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

[Heaf]

not being picky but I count 6 

[Margin_Walker]

So do I now you mention it....

Counting never was my strong suit.

[Ozzy3213]

http://www.englandrugby.com/news/live-london-irish-yorkshire-carnegie/#

Full match available to watch.

[LondonTiger]

http://www.englandrugby.com/news/live-london-irish-yorkshire-carnegie/#

Full match available to watch.

George Robson banned for 6 weeks for a bit of bag snatching in this game.

[Ecksile]

Enjoyed the game yesterday down at the Mennaye. Wasn't the prettiest but it was still 5 points. I have to say Irish looked to be in control throughout, even though Pirates continued to press to the end.

Poor conditions for a lot of the game (reminded me of my Summer holidays when I was little) which I guess contributed to the handling errors we were seeing.

We seem to have developed the habit of getting a 4th try then taking feet off the pedal, just like previous years. If we make it back to the Aviva, we know we'll get severely punished for this. Hate to see those tries coming in the last 10 minutes.

I don't want to seem like I'm singling out one individual, but getting increasingly concerned about Gerard Ellis. We saw more wayward throws from him when he came on. Comes across that he's looking a little lacking in confidence. Any thoughts on this?

Thanks to the Cornish folk, some great banter, hope we can see them coming up to us.

[SirBurger]

Enjoyed the game yesterday down at the Mennaye. Wasn't the prettiest but it was still 5 points. I have to say Irish looked to be in control throughout, even though Pirates continued to press to the end.

Poor conditions for a lot of the game (reminded me of my Summer holidays when I was little) which I guess contributed to the handling errors we were seeing.

We seem to have developed the habit of getting a 4th try then taking feet off the pedal, just like previous years. If we make it back to the Aviva, we know we'll get severely punished for this. Hate to see those tries coming in the last 10 minutes.

I don't want to seem like I'm singling out one individual, but getting increasingly concerned about Gerard Ellis. We saw more wayward throws from him when he came on. Comes across that he's looking a little lacking in confidence. Any thoughts on this?

Thanks to the Cornish folk, some great banter, hope we can see them coming up to us.

Wasn't at the game yesterday, but Ellis definitely is a concern. Against Yorkshire he did his basics well, but he effectively cost us 14 points with the intercept and the failure to pass when 5 metres out. He is a good player, but sadly I just don't think he is going to cut it as a hooker. Although I was originally a fan of his move into the front row, I wonder whether in hindsight we should have looked to develop him as a Steff style openside. In either case, I wouldn't be surprised if this was his last season.

Although I can't comment on the performance yesterday, I have to be satisfied with a 5 point away win. Pirates may be languishing in mid table, but I think they are one of the better equipped sides to spring a surprise on us. In addition, we were missing a few players who I think would have made us stronger yesterday. I know we tend to give away points towards the end of games, but I don't think there are many sides in the world who don't let things slip slightly once they have secured the 5 points. I think in addition (and as mentioned above with the Ellis comments) our back up front row quite clearly isn't as strong as our first choice. We are probably ok at loose head with the return of Smallbone and Hobbs-Awoyemi for next season, but at tight head I am not so sure. I had high hopes for Palframan, but I am not sure he is the player he was before his long term injury. Hoskins looks good in the loose, but again not so sure about his scrummaging. It is why I definitely wouldn't be adverse to signing Du Plessis for a season to back up Franks, even if he will be 37 by that point. I think we are clearly looking to decrease the average age of the squad, but there are a few roles where we might have to bolster with a few experienced heads and the front five is definitely one of those. Onwards and upwards anyway. 2 more reasonably tough fixtures and then a break for the B&I Cup.

[Ozzy3213]

Their is certainly a drop off when we replace the front row at the moment.  Loosehead I am not too concerned about as like you've said we have Smallbone and Hobbs-Awoyemi to come back, but hooker and tighthead are potential issues.  

Ellis really needs to up his game.  I think at some point he needs to be given a run of starts and he sinks or swims.  We need to know if he's worth keeping if we go back up.  Likewise we need Porecki fit so we can evaluate where he's at.

Palframan for some reason appears not to be trusted.  He looked excellent two years ago but just doesn't seem to have kicked on.  Hoskins I'm prepared to give some time to so we can see if he can improve his scrummaging, but certainly I would be keen that we do get someone like Petrus du Plessis in for next season if we go up.

