London Irish 2016/17 Championship Thread

[Ozzy3213]

First topic message reminder :

  Welcome to this seasons thread for talking about all things London Irish. 

Senior Squad (39)

Technical Director: Brendan Venter
Director of Rugby: Nick Kennedy
Assistant Coach: Clark Laidlaw
Forwards Coach: George Skivington
Defence Coach: Declan Danaher
Skills Coach: Paul Hodgson

Hooker: David Paice, Gerard Ellis, David Porecki, Jason Harris-Wright, Todd Gleave (dual registered with Rosslyn Park).
Prop: Tom Court, Danny Hobbs-Awoyemi, Tom Smallbone, Ben Franks, Richard Palframan, Ollie Hoskins.
Second Row: Sebastien de Chaves, Jerry Sexton, Jebb Sinclair, George Robson, Will Lloyd.
Back Row: Blair Cowan, Ofisa Treviranus, Luke Narraway, Connor Gilsenen, Joe Trayfoot, Mike Coman, Max Northcote-Green, Senitiki Nayalo.
Scrum Half: Brendan McKibbin, Scott Steele, Darren Allinson (on loan to Bath).
Fly Half: Greig Tonks, Tommy Bell, Theo Brophy-Clews.
Centre: Johnny Williams, Fergus Mulchrone, Ciaran Hearn, Tom Fowlie
Back Three: Topsy Ojo, Alex Lewington, Aseli Tikoirotuama, James Marshall, Ben Ransom


Senior Academy Squad (12)

Hooker: Matt Kouris (dual registered with Esher)
Prop: Harry Elrington (dual registered with Rosslyn Park), Austin Hay (Academy Plus)
Back Row: Isaac Curtis-Harris (dual registered with Esher), Jack Cooke (Academy Plus)
Scrum Half: Conor Murphy, Rory Brand (dual registered with Rosslyn Park)
Fly Half: Tom Parton
Centre: Ross Neal, Matt Williams
Wing: Joe Cokanasiga, Jacob Atkins


