Aviva Premiership - Round 1

First topic message reminder :

Finally it is back. Welcome to the first Round thread for the 2015/16 premiership.

After a summer full of acrimony, threats and toys most definitely thrown out of prams, what can we expect from the new season. The launch will probably slip a little under the radar for the general public. Non-english rugby fans will be paying attention to the World Cup, while the casual follower within England will assume that rugby has gone into hibernation again for 4 years.

Most of the teams have seen a fair few comings and goings, with champions Saracens being the quietest in the “transfer” market and seemingly not using their second marquee signing. Pretty sure their lawyers will find a way to incorporate that allowance into their spend though.




Fixtures:

Fri 16th Oct 15
19:45 Harlequins  v   Wasps Twickenham Stoop
19:45 Worcester  v   Northampton Sixways BT Sport
20:00 Newcastle  v   Gloucester Kingston Park


Sat 17th Oct 15
14:00 Bath    v   Exeter   Recreation Ground BT Sport
14:00 Saracens  v   Sale Allianz Park


Sun 18th Oct 15
15:15 London Irish  v   Leicester Madejski Stadium




Major Movements:

Bath

In: Nikola Matawalu, Rhys Priestland
Out: Paul James, Olly Woodburn,  Micky Young, Dave Sisi, Peter Stringer, Carl Fearns


Exeter
In: Geoff Parling, Olly Woodburn, Michele Campagnaro, Julian Salvi, James Short
Out: Tom James, Greg Bateman, Dean Mumm, Fetu'u Vainikolo, Joel Conlon to England Saracens, James Scaysbrook


Gloucester
In:  Jeremy Thrush, Paul Doran-Jones, Tom Lindsay
Out:  Dan Robson, Tom Palmer, Shaun Knigh, Shane Monahan


Harlequins
In:  James Horwill, Adam Jones from Wales, Tim Visser, Winston Stanley, Jamie Roberts, Mat Luamanu
Out: Paul Doran-Jones, Joe Trayfoot, George Robson, Ugo Monye, Asaeli Tikoirotuma, Darryl Marfo, Tom Williams, Tom Casson, Jordan Turner-Hall


Leicester
In:  Opeti Fonua, Mike Williams, Brendon O'Conno, Peter Betham, Michael Fitzgerald, Lachlan McCaffrey, Jono Kitto, Greg Bateman, Dominic Barrow
Out:  Jamie Gibson, Geoff Parling, Neil Briggs, Pablo Matera, Louis Deacon, Blaine Scully, Brad Thorn, Scott Hamilton, Robert Barbieri, Julian Salvi, David Mele, Anthony Allen


London Irish
In:  Ben Franks, Sean Maitland, Brendan McKibbin, Joe Trayfoot, Dominic Waldouck, Dave Sisi, Matt Symons, Asaeli Tikoirotuma, Rob McCusker
Out:  Tomas O'Leary, Tom Home, Kieran Low, Eamonn Sheridan, Daniel Leo, Jamie Hagan, James Short, Michael Mayhew

Newcastle
In: Micky Young, Mike Delany, Marcus Watson, Sonatane Takulua, Taione Vea, Jon Welsh, Nili Latu, Giovanbattista Venditti, Mouritz Botha, Todd Clever
Out:  Kieran Brookes, Mike Blai, Andy Saull, Phil Godman, Chris York, Dominic Barrow, Rory Clegg, Oliver Tomaszczyk, Noah Cato, Jamie Helleur, Warren Fury


Northampton
In: JJ Hanrahan, Kieran Brookes, Jamie Gibson, Michael Paterson, Pat Howard, Paul Hill, Victor Matfield
Out:  Salesi Ma'afu, Samu Manoa, Phil Dowso, Dominic Waldouck, Tom Mercey


Sale
In:  Neil Briggs, Peter Stringe, Bryn Evans, Brian Mujati
Out:  Marc Jones, Mark Cueto, Michael Paterson, Will Cliff, Nathan Hines, Andy Forsyth, Alberto De Marchi , Luke McLean


Saracens
In:  Samuela Vunisa, Michael Rhodes, Joel Conlon
Out:  David Strettle, James Johnston, Nick de Jager


