Aviva Premiership Round Sixteen

First topic message reminder :

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London Welsh v London Irish
Location - Kassam Stadium
Sunny Intervals, 7 Degrees, 14mph WNW Winds

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 London Welsh
Manager – CJ
 

01. Yannick Forestier	09. Thierry Lacrampe
02. Dave Ward	10. Francois Trinh-Duc(K)
03. Sekope Kepu
04. Jamie Cudmore	11. Mark Cueto
05. Setaliki Timani	12. Kyle Godwin
06. Ashley Johnson	13. Rob Horne
07. Carl Fearns	14. Nemani Nadolo
08. Victor Vito (c)	15. Chris Pennell

:-
16.  Matt Rees 17. Nathan Catt 18. Oliver Tomaszczyk 19. George Skivington 19. Alexander Lapandry 20. Ben Spencer 21. George Lowe 22. Yann David

Tactics- 

Breakdown: use Ward as a main fetcher chasing the ball, supported by Fearns and using our powerful back 5 forwards to clear out aggressively to ensure quick ball. On defensive ball, Ward and Fearns to look to disrupt but unless turnover is on, keep numbers out for defence.

Attack: move the ball around with our hard carrying pack, driving in units and looking to tire their pack. Use pop passes from 9 and 10 to our back row to crash ball, supported closely to create fast ball.

When ball is quick, FTH to attack the line with runners coming in at different angles from deep, looking to make space and pop into it for our tracking back 3 and our powerful back row when they have a more broken field to devastate.

Defence- blitz led by Horne, sweeping by 9, the back row looking to rough up their playmakers with big hits. Really aggressive and physical defence. Cueto and Pennell to cover for Nadolo's weakness off kick defence

Kicking- kick high for possession not territory, with Horne an extra pseudo winger on the chase. Look to use the crossfield in their 22. Take all points on offer

Scrum- look to press their front row especially late in the match where our tactics will aim to tire them

Lineout, keep it simple and maul it up, looking to commit their pack tacklers for moves ie off the inside of 10 

Subs- use as needed

In brief- aggressive rucking, aggressive tackling blitz, kick for possession, move about their pack and sap them, move the ball to our danger men in gaps

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 London Irish
Manager – Prop

Henry Thomas called up by England. Collier to start

01. Ben Franks	09. Lee Dickson
02. Ross Batty	10. Jules Plisson
03. Will Collier
04. Stuart Hooper (c)	11. Nick Cummins
05. Jacques Potgeiter	12. Alapati Leuia
06. Kelly Brown	13. Conrad Smith
07. Will Welch	14. Horatio Agulla
08. Scott Higginbotham	15. Luke Fitzgerald

.
16. Ken Owens 17. Tom Court 18. 19. Tom Savage 20. Jackson Wray 21. Rory Kockott 22. Luke McAlister 23. JP Pietersen

Set piece: We have picked a strong scrummaging front 5 who all bring carrying bulk to the game. From kick offs we will look to go 2 passes in before hitting our direct runners. Scrummage low and straight. Our lineout’s with Hooper, Potgeiter and all backrow able to jump. We will look to target their props but if no parity then use for quick restart.

Breakdown: We will look to slow down their ball by committing players, if they have quick ball we will leave it but will look for turnovers and we  have balance in Brown (tackles), Welch (jackles) and Higginbotham (carries).

Half Backs: Plisson will stand flat initially to give Leuia and our runners the chance to get over the gainline. Dickson will control the tempo and slow the ball down if needed.

Attack: Go direct and look to draw two players to commit the tackle before getting quick ball, we have a mobile pack who will look to run off   the backs and round the corner keeping Welsh guessing. Use the centre pairing to pull the strings with players who know each other well and international quality out wide.

Bench: Impact in all areas with Owens, Court and Collier bringing scrum impact Savage and Wray strong carriers and to attack the breakdown. Quality in the backs with Kockott, McAlister and Pietersen looking to switch the play and up the tempo towards the end.

Defence: Strong defenders across the park will look at making the intiial big impact hit. We will target Welsh centres are so will look to prevent tem offloading the ball by double tackling them. We will look to blitz with Brown in their 10’s face letting Plisson drop back and cover with Fitzgerald. Inside-out defence.

Overall: Controlled performance. We will look to hit the ball up twice and suck in defenders by going the same way till we run out of space, we will then flash across and target their pack out wide. We will look to negate Welsh's carrying options and put pressure on their half back combination not letting them get the upper hand.