Fixture List

Date	Time	Opponents	H/A	Venue	Competition	Result	Scorers
Sat 13th Aug	15:00	Harlequins	A	The Stoop	Friendly	W 28-12	T: Cowan, Neal, Nayolo, Atkins  C: Bell 3, Tonks.
Fri 19th Aug	19:30	Nottingham	H	Hazelwood	Friendly	W 43-14
Fri 26th Aug	19:30	Loughborough Students	H	Hazelwood	Friendly	W 46-21
Sat 3rd Sep	15:00	Doncaster Knights	H	MadStad	Championship	W 19-0	T: Fowlie, Tikoroituma  P: Bell 3.
Sat 10th Sep	15:00	Richmond	H	MadStad	Championship	W 36-12	T: Paice, Cowan 2, Ellis, McKibbin, Elrington. C: Bell 3.
Sat 17th Sep	15:00	Bedford Blues	A	Goldington Road	Championship	W 30-23	T: Franks, Williams, Ojo, Northcote-Green. C: Bell 2. P: Bell 2.
Sun 25th Sep	15:00	Ealing Trailfinders	H	MadStad	Championship	W 32-12	T: Ransom, Trayfoot, Marshall, Steele C:Bell, Marshall 2 P:Bell 2.
Fri 30th Sep	19:45	Nottingham	A	LadyBay Sports	Championship	W 29-7	T: Steele Tikoroituma Northcote-Green Mulchrone C:Bell 3 P:Bell.
Sat 8th Oct	15:00	London Welsh	H	MadStad	Championship	W 35-12	T: Mulchrone, Paice, de Chaves, McKibbin. C: Bell. 3 P: Bell 3.
Sat 15th Oct	15:00	Ospreys Prem Select	A	The Gnoll	B & I Cup	W 25-14	T: Neal, Ransom, Nayalo, Palframan.  C: Tonks.  P: Tonks.
Sat 22nd Oct	15:00	Connacht Eagles	H	MadStad	B & I Cup	W 34-3	T: Elrington, Hoskins, Harris-Wright, Parton, Cokanasiga.  C: Tonks 3 P: Tonks.
Sat 29th Oct	15:00	London Scottish	A	RAG	Championship	W 62-12	T: Paice, McKibbin, Cokanasiga, Bell 2, Tikoirotuma, Steele, Cowan C: Bell 8, P: Bell 2.
Sat 5th Nov	15:00	Yorkshire Carnegie	H	MadStad	Championship	W 41-17	T: Ransom 2, Tikoirotuma, Marshall 2. C: Bell 5. P: Bell 2.
Sat 19th Nov	13:00	Cornish Pirates	A	Mennaye Field	Championship	W 35-24	T: Ransom 2, Franks 2, Northcote-Green  C: Marshall 2.  P: Tonks 2.
Sun 27th Nov	15:00	Jersey Reds	H	MadStad	Championship	W 42-29	T: Ransom, Paice 2, Palframan, Fowlie  C: Bell 4  P: Bell 2  DG: Bell.
Sat 3rd Dec	14:00	Rotherham Titans	A	Clifton Lane	Championship	W 38-10	T: Cokanasiga 2, Bell 2, Steele.  C: Bell 5  P: Bell.
Sun 11th Dec	15:00	Cornish Pirates	H	MadStad	B & I Cup	W 33-24	T: Atkins, Gilsenan, Porecki, Nayalo, M.Williams.  C: Tonks 4.
Sat 17th Dec	14:30	Cornish Pirates	A	Mennaye Field	B & I Cup
Sat 24th Dec	15:00	Richmond	A	RAG	Championship
Sat 31st Dec	15:00	Bedford Blues	H	MadStad	Championship
13/14/15 Jan		Connacht Eagles	A		B & I Cup
Sat 21st Jan	15:00	Ospreys Prem Select	H	MadStad	B & I Cup
Sat 28th Jan	15:00	Ealing Trailfinders	A	Vallis Way	Championship
Sun 5th Feb	14:00	Nottingham	H	MadStad	Championship
Sat 18th Feb	14:00	London Welsh	A	Old Deer Park	Championship
Sat 25th Feb	15:00	London Scottish	H	MadStad	Championship
Sun 5th Mar	15:00	Yorkshire Carnegie	A	Headingley	Championship
Sat 18th Mar	14:00	Cornish Pirates	H	MadStad	Championship
Sat 25th Mar	14:00	Jersey Reds	A	St Peter	Championship
Sat 8th Apr	15:00	Rotherham Titans	H	MadStad	Championship
Sat 15th Apr	15:00	Doncaster Knights	A	Castle Park	Championship

Season Preview

Well it's been an interesting summer in the aftermath of relegation.  It was clear from the outset that we would lose some players and would have to cut our cloth accordingly.  Initially it appeared that Tom Coventry was staying, but a late u-turn from him meant a new coaching set up was required.  New coaches, loss of big names, new players to integrate, sounds like a recipe for disaster, and we've certainly been there many times over the past few years.  This however, does not feel like that at all.  Perhaps it's because we are a league down, but there is real optimism around, primarily because of those things.  The holy trinity of Nick Kennedy, Declan Danaher and Paul Hodgson have been promoted to the first team after overseeing a successful academy season last year, and have Brendan Venter overseeing them as technical director.  This is exciting.  A proven winner overseeing a young, hungry and exciting coaching team.  On the playing side, the main losses being Matt Symons and Sean Maitland are more than offset by the likes of George Robson, James Marshall and Tommy Bell coming in.  If anything it feels as if we may have a stronger squad this year than we've had for the past 4 or 5.

Two games into pre season and things look positive.  Comfortably beating an admittedly understrength Quins, and a high scoring win against Nottingham have given plenty of optimism for the season ahead.  There were still defensive lapses, which will need to be ironed out, but barring complacency or an absolute stinker in terms of form, we should have more than enough to comfortably make the dreaded play offs, where it then becomes a test of mental strength rather than ability.


Ozzy'sprediction: Champions

[Dan222]

That team just shows the strength in depth of the Irish squad. What a bench.

[SirBurger]

I think on paper our squad is better than Bristol's at the very least. Still got guys like Robson, Treviranus, Cowan, McKibbin, Tonks, Lewington, Williams, Brophy Clews, Hearn etc who aren't even in the 22 for tomorrow.