[Margin_Walker]

Agree with all of that. Real pain to have Smallbone and Hobbs-Awoyemi injured at the same time, which is probably resulting in Court getting flogged a lot more than we may have expected in what will likely be his final season. Hopefully Porecki turns out to be decent as we are going to have to stop being a one decent hooker team at some point.

All good fun though. On the plus side it's good to see Ransom doing so well. Seems to be really benefiting from the regular game time and switch to the wing. Think he'll be a decent asset next season if we do go up along with Cokanasiga and Lewington. That's assuming Ransom is on more than a one year deal.

[Ozzy3213]

I know Ransom was initially on a deal to the end of this season, but I'd like to think he's earned an extensiom with his performances so far.

[Margin_Walker]

He's certainly earned an extension and expect he'll re-sign.

Always a slight danger someone else will take an interest though until he's signed on the dotted line.

[stnick88]

Hopefully he will.

Before Sarries signed Fenby, they tried to get Ransom back but he didn't want to and wanted to stay with Irish which is encouraging.

[Ozzy3213]

That's very encouraging.

[Ozzy3213]

Will be interesting to see what changes we make for this week. Topsy went off injured so may not be available, and I'd like to see Bell back in as I always feel more assured we'll be ok with his reliable boot out there. Id like to see...

15. Bell
14. Cokanasiga
13. Fowlie
12. Williams
11. Ransom
10. Marshall
9. Steele

1. Court
2. Ellis
3. Palframan
4. De Chaves
5. Lloyd
6. Gilsenan
7. Northcote-Green
8. Nayalo

16. Harris-Wright
17. Elrington
18. Hoskins
19. Sexton
20. Cowan
21. McKibbin
22. Neal

[SirBurger]

Is Paice injured again or was his return a one off? Otherwise happy enough with that side. Nayalo due a start.

[Ozzy3213]

Not injured as far as I know, I'd just like to see what the other hookers can do.

[stnick88]

I'd be happy to see that side put out.

Paice nose break against Scottish was a very bad one apparently.

[Ecksile]

Not injured as far as I know, I'd just like to see what the other hookers can do.

That's the problem isn't it? We know exactly what they can do and it's not great!

From what I've been reading, Jersey are beset with injuries so will that affect our choices?

Surely Franks will get to play again this weekend? If he's not in the squad this weekend and he's unlikely to play in the B & I games then that's a month between competitive matches. To my severely limited rugby brain, sounds like a long time.

Is Tiks tied up with the Japan game or is he available to us?

[Ozzy3213]

Ecksile, to be fair Harris-Wrght has had limited game time but has looked ok and we've not seen Porecki yet.  Ellis is an enigma.  He looks as if he has all the attributes to be a cracking player, but just isn't clicking.  I'd like to see him get a sustained run to see if that makes a difference as his starts at hooker have been pretty sporadic.

[Ozzy3213]

[Ozzy3213]

Good to see our youngsters doing well at their loan clubs.

[Margin_Walker]

Saw that earlier. Brand and Parton both looking sharp, Brand especially given it's a slightly higher level in ND1. Notice he didn't play at the weekend, so hopefully he's not injured.

[Ozzy3213]

Hopefully not.  I'd quite like to see Brand and Murphy get the 9 and 21 jerseys for the B&I cup games.

[SirBurger]

Going back to the Ellis discussion, I really think he has had enough chances now. Harris-Wright looks like the better player to me. Hopefully the rumours of Fainga'a from a few pages ago come to fruition. That would be a very good signing to compete properly with Paice. Something we haven't really had since the Coetzee days.

[Ozzy3213]

Harris-Wright is decent enough.  His set piece work is usually pretty solid and he works hard in defence.  Where he is not as strong as Ellis is in the carrying department.  I'm keen to see what Porecki can do.  Hopefully he is fit now and will get a little run of games, as Paicey has had to play a lot of minutes so far this season.

[Ozzy3213]

Teams up...