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Exeter Chiefs v Bath Rugby
Location - Sandy Park
Sunny Intervals, 8 Degrees, 14mph WNW Winds

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Exeter Chiefs 

Manager – Fluxy

01. Wyatt Crockett	09. Nic White
02. Dimitri Szarzewski	10. Toby Flood
03. Jake Cooper-Wooley
04. Patrick Tuipulotu	11. Maxime Medard
05. Jake Ball	12. Brad Barritt
06. Michael Paterson	13. Adam Ashley-Cooper
07. Yannick Nyanga	14. Cory Jane
08. Fritz Lee	15. James O'Connor

_
16. Jack Yeandle 17. Ryan Grant 18. Davit Kubriashvili 19. Tomas Lavanini 20. Luke Wallace 21. Chris Cook 22. Alex Losowski 23. Jamie Elliott

Tactics
 
Game plane based around a patient build-up of momentum, by gaining field position in the opposition half or using forwards to tie in defenders from around the opposition ten metre mark to create gaps out wide. 
Look to dominate collisions and gain momentum going forward, and tie in defenders to the breakdown to create overlaps.

Territory - play in the right areas of the pitch.
We have a number of strong kickers in our back line, in our half backs and our back three. Look to use their ability to play in the Bath and pen them in their 22. Exploit the positioning of Wade, Beale and De Allende, and force them to have to run backwards and force them to play from their own 22. We’ll look to play heads up rugby and get the ball into the hands of our backs in space, but we want to be doing so in the Bath half.

Build a Score 
JOC to take on kicking at goal responsibilities. Any penalty within their ten metre to be kicked at goal to keep scoreboard ticking. Unless ten metres from the line then we kick for the line-out and apply pressure.

Pack & Breakdown 
Look for strong carries from our pack, tying in the opposition defence to create overlaps for our backs. We’ll be looking to keep the ball alive and look for the offload when on. Our back-row will target the breakdown, looking to blow through the ruck and past the ball, to create clean ball. Allowing time for the halfbacks to dictate.

Set piece
Control the set piece and use it to restart our game plan and create point of attacks. Paterson to marshal the line-out and get quick ball from our dynamic jumpers. Big emphasis on controlling set piece possession, pressuring Haywood at both line-out and scrum time. Paterson will get up at the front to steal any loose throws and make Whitelock have to loop or beat him at the front creating slow and messy ball. 

Defence 
Look to negate the opposition early on and allow our back-row to influence the pace of the game at the breakdown. Using the defensive banana drift defence to push the attackers towards our inside defence, with White sweeping in behind to guide defenders to plug holes and covers any kicks in behind.

Attack
In the opposition half take our time and not rush with ball in hand. Have confidence in our carriers to tie in defenders and get across the gain line and in our backs to exploit the gaps when we create them.

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Bath Rugby
Manager – CJB
 

01. James Slipper	09. Fourie Du Preez
02. Mikey Haywood	10. Charlie Hodgson
03. Ben Tameifuma
04. Graham Kitchener	11. Damian De Allende
05. Sam Whitelock	12. Christian Lealifano
06. Siya Kolisi	13. Michele Campagnaro
07. Liam Gill	14. Christian Wade
08. Liam Messam	15. Kurtley Beale

:-
16. Tom Dunn 17. Richard Barrington 18. James Johnston 19. Luke Romano 20. James Gaskell 21. George Di Cothi 22. Nicolas Sanchez 23. Hallan Amos


Overall: We are gonna be looking to play front foot rugby. Look to overwhelm Exeter in the loose with big carries. High tempo offloading game looking to create space and break the defense. Attack the set piece. Try to neutralise the opposition early on and get the crowd behind us.

Scrum: Look to dominate the set piece and use it to restart our game plan. Our props have been well rotated so will be fresh. We will try to set a base, controlled by Messam which he can attack off.

Lineout: We will look to switch up the lineup with Kitch, Messam, Kolisi and Whitelock options in the lineout. Whitelock will run the lineout with Kitch offering an easy banker ball. Look to get up into the air quickly and down for a quick maul. Look to compete on the opposition throw as we have a great number of options. Try and starve them of quality ball from the lineout.

Breakdown: Look to generate quick ball for our backs to take advantage of. Send numbers in to try and disrupt the ball, potentially getting the turnover.

Defence: Blitz Defence looking to really put pressure on the Exeter decision makers. Try to stop the ball from getting to the centres. Win the collision and drive through rucks. FDP to sweep in behind.