[Sgt_Pooly]

Bristol look awful at the minute but obviously have the cash to bring in some big names. You're certainly stronger, hopefully it'll be a straight swap for next season.

[SirBurger]

Interesting article with James Marshall in the Rugby Paper today. He says that although he wore 15 for the Hurricanes his role in phase play was very interchangeable with Barrett. Effectively, they both played at 10. To me that sounds about right from the Canes games that I saw. He then adds that he is playing 15 for the first few games to learn the plays and then he will get a shot at fly half, which is very interesting. I had suspected that he was being viewed purely as a full back, but I think it is good that he will get a shot as the main man.

Anyway, fingers crossed ahead of today. I think Ealing will cause us problems and probably be within 10-15 points, but hopefully we will have enough to walk away with the 5.

[Ozzy3213]

Comfortable bonus point win.  Northcote-Green, Bell and Mulchrone all very good for us today.

[Ozzy3213]

Interesting article with James Marshall in the Rugby Paper today. He says that although he wore 15 for the Hurricanes his role in phase play was very interchangeable with Barrett. Effectively, they both played at 10. To me that sounds about right from the Canes games that I saw. He then adds that he is playing 15 for the first few games to learn the plays and then he will get a shot at fly half, which is very interesting. I had suspected that he was being viewed purely as a full back, but I think it is good that he will get a shot as the main man.

Anyway, fingers crossed ahead of today. I think Ealing will cause us problems and probably be within 10-15 points, but hopefully we will have enough to walk away with the 5.

There were many times where Marshall stepped in at first receiver on Sunday, very much as Alex Goode does from full back for Sarries.  The great thing for me is that Marshall, Bell and Tonks, and to a lesser extent TBC, are all comfortable at 10 and 15, meaning the game plan shouldn't change whoever is wearing whichever jersey.

[Ozzy3213]

[Ozzy3213]

[Ozzy3213]

15 James Marshall, 14 Topsy Ojo, 13 Tom Fowlie, 12 Fergus Mulchrone, 11 Aseli Tikoirotuma, 10 Tommy Bell, 9 Scott Steele;
1 Danny Hobbs-Awoyemi, 2 David Paice (c), 3 Ben Franks, 4 George Robson, 5 Sebastien De Chaves, 6 Mike Coman, 7 Max Northcote-Green, 8 Ofisa Treviranus.

Replacements: 16 Jason Harris-Wright, 17 Tom Court, 18 Richard Palframan, 19 Will Lloyd, 20 Blair Cowan, 21 Brendan McKibbin, 22 Ciaran Hearn.


Strong team selected to face Nottingham tomorrow night.  6 changes in the pack from the side that started against Ealing, only de Chaves and Northcote-Green keeping their places.  I think it's fair to say based on the team selection that we are taking this game seriously seriously and want to be heading home with maximum points.

[Margin_Walker]

Made it down to the Nottingham game in the end. First of the season, so I've not really much to compare it to, but it sounded like an improvement on previous outings.

Positives
- As mentioned elsewhere, Steele was superb. Obviously the standard of opposition may be a factor, but it was the best performance by a 9 I can remember seeing for us in the last few years. Service was good and he looked dangerous every time he tested the fringe defence (which he did a lot). Made several clean breaks including the breaks for a couple of the tries.
- The defence was extremely good. 1-15 with no weak links. Nottingham had massive difficulty throughout getting over the gainline. Good linespeed and dominant hits. It's the sort of defence that wins you championships and will hopefully make us a little harder to beat next season if we do end up going up.
- Decent tactical kicking throughout from Bell and Marshall
- First time I've watched Northcote-Green. Looks a nice signing. Good linking seven
- Set piece was great. Special mention to Robson in the lineout and a very dominant scrum when Franks and Danny H-A were on especially. Perhaps not rewarded as much as it should have been.
- Fergus very solid in the midfield. Will definitely put pressure on Williams and could perhaps come in at 13 in some of the tighter games.

Negatives
- It was raining before the game and the grass was wet, but we still didn't do a great job of looking after the ball for large periods. A few too many knock ons in the backs especially. A few unsympathetic/panicked passes didn't help. Also didn't always take great care of the ball at ruck time. Performance in attack wasn't as fluid as it could have been. Scored our last point on 50 odd minutes and will need to keep up the pressure in tighter games.
- A few too many pens conceded. Will check in TRP tomorrow, but pretty sure we gave away more pens than they did. Also got marched back ten on one occasion. We weren't helped by the last passage in injury time when the ref seemed to give and avalanche of decisions against us. Starting with doing us for a crooked feed to the scrum in their 22 and ending with the pen that they kicked to the corner for their try.