15 Greig Tonks, 14 Joe Cokanasiga, 13 Tom Fowlie, 12 Johnny Williams, 11 Ben Ransom, 10 Tommy Bell, 9 Scott Steele; 
1 Tom Court, 2 David Paice (c), 3 Richard Palframan, 4 Will Lloyd, 5 Jerry Sexton, 6 Max Northcote-Green, 7 Blair Cowan, 8 Senitiki Nayalo 

Replacements: 16 Gerard Ellis, 17 Harry Elrington, 18 Ben Franks, 19 Sebastian De Chaves, 20 Mike Coman, 21 Brendan McKibbin, 22 Fergus Mulchrone


That's a ridiculously strong bench at Championship level.  I feel for the loosehead if he's not been subbed by the time Franksy comes on!

[SirBurger]

Very good bench all over and 11-14 look very potent. Hopefully they can get some ball as I don't think Bell is quite as creative as Marshall at first receiver. However, it is great to see the rotation. Palframan at 3 needs to go very well. Nayalo from the start in a Champ game will also be good to see. I suspect they are wanting to give him as much game time as possible as his form is likely to influence our recruitment in the back row.

[Ozzy3213]

Yeah Palf definitely needs to step up.  He looked like a good prospect a couple of seasons back but hasn't quite kicked on.  This year is a big opportunity for him to do so.  

I know it's early to be thinking about next year, but if we go up we definitely need another back rower in my opinion, and that's if Nayalo makes the grade.  If he doesn't then I think we'll need a couple as for me Trayfoot and Naz won't cut it in the Premiership next year.

[SirBurger]

Yeah Palf definitely needs to step up.  He looked like a good prospect a couple of seasons back but hasn't quite kicked on.  This year is a big opportunity for him to do so.  

I know it's early to be thinking about next year, but if we go up we definitely need another back rower in my opinion, and that's if Nayalo makes the grade.  If he doesn't then I think we'll need a couple as for me Trayfoot and Naz won't cut it in the Premiership next year.

Yes, we definitely need at least one back rower, but quite possibly two if Nayalo doesn't make the step up. Treviranus and Cowan are proven Premiership entities and I think Northcote-Green has shown enough promise to prove he can hack it at that level. Coman is a solid option with a great work-rate as is Gilsenan. The others I am less sure on. Nayalo and Curtis-Harris both fall into the promising category and we will want at least one of them to be competing next season if we aren't going to have to recruit at least two new faces in that area.

[Heaf]

Well a bonus point win but very scrappy - some defensive lapses and a daft kick gave Jersey soft tries but the most notable thing was the total ineptitude of the officials - that really has to be one of the worst officiated games I've seen, and that's saying something.  For example, Jersey could have stood next to our SH at the rucks and still not be called offside ...

[Ecksile]

Absolutely agree with the above. Our defence was considerably poorer than before, can't imagine Mr Danaher being happy with that. When the subs came on I thought the scrum would be stronger, it wasn't, worsened if anything.

Overwhelming thought though was James Marshall, where are you? Sorely missed.

But 5 points it was. A win is a win is a win.

[Ozzy3213]

Wasn't at the game yesterday, had to make to with the radio commentary, and then chats with a number of people who were there.  General consensus was that Jersey came to rough us up and we put in our poorest performance of the season.

Two points out of that.  

1. Teams are going to come with niggle as they are not actually going to legally out muscle us, nor are they going to beat us with skill.  We need to get used to it.

2. Niggle I can accept, but there appears to have been an eye gouge on Mike Coman yesterday which hopefully we will be citing the player for.  That is unacceptable and taking 'niggle' to far.

[stnick88]

It was a really sloppy performance. we always seemed in relative control and looked like we could step up if need be, but it shouldn't have to be like that. Cowan had another good game and Nayolo was busy but his carrying wasn't overly effective in comparison to Trev. The scrum took a pasting which is worrying, even with Franks on. Lloyd for me isn't good enough. is invisible in the loose and his only real asset is the lineout and we didn't even use him that much. Bell was solid, his kicking to touch is so impressive. Tonks was poor and the cross kick in our own 22 which went straight to them was a shocking bit of play.

[Heaf]

The scrum seems to be an issue in quite a few games which is both worrying and surprising.

[Ozzy3213]

I haven't seen the game yesterday so can't comment on how the scrum went then, but over the course of the season so far, we have been alright in the scrum when Court, Paice and Franks have been together with de Chaves and Robson behind them, but once the replacements have come on there has been a marked drop off.  Smallbone and Hobbs-Awoyemi will shore up the loosehead side once they're fit, but hooker and tighthead are slightly concerning.  Fortunately I believe this has already been addressed with recruitment for next season.