Attack: Our half backs will control our rugby. FDP knows how to control a tempo and will play what he sees. Hodgson will look to play flat and involve the back line whenever possible. Look to get the ball in the hands of our dangerous backs. We have natural finishers all over. Beale/LLF/Hodgsonp can all play first receiver and will rotate in order to keep tempo up and look to play expansively. Look for strong carries from the pack - which has big line breakers - tying in defenders to create overlaps for the backs. Get Big Ben, Slipper , Kolisi, Kitchener and Messam all with their hands on the ball. North, De Allende and Campagnaro look to exploit gaps left. Throughout them team look to Keep the ball alive and look for offloads. Look to play with a high tempo and get the ball moving across the back line.

Kicking: Beale will be our chosen place kicker. We will chuck in the occasional grabber to chase. LLF, Beale and Hodgson all have the boots necessary to try and put us in a good position territorially if need be.

Substitutes: Our subs will look to keep a high tempo.

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Leicester Tigers v Sale Sharks
Location - Welford Road
Sunny Intervals, 7 Degrees, 15mph WNW Winds

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Leicester Tigers
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

01. Alex Corbisiero	09. Kahn Fotuali'i
02. Agustin Creevy	10. Freddie Burns (k)
03. Cencus Johnston
04. Nathan Hines (c)	11. Rene Ranger
05. Victor Matfield	12. Dan Bowden
06. JMF Lobbe	13. Tamati Ellison
07. Francois Louw	14. Drew Mitchell
08. Thomas Waldrom	15. Mike Brown

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16. Stephen Moore 17. Max Lahiff 18.  Paul Doran-Jones  19. Kearnan Myall 20. Jacques Burger 21. Micky Young 22. Brock James 23. Sean Maitland


Tactics:

We will look to play high tempo, high intensity rugby. We have, throughout our XV, big line breakers to make the hard yards and tie up defenders creating space in wider channels for Burns to exploit.

- Big focus to attack at all lineouts. Use Hines or Lobbe at the front and Matfield off the top as our three key options. Shortened lineouts with Waldrom in midfield as crash or decoy option.
Matfield and Hines to look to steal and really give Paice problems.

- Attack all scrums if an advantage - Front row of Johnston, Creevy and Corbs to look to really get the shove on, particularly targeting the Sale Zira/Paice channel.

- Play an offloading game. We see the offload as our big weapon and our carriers will all be looking to offload in contact, continuing our forward momentum.

- Gigantic XV made up of massive line-breakers, used in the tight to tire down the Sale defence. The likes of Waldrom, Louw, Hines, Creevy, Lobbe and Ranger to be used to get us over the gainline. Add to that the likes of Moore, Lahiff and Burger off the bench.

- Look to win battle at the breakdown - Lobbe and Louw, supported by the likes of Creevy, to really look to get into the breakdown and give Sale problems.

- Fotuali'i to look to snipe around the fringes and keep us going forwards all the time.

- In attacking play, we will play with the option of 2 first receivers in Burns and Bowden.
We want to control the game, mixing up the point of our attack consistently.

- 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, and look to win the collisions in defence. Fotuali'i to sweep behind with an eye on short kicks.

Burns to kick all penalties.

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 Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Marcos Ayerza	09. Danny Care
02. David Paice	10. Beauden Barrett
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. Brodie Retalick	11. Willie Le Roux
05. Will Skelton	12. Kyle Eastmond
06. Steven Luatua	13. George Pisi
07. Matt Kvesic	14. Craig Gilroy
08. Louis Picamoles	15. Nick Abendanon

Subs:
16. Ross Harrison 17. Tommy Taylor 18. Vasil Kakovin 19. Matt Garvey 20. Sam Cane 21. Kieran Marmion 22. Francois Steyn 23. Semesa Rokoduguni

We will play an expansive, high intensity offloading game looking to play in the wider channels and move this Tigers tight 5 around the park. Mobility, physicality and handling is key to our approach.

- Fast ball is crucial. Mobile pack and physical midfield to clear out rucks and ensure quick ball. We will look to get over the gain line off all carries to make it easier to do so.

- Commit the defence. Barrett will play flat on the gain line to pull in defenders before releasing runners while Care will look for opportunities to snipe around the base always committing defenders.

- Change the point of attack. Numerous playmakers across the backline (Barrett/Eastmond/Le Roux) comfortable at coming in at first receiver allow us to change the point of attack and leave the opposition guessing.

- Back three always involved. Wingers to track the ball off their wings looking for the inside ball or offload. Bendy to join the line from fullback looking for mismatches and to create overlaps.

- Attack from the scrum. Strong technical front row backed up by a powerful second row will look to build a platform for Pickles, Care & Barrett. An area we will look to target if winning.

- Mix it up at the lineout. Five genuine jumpers gives us a strong attacking platform. Look to use both the rolling maul and ball off the top to keep the defence guessing.

- Straight line blitz defence. Focused on winning the gain line collisions and driving the ball carrier back. Line speed is crucial. Care will sweep behind the line to cover chips and grubbers.