Decent enough away win in the end though. Need to back it up against LW next weekend, as YC are only a point behind us still. Would be nice to finish the first block of games with our noses still in front. Nayolo (he definitely exists...). Cokanasiga and Allinson were there as travelling reserves, so expect we may see the former pair at some point in the next few weeks.

[Ozzy3213]

Thanks for the summary there MW.

How did Coman do, and Jason Harris-Wright when he came off the bench?

[Margin_Walker]

Coman was hard hitting in defence. Looked very solid on that front. Threw one comically bad pass that seemed to slip out of his hands forward, which probably gives an indication of where his talents do and don't lie. He ended the game playing 8 after Trev went off (possibly through injury as he had been receiving treatment at various points)

Didn't notice JHW too much as he didn't get a massive amount of time off the bench. Seem to remember that we did get pinged for not straight in the lineout once towards the end, which I think was him rather than Paice at that point.

[George Carlin]

Coman was hard hitting in defence. Looked very solid on that front. Threw one comically bad pass that seemed to slip out of his hands forward, which probably gives an indication of where his talents do and don't lie. He ended the game playing 8 after Trev went off (possibly through injury as he had been receiving treatment at various points)

Didn't notice JHW too much as he didn't get a massive amount of time off the bench. Seem to remember that we did get pinged for not straight in the lineout once towards the end, which I think was him rather than Paice at that point.

Coman People (as he was known in Edinburgh) will definitely do a job for you - he captained Edinburgh for most of last season, is a calm head and won't let anyone down.

He's more boring than a cardboard salesman convention, but that is neither here nor there.

[SirBurger]

I will be interested to see who plays 8 with both Narraway and Treviranus looking likely to be out ahead of the Welsh clash. Trayfoot or Coman are really the only two options, as I think it is unlikely Nayolo will be parachuted straight into the starting line-up. I know that rotation is a big thing under BV and Kendo, but with only one week to go before an extended rest, I imagine we will send out the strongest possible team once more.

Team for Welsh:

1. Hobbs-Awoyemi
2. Paice
3. Franks
4. De Chaves
5. Robson
6. Coman
7. Northcote-Green
8. Trayfoot

9. Steele
10. Bell
11. Tikoirotuma
12. Mulchrone
13. Fowlie
14. Ojo
15. Marshall

Bench: Harris-Wright, Court, Palframan, Sexton, Cowan, McKibbin, Hearn

[Ozzy3213]

Season	Competition	P	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	TF	TA	TBP	LBP	Pts
2015/16	Aviva Premiership	5	0	0	5	70	168	-98	8	19	0	0	0
----------	-------------------------	---	---	---	---	----	----	-----	----	----	-----	-----	-----
2016/17	GK IPA Championship	5	5	0	0	146	54	+92	20	8	4	0	24

Whilst fully appreciating the different level of opposition, that's a pretty remarkable turnaround from the first 5 games of last season.  To add some meat to the bones of the stats, our highest score last season was 16, and our best defensive performance saw us concede 24 points.  We conceded 6 tries in two of the five matches, and 4 in another.  

So far this year our worst defensive performance saw us concede 23 points away at Bedford (the only side to pick up a losing bonus point off us), other than which nobody has scored more than 12 points against us, and we've nilled one side and only conceded a last minute try to miss out on a second shut out.  In attack our worst performance is scoring 19 points (when nilling the opposition), and we've scored 30+ on 3 occasions, picking up 4 try bonus points.

What is perhaps most encouraging though is the fact that you can see what the game plan is now when you watch us play.  Defensively it's about winning the collisions and disrupting as much as possible, and in attack it's about playing in the right areas.  We also appear to have a number of pre planned moves off the set pieces which are effective and have seen us score points.  i was really pleased when watching the highlights from Nottingham on Friday night to see James Marshall straighten the line, fix the last defender and put Tiks over in the corner for his try, as we've seen so often in recent seasons our players failing to do this and just drifting wider and wider and closing off any space we had created out wide.

