enable us to blast rucks and get clean ball by clearing people out of the way and give our half backs time on the ball to get our dangerous backline moving and running at the Northampton backs.  We've got some seriously calm heads in key positions with Franks , Mowen , McCaw , Read , Cruden and De Villers argueably the best in there positions in world rugby. We'll look to dominate the set piece and build our win from there.


set piece: Attack the scrum when defending and look to make a mess of it on Saints put in focusing on the 8 man shove. Read will look to get us on the front foot from the base when he sees fit too. Kruger to target Saints throw with no out and out lineout forward in Saints pack whilst on our throw we'll look to throw too anyone from 4-8.


Target Pocock , - Blokes played one game in 8 months lets test his lack of real life form out.

Defence aggressive round the fringes and look to get in the face of the 9/10 and disrupt any flow to Saints play. Youngs to sweep behind with wingers covering the space deep. No push overs in our defensive line.


Target Wade under the high ball and Foden who has no real life form to speak of either.


Move turnover ball wide and get running at pace at the spaces in Saints defence.

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Northampton Saints
Manager: Dammit Chris

01. Sona Taumalolo	09. Niko Matawulu
02. Rob Webber	10. Matt Toomua
03. Carl Hayman
04. Dean Mumm	11. Julian Savea
05. Alistair Kellock	12. Matt Giteau(k)
06. David Pocock(c)	13. Elliot Daly
07. Sam Cane	14. Christian Wade
08. Mano Samoa	15. Ben Foden

Substitutes
16. Danny Hobbs-Awoyemi 17. Scott Spurling 18. Ben Afeaki 19. Steven Luatua 20. Sam Jones 21. Joe Simpson 22. Ollie Deveto 23. Manu Tuilagi

Tactics: Very physical and aggressive approach to the game, especially in the front five and defensively at no9 and no10. Look to force mistakes and put Falcons under pressure. Picked two no7s to make a mess of Falcons ball at the breakdown and really concentrate our efforts here - distrupt ball and make Falcons fight for every scrap of possession they get. Will be looking for turnovers and isolating any Falcons attacker to release our backline - picked Matawulu, Daly, Savea and Wade as players who can score from anywhere on the pitch. Have also picked a 10, 12 and 13 combination that has a very good kicking game and will look to beat Falcons here, as they will be heavily reliant on Cruden.

Setpiece: Strong front five for the scrum and and will look to put pressure on the Falcons come scrum time and give a platform for Manoa to attack at the base. Lineouts we will keep simple, but have three good jumpers in Kellock, Mumm and Manoa.

Breakdown/Backrow: Cause as much issues for Falcons ball as possible - Webber, Manoa are both excellent at hitting rucks, while Cane and Pocock are both turnover specialists. Will stop quick ball and really target this area. Cane and Pocock also picked to generate quick attackin ball for Saints - will aim to get the ball out wide to our dangermen at every opportunity.

Possession/Territory: Kicking game of Toomua, Giteau and Daly to pin Falcons back and win territory battle. Strong carriers throughout the pack so we can keep hold of the ball and work through the phases. Will be looking to smash over the gainline to provide front foot ball to unleash the backline.

Defence Aggressive blitz defence, big hitters and aim to force handling errors and get at the Exeter halfbacks. Simpson to sweep behind defensive line. Picked Toomua for his hard hitting approach in defence and to marshall Cruden throuhgout the game.

Key selection points: Stong pack that is vital for away games
Really target the breakdown as an area to get the upper hand.
Good control in terms of tactical kicking with Giteau, Toomua and Daly.
Bring on Afeaki, Luatua and Tuilagi early in second half to get strong runners onto the ball.

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Looks like I will be having to go through everyone's teams in the coming weeks to see how often their players have played!   

 

I've nothing to hide Pete been monitoring my players game time all season

Falcons 25 - 23 Saints

Scrum- goes to Falcons here
Lineout- good locks in Falcons, Coles not a strong thrower though. saints on top due to this and Manoa effectively a third lock
Breakdown- Pocock apparently good here today. 2 very good units, similar tactics, evens as Pocock still only 1 game back
Carrying- not that much from Saints here, goes to Falcons with Slater and Read key
HBs- Cruden the best player on show but Younhs out of form. With lots of kicking help at 12 and 13 this just goes to Saints
Attack-like both attacks, call it even
Defence- looks more secure for Falcons
Subs- evens
Overall- quite even with different aspects ahead for different teams so it's a home win

Brilliant, just had a look through the Bath pack's game stats....

Faumuania played in 11 of the last 12
Romano played in 10 of the last 12
Haskell played in 10 of the last 12
Whitelock and Slipper played in 7 of the last 12 (only missed Amlin and LV games)

I know we aren't allowed to comment on tactics after predos, but the fact I'm getting pinged due to fatigue when it's similar for both teams is a bit irritating.

Come on Pete you know the rules lol.

Grandads had to go into hospital so haven't the time to go through the scores this week I'm afraid.

Bath 26-25 Wasps
Gloucester 28-27 Quins
Saracens 19-18 Exeter
Warriors 22-21 Sale
Irish 19-19 Tigers

Bath 27 - 26 Wasps
Saracens 23 - 24 Exeter
Worcester 20 - 19 Sale
Irish 20 - 21 Leicester
Newcastle 25 - 24 Saints

That a typo Steve?