- Target the breakdown. Committed to the breakdown with Kvesic fetching for the ball, supported by the rest of the pack when needed. We will always look to turn the ball over.

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London Wasps v Gloucester
Location - Ricoh Arena
Sunny Intervals, 7 Degrees, 15mph WNW Winds

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Wasps
Manager: Ozzy3213    

01. Scott Sio	09. Aaron Smith
02. Bismarck du Plessis	10. Aaron Cruden
03. Ben Alexander
04. Matt Symons	11. Bryan Habana
05. Sebastien Vahaamahina	12. Ma'a Nonu
06. Jerome Kaino	13. Henry Slade
07. Marcell Coetzee	14. Marland Yarde
08. Duane Vermeulen	15. Delon Armitage

16. Harry Thacker 17. Ben Moon 18. David Wilson 19. Ruan Botha 20. Steffon Armitage 21. Mitchell Drummond 22. Paul Jordaan 23. Tim Nanai-Williams


Basic Game Plan
In good conditions we will be looking to play a possession based game, going through the phases and continually shifting the point of attack.  When deep in our half we won't take chances with offloading, but will make ground carrying close to the ruck and recycling quickly, or using the boots of Cruden, Slade and Armitage to take us up the field.

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.  Nothing flash. Hit our front and middle jumpers and ensure that we secure our ball.  We will also mix it up, shortening the lineout and using our back row as crash ball options off the top.  On Falcons ball put pressure on through Vahaamahina and Vermeulen, who are athletic lineout jumpers.
  
• Scrum.  Get low and underneath their props and drive straight.  Really test their props technical abilities rather than get in to a battle of strength.
  
• 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 be looking to play a Super Rugby type offloading game, with the ball shifted on to the support runner just prior to the point of the tackle with the defender already committed.  We will also utilise the pick and go, keeping their defensive line on the back foot.  We will then look to shift the direction of play and pull their defenders out of position to create gaps.  Smith to also look to snipe around the fringes and keep us going forwards all the time.  
  
• Tactical Kicking.  If we kick, we will look to kick for touch deep in Gloucester territory and then contest the lineout.
  

Key Points 

• Form/Momentum  In game we have hit great form form post AI's and have loads of momentum coming into the game.  We also have players in form in real life right across the team.
  
• Ability to switch gameplan.  Whilst we want to play a possession game, away from home we realise we may at times have to play for territory, so have selected Slade at 13 for his kicking game and ability to step in at 1st receiver and mix things up.
  

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 Gloucester
Manager – anonmattyt

Cips called up. Carter to start. EQ limits breeched.
1 Beast
2 Strauss
3 Mas
4 Etzbeth
5 Robson
6 Alberts
7 Salvi
8 Dickinson
9 Perenara
10 Carter
11 May
12 Toomua
13 Kurindrani
14 Folau
15 Dagg
16 Wood
17 LCD
18 Ousthuizen
19 Gray
20 Heaslip
21 Robson
22
23 Gear

Glos travel to a strong wasps outfit looking for
The win o allow us to kick on with our ascent up the league.

We will be aiming to play at tempo and score tries

TARGET BREAKDOWN– We have a big mobile physically strong bunch and will hit rucks with impact.
We will Send numbers in and try and effect turnovers or Disrupt ball.we believe the likes of beast  heaslip Etzbeth Alberts  Salvi Have the physicality and the power to swamp their backrow.Backed by our front 5 and this is an area we will flood. We
Will look to target the strong wasps back row  throughout.

TARGET 9 10 channel- Get our big runners in to the channel and look to get in behind. We also want pressure here in defence with smith able to be got at.

Scrum- we see a huge advantage here with sio and Alexander not being strongest
Scrummagers.On their ball Mas and beast Will be targetting Them throughout. We see this
Continuing when benches empty

Lineout - with 5 jumpers we will look to threaten there ball on every throw.
With our own we will vary where we throw it to and look to mix the drive and off the top.

General - our forwards will be looking to get on front foot throughout with out abrasive ball carriers.
When it is on we will look to offload to try and get in behind.

Backs- with the expected platform we have our backs
Are there to exploit it
We have pace and power all over and in Toomua and Kurindrani the 2 form centres in world rugby. We will look to vary our play probe for
Gaps. When needed we have hard runners and have wingers who will look for work.

We have numerous players able to step in to first
Receiver with toomua, folau, Dagg, May.
This means we can be lethal from turnover ball and is something we will be looking for throughout

As the game breaks up we will be running back more ball
And looking to up the tempo and use quick throw ins etc.