My one concern is that there are a couple of positions where we look heavily reliant on our first choice players, namely hooker and tighthead.  Hopefully we will see some of the fringe guys in those positions kick on over the season, otherwise they will need to be the priorities for recruitment should we gain promotion next May.

[Fluxy]

Don't think you will mind seeing Fenby disappear of the wage bill would you Ozzy?

http://www.planetrugby.com/news/fenby-off-to-saracens/

[Ozzy3213]

He's not on the wage bill mate.  He left in the summer to take up a job in the city.  he'll do well for Saracens, he's a good finisher.

[stnick88]

from those highlights, that looks our best performance. the forwards are carrying a lot harder and Steele has made a big difference with his work around the fringe.

Coman looks a good player too, nice to have another lineout option.

[Margin_Walker]

The highlights were perhaps a touch deceptive. We still spent a fair bit of the game failing to look after the ball and not being particularly accurate.

Definitely going in the right direction though.

[SirBurger]

Good summary Ozzy. Agreed on the Marshall assist. He straightened the line very well - not much else he could have done there. Of course, I wasn't surprised that on the other site some people were saying he gave the ball too early and should have committed the player more. The Nottingham defence actually made this nigh on impossible.

[Sgt_Pooly]

Whilst fully appreciating the different level of opposition, that's a pretty remarkable turnaround from the first 5 games of last season.

The gap is huge Ozzy, so it's really quite hard to know if you've stepped up or not. Look at Bristol this term after walking the Championship, they look dire, you really can't compare performances in either league.

For me, you still have a bottom 3 AP squad so would compete at that level if back up. The big thing about this year in the Championship is getting the players believing they're good enough and building a sound base that you can build on next season.

With the right kind of season, I'd expect you to leapfrog a few of the bottom sides next year.

[Ozzy3213]

The gap is huge.  As a comparison I looked at Bristol's first 5 games of last season as well.  Interestingly their defence appears to have been as porous as it is now, with two teams scoring try bonus points against them and them conceding over 100 points, as compared to the 54 we've conceded.

You are right about what you say though, it's about learning how to win and getting that confidence that we can compete.  I think we are on track to doing that, we look a different side in how we are trying to play.  The execution is most certainly not 100% at the moment, but there appear to be improvements week on week.

[Sgt_Pooly]

That's all you can really hope for, along with shrewd signings to complement a winning side I guess.

[SirBurger]

Agreed. I think most of us are happy with the progress being made, but also aware of the fact that we will have to take another big leap if we are to compete if we go up. Although we now look a lot better in certain areas of the park, I can think of probably 5-6 spots in the starting XV where I think we would need bolstering. The trouble is the Play Offs and how difficult they make recruitment.

[stnick88]

we would struggle in the prem with this side. the bolds are the players I think are more than capable at prem level. the others I am not sure about, the youngsters needs time but some of the others struggled last season.

1 Hobbs-Awoyemi
2 Paice
3 Franks
4 De Chaves
5 Robson
6 Coman
7 Cowan
8 Treviranus
9 Steele
10 Bell
11 Tikorotuma
12 Williams
13 Fowlie
14 Lewington
15 Marshall

[Ozzy3213]

You have to look at why some struggled though.  Treviranus struggled as he was our only ball carrier in the pack and was flogged to death.  With better players around him he'd be fine in the Prem.  

The side you've listed there would comfortably beat Bristol and would certainly be very competitive against Falcons, Worcester, Gloucester and Quins.

What I would expect if we get promoted is a few beefy South Africans arriving in the summer to bolster the quality the have, via the good doctors connections there.

[stnick88]

I wish we would give Nayolo a go but he isn't in the match day squad again this week.

I think his carrying will cause havoc in the Championship.

[SirBurger]

As Ozzy says, I think Treviranus needs another ball carrier alongside him, although I have to admit that I am beginning to think his best days are behind him. Two wrecking balls in the back row has to be a priority for next season's recruitment, along with a hooker to provide competition for Paice. I actually think Robson and De Chaves are solid enough, but we could probably do with a monster to come in alongside one of them. I was looking at Grenoble's squad, who are bottom of the Top 14 and Hendrik Roodt and Rory Grice would be two excellent acquisitions. Sadly, I think we would find it hard to recruit players of that talent due to the farce of the Play Offs.