Gloucester 27-24 Quins
Sarries 21-20 Exeter
Warriors 25-23 Sale
Irish 20-22 Tigers
Falcons 26-26 Saints

Bath 23 -23 Wasps

Can't believe bath are bottom either. Expect them to
Rise.
Hard to separate. Front row to wasps but second row to bath. Back row slight edge to wasps due to more carrying but Gill could really ruin a lot of wasps ball.

Bath halfbacks tons of experience. Wasps smart at 9 and 10
Also.
Slightly better wasps backs overall but away from home they just don't get enough of an edge to sneak a win

Bath 24-22 Wasps

Little bit more in the set piece and front 5 for Bath with a solid unit, Wasps shading the backrow though. Bath shade the halfbacks and centres. Wasps back 3 a step up. Bit more for Bath in key positions, Wasps miss a top option 10-13 to win in a close one like this.

Gloucester 19–19 Harlequins

Scrum to Quins, line out shades to Gloucester. Step up in front 5 with Wood lacking form for Matt. Big step up for Quins backrow, Galan lacks work rate for 6 and Quins unit strong. Not much in the 9’s but Burns awful form really hinders Quins. Past that it’s all Gloucester.Strange game with Quins dominating pack but not having backs to see out game.

Worcester 17-18 Sale

CJ settling in nicely, making some cheeky deals. Sale a bit stronger in front 5 and will shade set piece. Nothing in 2 well balanced back rows. One a piece in half backs, not seen Marmion play so hard to judge. Not much in backlines, prefer Worcester back 3. Really tight game but Sale pack is strong and enough in backs to sneak it.

Irish 20-19 Leicester

Not much in front rows but Tigers locks a step up and Irish could struggle in line out with Tolofua throwing making Youngs look reliable!  Irish shade back row, half backs and centres although bit early for Bell evening it out. Back 3 just to Tigers. Can just see Irish sneaking this one, really tiht game but home advantage key.

Newcastle 25-22 Northampton

Front 5 to Newcastle, they’ll also take scrum but plenty of options for Saints although Kellock really poor around the park these days. Fantastic backrow for Falcons, little unbalanced for Saints, I wouldn’t play Pocock & Cane personally.  Falcons ooze class in the backline, too much for Saints. Good win for Falcons, they look really strong at the minute.

Saracens 19 - 18 Exeter

Newcastle stronger up front but much closer in the back five. Bit soon to rate matfield for me. Parra back helps Exeter but Sarries look dangerous with their backs. Tight game the home side edge.

Saracens 14-14 Exeter
Wuss 22-23 sale
Irish 23-24 Leicester
Newcastle 23-22 saints

Worcester 22 - 20 Sale

Two evenly matched sides overall. CJ has a side to work with. Sale missing their big 6N names. Sale look more dangerous in the outside but not sure they get enough ball.

Newcastle 24 - 21 Saints

Overall Newcastle have a lot more in the pack. Saints missing a lot of big names whilst Newcastle have most of theirs. Think from 1-15 the home side are that extra bit better.

It was Luke. Now amended. Sorry Prop if you read the typo'd prediction.

Bath 24 - 25 London Wasps
Gloucester 25 - 25 Harlequins
Worcester Warriors 22 - 23 Sale Sharks
London Irish 21 - 22 Leicester Tigers
Newcastle Falcons 26 - 25 Northampton Saints

Sorry boys was pushed a little too much for time, would have loved to have picked apart the tactics this week.

As bit of questioning of predictions creeping in the past few weeks

RESULTS:

Bath Rugby 26 (T:2 C:2 P:4)
London Wasps 24 (T:2 C:1 P:4)

Gloucester Rugby 27 (T:3 C:3 P:2)
Harlequins 21 (T:2 C:1 P:3)

Saracens 25 (T:1 C:1 P:5 DG:1)
Exeter Chiefs 20 (T:1 P:5)

Worcester Warriors 24 (T:2 C:1 P:4)
Sale Sharks 23 (T:2 C:2 P:3)

London Irish 20 (T:1 P:5)
Leicester Tigers 24 (T:2 C:1 P:4)

Newcastle Falcons 28 (T:3 C:2 P:3)
Northampton Saints 22 (T:1 C:1 P:5)

BONUS:

Full: Luke, Prop, Pete, SJE, Pooly & CJ
Score: CJB, Fluxy, Matt, Steve, Driver & Chris

Bloody close that! Thought I'd lost, good match SJE

Poor form commenting on the game during predictions. Don't want it creeping in.
Might be frustrating but people can only predict on what's put up in tactics.

Fair play CJ thought I had you with the man short on the bench but great effort on tactics I must say  

ChequeredJersey wrote:Bugger, only 7 subs for me then. Sorry guys, I'm usually more on it than this!

Is this kind of comment ok?

Thats fine mate. Its more the commenting on peoples predictions. Don't want anyone trying to sway the voting.

I thought our game would be closer pooly! well done though, back to Sandy Park this week   

Yea was a good one Flux, important to win your home games.

Well I have picked up LBP every time I have lost. So 10 for 10!