In defenxe we will blitz hard with 9 sweeping.

Bench- in close games benches are the difference and due to 6 nations Wasps have a weak bench. We will look to throw on our game changers and take
The game from
Wasps

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Northampton Saints v Harlequins
Location - Franklins Garden
Sunny Intervals, 7 Degrees, 15mph WNW Winds

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Northampton Saints
Manager – Dammit_Chris

01. Thomas Domingo	09. Joe Simpson
02. Rob Webber(c)	10. Nick Evans(k)
03. Ramiro Herrera
04. Lood de Jager	11. Julian Savea
05. Courtney Lawes	12. Matt Giteau
06. Schalk Burger	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Julian Bonnaire	14. Napaloni Nalaga
08. Samu Manoa	15. Ben Foden

Subs:
16. Trevor Nyakane 17. Elliott Dees 18. Logi Mulipola 19. Joe Launchbury 20. David Pocock 21. Niko Matawulu 22. Elliot Daly 23. Tom Stephenson

(think that was the same team I posted earlier with the addition of Julian Bonnaire into the no7 shirt, didn't save it before hand).

Tactics: In great conditions we are going to be looking to put the away team under pressure from the outset, playing at a high intensity and adopting a physical approach with our gainline breakers. We have picked a strong scrummaging unit with a lineout that will generate a platform to launch our backline and allow Evans and Giteau to control the game in the midfield.

Key Points:
* Strong lineout to generate quick ball for our backs, use Lawes to target Wood in Quins throws.
* Kicking game from Evans and Giteau to put Saints into good attacking positions to use our lineout as attacking platform.
* Strong scrummaging unit with Domingo, Webber and Herrera starting.
* Concentrate on winning the gain line battle, getting big ball carriers on the ball and sucking in Quins defence.
* Mobile bench replacement for forwards to really up the tempo in the second half.
* Look to use Tuilagi in first 50 minutes as someone to wear down Quins tacklers and then bring on Daly after 50 mins to spark backline attack.

Pack/Setpiece:We've picked a really strong scrummaging unit that will look to create a platform for Manoa to attack Quins no10 channel from. We want to generate quick ball from the lineout with Bonnaire, Lawes, Manoa and de Jager as options. We also want to target Wood on Quins own throw through Lawes athleticism and disrupt their main source of quick ball. We've picked a mobile set of forwards on the bench to up the tempo in the final 20-25 minutes.

Attack:We will look at Evans and Giteau to pull the strings of our attacking game, we want to focus on bringing in our big ball carriers to get us over the gainline and suck in Quins defenders before exploiting any space. We want Tuilagi to be used as a battering ram to wear down defenders before bringing on Daly early in the second half to add some spark from 50 minutes. We have a lot of strong ball carriers that will give our midfield plenty of attacking options.

Breakdown: Wood and Hooper are big threats here, so we are going to target the breakdown very physically, with Lawes, Manoa, Burger all aiming to smash Wood and Hooper from the contact area on our own ball. On Quins ball we wont commit as many players, but will flood this area if we see Hooper hasn't made the breakdown.

Defence:As always a really aggressive defence with fast line speed and giving QUins very little time to make decisions. We want to force them into mistakes and handling errors and exploit with attacks. We are also wanting to utilise the choke tackle when possible to get the turnover. We will have Simpson sweep in behind the defensive line but will have Manoa and Lawes lining up a big hits on Myler.

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Harlequins
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Tony Woodcock	09. Ruan Pienaar
02. Rob Buchanan	10. Steven Myler (k)
03. John Afoa
04. Bakkies Botha	11. Teddy Thomas
05. Charlie Matthews	12. Juan Martin Hernandez
06. Tom Wood	13. Jan Serfontein
07. Michael Hooper (c)	14. Joe Tomane
08. Mamuka Gorgodze	15. Colin Slade

16. Tatafu Polota-Nau 17. Steven Kitchoff 18. Kyle Sinckler 19. Pieter Steph Du Toit 20. Jamie Gibson 21. Karl Dickson 22. Quade Cooper 23. Ollie Lindsey-Hague

Tactics

Win the kicking game. Play no rugby in our half. Use the boots of  Pienaar, Myler, JMH and Slade to turn the Saints wingers around. With a solid chase we will force the Saints back 3 to kick as we consider them to lack a kicking game.

Put huge pressure on Saints with our defence. Look to chop tackle and get the first man over the ball. Use Hooper and Woods athleticism to beat the ageing Saints flankers to the breakdown. We will look to blitz this area and disrupt Simpson's game. When in possession in the Saints half look to remain patient and constantly change the point of attack with Myler, Slade and JMH standing in at first receiver. look to use effective rucking to get quick ball.