I imagine Nayolo will be saved until the British and Irish Cup fixture against Connacht and given a chance to stake a claim then. I hope he proves his worth in that as we could do with adding an extra dimension. I hope Cokanasiga, albeit out wide, will also give us a bit more potency in attack.

[Margin_Walker]

Right, another week, another BP win. Wasn't there but sounds like another good defensive effort until the final stages without really firing in the backs. Great for Paice to get on the scoresheet on his 250th.

What kind of team are we expecting to field in the B&I? Perhaps something like the following (lots of guesswork with player availability):

Elrington
Harris-Wright
Hoskins
Sexton
Lloyd
Sinclair
Gilsenan
Nayolo
Murphy
Tonks
Cokanasiga
J Williams
Neal
M Williams
Parton

Court, Ellis, Palf, Northcote-Green, Trayfoot, Brand, Ransom

[True Raven]

Would that be a development team Margin Walker?

The Ospreys premiership select xv is made up of young guys cutting their teeth in the Welsh premiership or older guys at the club who are not in our first 23 such as Brendon Leonard or Rhodri Jones so I'm guessing this could be an easy win for London Irish

[Margin_Walker]

Yeah, squad players and academy players really. Lots of teenagers in the backline, with a more experienced (but very much 2nd choice) pack.

Certainly don't think we'll see many (if any) 1st choice players. Wouldn't be too confident of a win personally, as we don't tend to perform to well in 'A' competitions. Our record in the Aviva A league and LV Cup recently has been very poor. Decent crop of youngsters coming through though, so hopefully it's a good game at least.

[Ozzy3213]

Whilst certainly guys like Paice, Franks, Robson, Trev will be rested I suspect we will go a bit stronger than you suggest MW.

15. Parton
14. Ransom
13. Fowlie
12. Williams
11. Cokanasiga
10. Tonks
9. McKibbin

1. Elrington
2. Harris-Wright
3. Palframan
4. Sexton
5. Lloyd
6. Trayfoot
7. Gilsenan
8. Narraway

16. Gleave 17. Court 18. Hoskins 19. Sinclair 20. Nayolo 21. Allinson 22. Neal

[SirBurger]

I hope we are closer to the team MW suggests, simply as I don't see the point in risking injury to guys like Williams in this tournament. I hope Nayolo starts and I hope Curtis-Harris is on the bench.

[Ozzy3213]

I want to win it.

[Margin_Walker]

Curtis-Harris tore his hamstring last week for Esher unfortunately. Likely to be out for a good while I'd expect.

I'd like to use the B&I as a development comp. Certainly not risking too many important players, but still aiming to be competitive. At the same time I did include J Williams, as he's had a few weeks break and I like the idea of playing several of the kids who will have come through age grade rugby together.

[SirBurger]

I want to win it.

Fair enough and I suspect BV and co. will want to install a culture of trophy-winning. Either way, I am looking forward to seeing a slightly adjusted starting side.

[Ozzy3213]

Williams and Sinclair have niggles so won't be involved this week.

[SirBurger]

Good to get Nayalo officially confirmed and for two years. I must admit I didn't see either of his appearances during pre-season, but people on the Craic seem very excited by him indeed. I hope they aren't getting carried away but it does fill me with some optimism that people who have seen him play view him so highly.

[yappysnap]

What happens in the Championship while European rugby is on? Are you guys on a break or is it the B&I League that happens now?

[Ozzy3213]

I saw him in the final friendly against Loughborough and he looks to have potential, but produced a bit of a mixed bag.  Carried well, it was a break of about 40 metres from our 22 by him that lead to one of tries.  In terms of style he looks a bit quicker than Trev but not as heavy a carrier.  Offloads well, but from the game I saw sometimes offloads when it's not on and loses possession.  He will definitely get people excited due to his style, but will need to develop a more rounded game if he is going to be good enough for the Premiership if we get promoted.

[Ozzy3213]

What happens in the Championship while European rugby is on? Are you guys on a break or is it the B&I League that happens now?