[SirBurger]

Interesting comments on Nayalo. Obviously it is early days and I haven't seen lots of him, but I am not convinced he is going to be the answer. He looks to be a bit loose and lacks a bit of the punch which we need. Fingers crossed though.

Front row is a concern. An injury to Paice or Franks for the play-offs would be a huge concern.

[Heaf]

Nayalo certainly showed some pace to get back to save a potential try but I didn't notice much else

[stnick88]

yes that was impressive especially so late on in the game.

he didn't disappoint yesterday but he needs a run of games to get used to the league. he offered himself as a carrier regularly but didn't quite have the same power as Trev does to make good yards.

[Ozzy3213]

Trev and Nayalo are very different players.  Trev is a heavy carrier and very effective in traffic.  Nayalo is better in the slightly wider areas and when the game gets a bit loose.  At the moment he looks a better impact sub when the game breaks up than he does as a starter.

[Heaf]

yes I'd certainly say he deserves some more time to make a mark

[stnick88]

given the current make up of our pack, we need a heavy traffic carrier which is why Trev is always going to be our first choice 8 this season.

[Ozzy3213]

Indeed.  Trev is our best carrier in the tight areas by quite some distance.

[Ozzy3213]

I'm told we picked up a few knocks yesterday, so will be interesting to see what sort of side we put out against Rotherham at the weekend.  I think we need to go with our best possible side, lay down another marker with a really solid performance (particularly in defence), and then let the fringe/young lads have a lash in the B&I Cup for the couple of weekends after.

[stnick88]

Agreed. De Chaves will definitely come back in I imagine to beef up the pack. As will Franks. I imagine Marshall back to 10 as well and Bell to 15.

[Ozzy3213]

Agree with all of that.  Also Fergus to shore up the midfield defence and Trev to provide go forward.  I'd go..

Bell
Ransom
Mulchrone
Williams
Tikoirotuma
Marshall
McKibbin

Court
Paice
Franks
Sexton
De Chaves
Coman
Cowan
Treviranus

Harris-Wright, Elrington, Palframan, Lloyd, Nayalo, Steele, Fowlie.

That said I'm told Ransom took a heavy bang to the ribs and was in some discomfort after the game so not sure if he will be available or not.

[Heaf]

That would probably be from the cynical and late tackle he was on the receiving end of - another thing missed (or worse ignored) by the officials ...

[Ecksile]

Sorry to go off at a tangent but in the first 8 Championship games we had just 95 points scored against us.

In the last 2 we have had 53 points against us.

Any particular reasons? Our defence certainly even appears more leaky, just has not had the structure as at the start of the season.

Thoughts please......

[stnick88]

been a lot of rotation in the team and I think a bit of complacency has set in recently.

The Jersey 3rd try yesterday sums it up. Tonks trying a cross field kick in his own 22 which goes straight to their winger to score. we would never be trying that in a tight game.

[SirBurger]

been a lot of rotation in the team and I think a bit of complacency has set in recently.

The Jersey 3rd try yesterday sums it up. Tonks trying a cross field kick in his own 22 which goes straight to their winger to score. we would never be trying that in a tight game.

My interpretation is that the start of the season had all been geared towards the top of the table clash against Yorkshire. Having won that game quite easily it is only natural that complacency has set in. I think we need to get to New Year remaining unbeaten and then set ourselves a new target game to build towards.

[stnick88]

to be honest we should go the whole season unbeaten.

[Ozzy3213]

London Irish: 
15 Tommy Bell, 14 Joe Cokanasiga, 13 Fergus Mulchrone, 12 Johnny Williams, 11 Tom Fowlie, 10 James Marshall, 9 Brendan McKibbin, 1 Tom Court*, 2 David Paice (c)*, 3 Ben Franks*, 4 Jerry Sexton, 5 Sebastian De Chaves, 6 Mike Coman, 7 Blair Cowan*, 8 Ofisa Treviranus*
Replacements: 16 Gerard Ellis, 17 Harry Elrington, 18 Richard Palframan, 19 Will Lloyd, 20 Senitiki Nayalo, 21 Scott Steele, 22 Ciaran Hearn*


Strong team we're sending up to Rotherham this weekend.  I'd say in terms of the starting XV that's our best side with the exception of Robson, Tiks and Ransom (or Lewi once he's fit).

[Sponsored content]