Take all points.

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Saracens v Newcastle Falcons
Location - Allianz Park
Sunny Intervals, 7 Degrees, 14mph WNW Winds

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Saracens
Manager – Pooly

Bradley Davies called up for Wales. Replaced with Sam Carter.

01. Alex Waller	09. Francois Hougaard
02. Keven Mealamu	10. Bernard Foley
03. Jannie du Plessis
04. Sam Carter	11. Juan Imhoff
05. Flip Van Der Merwe	12. Sonny Bill Williams
06. Ben Mowen(c)	13. Malakai Fekitoa
07. Callum Clark	14. Chris Ashton
08. Nathan Hughes	15. Matt Tait

:-
16. Jamie George 17. Xavier Chiocci 18. Tom Francis 19. 20. Heinrich Brussow 21. Henry Taylor 22. Morne Steyn 23. Miles Benjamin

Tactics:

TARGET SCRUM Look to target throughout with strong options on bench. If weakness seen look to take scrum from free kick options and put pressure on opposition props.

TARGET HOPPER IN DEFENCE Target from the off. Get Hughes, SBW, Fekitoa running down this channel.

PUT PRESSURE ON PHIPPS KICKING GAME Phipps very rarely kicks so we'll look to blitz the 10/12 channel cutting out his options whilst looking to isolate him and turn over ball.

General - We'll be playing a structured 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 their half. Look to keep it tight in the forward pack and grind through work. Looking to move the opposition pack around and then use big carrying options to punch holes through the opposition defence.

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 TH and Hooker will look to target LH and try to get between him and Hooker to allow LH to work on TH If no weakness seen will use as restart.

Line out – Look for quick ball off the top with the world class line out options and experience. Will allow SH good clean ball and have big carriers running off the 9 at angles.

Defence - Blitz defence with high intensity and big hits, looking to drive past the ball player if the ball hits the deck. physical pack that can look to get at the collision and breakdown allowing a chance to slow down/steal ball. Put pressure on SH's basics and force him into errors, Shields the expert here. 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 dictate play from the breakdown and runners on his shoulder. Huge carrying backrow to get us over the gain line after front 5 set a platform. Midfield to run angles off the 9/10, allowing us gain line breakers. Look to keep opposition guessing with clever lines through midfield. Wingers will look to track the midfield combo and get the end of SBW's offloads in contact. Back 3 to keep things honest and come looking for work.

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 Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Bambam

01. Matt Mullan	09. Nick Phipps
02. Dane Coles	10. Owen Farrell (k)
03. Carl Hayman
04. Ed Slater	11. Charles Piutau
05. Juandre Kruger	12. Jean De Villiers
06. Rhys Ruddock	13. Matt Hopper
07. Richie McCaw	14. Ben Smith
08. Kieran Read (c)	15. Gareth Anscombe

:-
16.George McGuigan 17.Soana Tongahuia 18.Charlie Faumuina 19. Geoff Parling 20. Will Fraser 21.Dave Lewis 22. Luke Marshall 23. David Strettle

We've picked a side to play running rugby, using our backs varied skill sets to create mismatches throughout the side.

Scrum - Look to put the pressure on with our props, look to challenge Du Plessis in the scrum with Coles and Mullan looking to force him to pop up. If no weakness then use as a restart

Lineout - Kruger to lead, excellent options in Slater and Read to mix it up and look for good quality ball off the top to send JDV into the 10 channel off first phase. We think we can challenge Mealamu throwing by putting Kruger up at the front to make him go long, then have our other jumpers challenging. Look to prevent them using the maul where possible

Breakdown - Picked a back row of physical breakdown specialists, we want them to work as a unit and try and get us turnovers in opposing territory. First man in to blow Clark off the ball and the second in to secure it for us. On their ball, Read is licenced to stay out of rucks until he thinks there is a turnover on, then go in to secure it. The work rate round the park of the likes of Coles and the second row will allow us to do this. We think they lack a true 7 and we can have an impact here

Kicking - We're looking to kick as a second option today, the conditions are good and we think we can run the ball back with some quality in our back 3. Look to target Ashton in the air all game long, keep the kicks high and give our chasers a chance to contest. Use the boots of the back 3 (who can all play full back) to take pressure off the half backs

Attack - Anscombe and Farrell to act as dual distributors when we are on the front foot in their half, keep the defensive line guessing which way we are going to go, and Phipps has licence to snipe whenever he thinks it is on. Ben Smith to step into the line at first receiver at times to take the line on when faced with forwards. In the forwards, big ball carriers throughout the side, Read is free to attack the wider channels as he chooses, particularly after JDV crashes into the 10-12 channel off first phase. Go after Foley and Ashton in defence, wingers and full back are free to roam and look to test Ashton's defence while we'll be sending our big carriers down the 10 channel all day long until they decide to hide Foley out wide