B & I Cup yappy.  We have Ospreys Premiership Select (a) this week followed by Connacht Eagles (h) next weekend.

[yappysnap]

Tough games do you think? Will you be giving the first teamers a rest and rotating?

[SirBurger]

I saw him in the final friendly against Loughborough and he looks to have potential, but produced a bit of a mixed bag.  Carried well, it was a break of about 40 metres from our 22 by him that lead to one of tries.  In terms of style he looks a bit quicker than Trev but not as heavy a carrier.  Offloads well, but from the game I saw sometimes offloads when it's not on and loses possession.  He will definitely get people excited due to his style, but will need to develop a more rounded game if he is going to be good enough for the Premiership if we get promoted.

Interesting - thanks for that. I mean on looks alone he is relatively slender, so not surprised that he isn't as much of a heavy-traffic carrier. Might provide a nice alternative to Trev though, particularly when the grounds harden up. Hopefully there are a couple of other guys to come in over the summer who can help out with the carrying. It is one of our big weaknesses.

[SirBurger]

Tough games do you think? Will you be giving the first teamers a rest and rotating?

Definitely will be rotating over the next two weeks I expect. Something along the lines of:

1. Elrington
2. Ellis
3. Hoskins
4. Lloyd
5. Sexton
6. Trayfoot
7. Gilsenan
8. Nayalo

9. Allinson
10. Geraghty
11. Cokanasiga
12. Neal
13. Hearn
14. Ransom
15. Tonks

Bench: Harris-Wright, Court, Palframan, De Chaves, Cooke, Murphy, Parton

[Ozzy3213]

From whispers I've heard there will be a good amount of academy lads in the team this week.

[Ozzy3213]

[stnick88]

Geraghty wont be playing.

Tonks at 10, Ransom at 15.

[Ozzy3213]

Teams up


15 Ben Ransom, 14 Tom Parton, 13 Tom Fowlie, 12 Ross Neal, 11 Joe Cokanasiga, 10 Greig Tonks, 9 Darren Allinson, 1 Harry Elrington, 2 Jason Harris-Wright, 3 Ollie Hoskins, 4 Will Lloyd, 5 Jerry Sexton, 6 Max Northcote-Green, 7 Conor Gilsenan (c), 8 Senitiki Nayalo 

Replacements: 16 Todd Gleave, 17 Richard Palframan, 18 Jack Cooke, 19 Mike Coman, 20 Conor Murphy, 21 Shane Geraghty, 22 Matt Williams


Senior debuts for Parton, Cokanasiga, Nayalo, Gleave, Cooke and Matt Williams.  Very excited about this back row and great to see Cokanasiga in the side.

[Ozzy3213]

Ospreys Premiership Select lineup:

15.Morgan Williams 
14.Tom Williams 
13.Joe Thomas 
12.Keiran Williams 
11.Tom O'Flaherty 
10.Luke Price 
9.Matt Aubrey 

1. Rowan Jenkins 
2.Huw Gustafson 
3.Dan Suter 
4.Jon Kenny 
5.James Ratti 
6.Charlie Davies 
7.Joe Tomalin-Reeves 
8.Rob McCusker (Capt)

Replacements
16. Alex Dunham 
17.Alex Jeffries 
18.Mitchell Walsh 
19.Will Jones 
20.Chris Williams 
21.Phil Jones 
22.Rheon James


Speaking ahead of the game, coach, Tom Smith said: 
“We are really looking forward for our first game against London Irish on Saturday and getting our campaign underway. After last year’s campaign you can see how beneficial it is for our youngsters in their development and how it bridges the gap between the Premiership and the senior Ospreys.
“It should be a good game against London Irish who have started their season really well, being unbeaten in the English championship. We are just excited to get the season started.”
Tickets are available from Neath RFC, at the club house or online at this link. Tickets are £10 with U16s free. Please note that British & Irish Cup fixtures aren’t covered by an Ospreys season membership.

[Ozzy3213]

Excellent 25-14 win in horrible conditions with a very inexperienced side.  At the end of the game our backline only had one player in it who did not come through the academy and was over the age of 21 (Tonks).  This included three of last seasons successful under 18 side, with another one of them who started the game having gone off.  Average age of the backline at the end of the game was 20 years and 5 months.  Bodes well for the future.

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