Defence - One of our back row (primarily Read) will be stationed slightly wider in defence to counter the strength of the Sarries centres and knock them back

Bench - Ball carrying front 5 forwards to look to drive home an advantage, Fraser gives us the option of dual 7s late on, and we have some outright pace and finishing ability to bring on if we are chasing the game

Key points


- Use JDV to target 10
- Use the kicking game to pin Wasps back
- Dual 10s either side of the ruck with Farrell and Anscombe to split the defence
- Good form, we're on a good run, only 1 loss in our last 6 and are at home

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Getting nervous now....c'mon boys!!!

Wrong page

London Welsh 23 - 22 London Irish

Impressed by the physicality in the Welsh pack which Irish struggle to match across the whole 8 although I expect a little more from the Irish line out. One a piece at half back with the centres going to Irish with Smith the stand out. At home Welsh sneak this one.

Exeter 24 - 23 Bath

I think Exeter will have the advantage up front in the tighter aspects of the game but Bath will have far more impact in open play and at the breakdown. Not much between the half backs and very little to choose between the remainder of the back lines with Bath probably having the more dangerous runners. A tough game to call where I think the home side have enough to claim the win.

Leicester 20 - 19 Sale

I think Leicester have a solid advantage up front here across the 8 and this is especially true in the back row. Nothing much in the set piece but Leicester could have a slight edge in both. In the backs Sale are the stronger unit but I don't see them getting enough front foot ball to get the most out of there players and Leicester look to have a solid back line defensively. You need to be strong up front to win away and I don't see Sale getting enough of a foothold to let there backs hurt Leicester.

Wasps 24 - 24 Gloucester

In the front 5 I think Gloucester have an advantage and it will certainly show in the scrum. Back rows are evenly balanced. Half backs to Wasps but I prefer the Gloucester centres with the back threes even. Outside of the Gloucester front 5, I don't think that either side has a big advantage in any area and I'm struggling to call this.

Saracens 21 - 21 Newcastle

not much between the front 5's but Newcastle stronger in the back row. More control from Newcastle half backs but more threat from Saracens. Centres to Saracens with the Newcastle back three stronger. Its another tough one to call and I'll have to sit on the fence.

Welsh 27-23 Irish
Prefer the Irish front row but like the Welsh second row. Think Welsh have that but more in the back row. Big fan of FTD and think he gives Welsh the half backs. Irish have the outside backs but given home advantage and the extra man on the bench the win goes to Welsh

Tigers 25-24 Sale
Advantage to the Tigers front row but think Sale have the edge in the second row. Think the Tigers have more about them in the back row and overall in the forwards although I think Sale can cause problems with their carrying. The Sale half backs are better. Sale have the centres with the back three going to Tigers.

Wasps 29-26 Gloucester
Gloucester have the better front five but Wasps have the back row advantage. Battle of NZ combos but the edge with form goes to Wasps. Outside backs go to Gloucester and I feel Kuidraini especially could do huge damage.

Saints 27-22 Quins
Saints have the stronger front five. Like the Quins back row a lot though and think they have an advantage. One each in the halfbacks. Saints look more dangerous in the outside backs as well.

Sarries 24-25 Newcastle
Slight edge to Sarries in the front five. Newcastle have the back row advantage. Prefer the Newcastle half backs. Sarries can do some damage with their centres but Newcastle better back three.

London Welsh 24 - 23 London Irish

This is a battle up front and one that the Welsh lads are up for. They have a big pack which will get in among the Irish forwards and really upset their game and flow. With their big ball carriers they can then generate good go forward for Trinh-Duc to manage the game for Welsh. I like the Irish back line and they will create havoc when they get some good possession. Welsh will build a good lead, but the Irish bench will help change the game late on. But were they need more reinforcement is up front and they eventually lose steam. Welsh hold on for a big home win. 

Leicester Tigers 27 - 27 Sale Sharks

Tigers have a big pack, which allows them to combat the Sharks forwards who have been on a roll as of late. The power of the Sharks front five allows them to gain some good possession, but the Tigers back row are very influential in slowing the Sharks game down and helping to give impetus to their own momentum. Sharks have a much bigger attacking threat in their half backs, with Barrett playing very well as of late. But the Tiger centres will get the front foot over the Tigers opposition, with Burns playing them in nicely. WLR the main spark in the Sharks back line, and with the likes of Steyn on the bench Sharks have enough to just pinch a draw away from home. 

Wasps 28 - 26 Gloucester Rugby

Gloucester just edge the front five fight, with their ability in this department but Wasps have a better pack as a unit. This allows the Wasps 9 & 10 to control the pace of the game, but magic from TJ and Carter allows them to bring the best out of their centres. Glaws will get some good go froward and attacking mometum from Kurindrani and their back three, but have some slight stuttering moments with some slow ball from their pack. 
Wasps have enough quality here to edge ahead and keep the visiting Gloucester at bay. 

Northampton Saints 29 - 27 Harlequins

Saints just edge the forwards, with strong showings from Hooper and Gorgodze keeping quins in touch and keeping the mighty saints at bay. Quins have a little bit more control at half back, but Saints have the ability to turn on the style from the base of the scrum and in midfield to give them some real go forward. The lads on the Quins bench will help keep change the game up for them, but there is enough ability from the home side to claim a strong home victory. 

Saracens 23 - 26 Newcastle Falcons

Slight edge in the front five to Sarries but the quality in the Falcons back row makes up this deficit. Both halfbacks have a good combination of control and ability to up the pace of the game when needed. SBW will have a big impact and targeting Hopper is a good weakness to exploit in attack. Falcons are right to target the positioning of the Ashton. This game will come down to tight margins and being a man short on the bench, for the forwards will hurt the Sarries momentum and cost them a victory.

Chiefs 24 -23 Bath
Tigers 25 - 25 Sale
Wasps 26 - 25 Gloucester
Saints 25 - 25 Quins
Sarries 27 - 26 Falcons

London Welsh 22 London Irish 21
Exeter chiefs 24 Bath Rugby 23
Leicester Tigers 23 Sale Sharks 23
Northampton Saints 20 Harlequins 20
Saracens 23 Newcastle Falcons 22

Chiefs 22-21 bath
Tigers  24-24 sale
Wasps 24-23 glos
Saints 22-22 Quins
Sarries 24-25 falcons

Welsh 24-23 Irish

Scrum to Irish, but think Welsh win the rest of the pack battle and will get some good ball for their strong half back pairing. Irish have a stronger set of backs and the bench IMO, which will keep this one close, but think Welsh will hold on for the win at home.

Chiefs 24-22 Bath

Chiefs stronger up front in the scrum, Bath take the lineout but Exeter stronger in the back row, and think both second row pairings will have a big impact round the park. Exeter have the advantage at halfback and centre, back 3s relatively even. Chiefs win mainly because of home advantage.

Tigers 22-22 Sale

Very good scrum battle, cant pick a winner but Tigers take the lineout. Round the park its very even with 2 big packs. Sale have an advantage at halfback, and maybe a very slight one throughout the outside backs. At home, Tigers hold the Sharks to a draw

Wasps 28-25 Glos 

Glos have a very slight advantage in the scrum, lineout about evens but think Wasps are the better pack around the park, some real quality in both back rows though. Strong halfback pairings, but Wasps have the edge, and the backs are pretty even, but maybe small advantage to Glos. One man down really hurts Glos though, and Wasps take it

Saints 24-24 Quins

Big battle up front, and can't split the front 5s, a lot of quality in both. Saints might struggle in the back row as like the look of Quins flanker pairing. Quins take the half backs, but Saints have stronger outside backs, and maybe just the bench too. Tough one to call and im sitting on the fence

Welsh 24-24 Irish
Chiefs 23-22 Bath
Wasps 27-26 Glos
Saints 24-23 Quins
Sarries 26-26 Falcons

RESULTS

London Welsh 28 (T:3 C:2 P:3)
London Irish 23 (T:1 P:6)

Exeter Chiefs 29 (T:3 C:1 P:4)
Bath 24 (T:2 C:1 P:4)

Leicester Tigers 26 (T:2 C:2 P:4)
Sale Sharks 24 (T:2 C:1 P:4)

London Wasps 31 (T:4 C:4 P:1)
Gloucester 25 (T:2 P:5)

Northampton Saints 25 (T:2 P:5)
Harlequins 23 (T:1 P:6)

Saracens 26 (T:2 C:2 P:4)
Newcastle Falcons 27 (T:2 C:1 P:5)

BONUS:
Full: CJB, Fluxy, Steve, BamBam, Chris, SJE & Pooly
Score: Luke, Prop & Pete
Excused: Matt

Close one Pooly

Bloody Brad Davies lol, well done mate

Happy with that, wasn't expecting to bag a TBP.

Well played CJB. Thought it would be close, so close to my first TBP as well!

Ouch, shows how costly one mistake can be. Well done cj

Thanks Prop, bad luck