Wasps
In: Jimmy Gopperth, Dan Robson, Frank Hala, Brendan Macken, James Downey, George Smith, James Johnston, Charles Piutau
Out: Tom Varndel, William Helu, Charlie Davies, Tom Lindsay, Chris Bell, Andy Goode


Worcester

In: Andy Shor, Phil Dowson, Carl Kirwan, Tom Heathcote, Sam Lewis, Cooper Vuna, Na'ama Leleimalefaga, Bryce Heem, Donncha O'Callaghan, Tevita Cavubati, Africa Wynand Olivier
Out: Mike William, Agustin Creevy, Leonardo Senatore, Josh Drauniniu, James Percival, Ofa Fainga'anuku, Ignacio Mieres, Jonathan Thomas



Pre-Season Form

Bath: LLWL
Exeter: WWWW
Gloucester: LWLL
Harlequins: WWW
Leicester: LWWWW
London Irish: LLL
Newcastle: WLLLL
Northampton: WW
Sale: WWWL
Saracens: LLWL
Wasps: LWL
Worcester: LLL

Bit of a Dad's army team from Worcester:

Warriors
15 Chris Pennell
14 Cooper Vuna
13 Wynand Olivier
12 Ryan Mills
11 Tom Biggs
10 Tom Heathcote
9 Jonny Arr
1 Val Rapava Ruskin
2 Niall Annett
3 Nick Schonert
4 Donncha O'Callaghan
5 Darren Barry
6 Phil Dowson
7 Sam Lewis
8 GJ van Velze (C)

Replacements
16 Dan George
17 Na'ama Leleimalefaga
18 Joe Rees
19 Darren O'Shea
20 Marco Mama
21 Charlie Mulchrone
22 Alex Grove
23 Perry Humphreys

Saints look strong:

5 Ben Foden
14 Ken Pisi
13 Tom Stephenson
12 Luther Burrell
11 Jamie Elliott
10 Stephen Myler
9 Lee Dickson (capt)
1 Alex Waller
2 Dylan Hartley
3 Kieran Brookes
4 Michael Paterson
5 Christian Day
6 Jamie Gibson
7 Jon Fisher
8 Sam Dickinson

16 Mike Haywood
17 Ethan Waller
18 Paul Hill
19 Teimana Harrison
20 Ben Nutley
21 Kahn Fotuali’i
22 JJ Hanrahan
23 George Pisi

Glos playing
6 Rowan
7 Kvesic

That's a turnover machine! We'll have to be very much on our game at the breakdown.

Care reportedly has a back spasm, but he and Robshaw are expected to be back next week.

Strong bench for Quins, and an interesting back row. Main challenge looks to be OLH at 15, who could be pressured by the high ball - but we've got an OK replacement on the bench.

Good to see Alex Waller and Stephenson starting for Saints. Paul Hill on the bench also has a good reputation from age grade stuff.

Is Corbs injured or have both Wallers been selected ahead of him?

Ive just said the same on the Quins page Poorfour - completely agree.
Like the look of Sloan and Lowe together.

As said OLH is a bit suspect defensively but that Quins backline has a hell of a lot of pace in their outside backs. Yarde and Walker are rapid with Lowe and OLH also having great acceleration.

Lowe is one guy who I hope can stay fit as if England are looking to play a more expansive game with a quicker outside centre then he is a very good player to pressure Joseph and Daly.

Is that Worcesters full strength side?

GeordieFalcon wrote:Is that Worcesters full strength side?

not sure on what options they have at SH, but otherwise pretty much.

Whats your thought LT?

Im not convinced mind.

The worcester team seems to be full of either:

Old players, once good but glory days long gone
Young players with no experience
Decent Championship players


now they do not look like a side that will prosper in the premiership - but then I thoght that about the Exeter team that got promotion. They had looked awful in the championship play-off - so what do I know.

Worcester have Tevita Cavubati to return from the Fiji RWC squad. I don't know too much about him so can't say if he will add anything though!

I'd argue that line-up could be made stronger with Grove starting - I've always been a fan of him.

Plus Ryan Lamb, whilst much derided, will strengthen their depth and offer some experience. The backline I think looks reasonable with Heathcote or Lamb at 10, Oliver at 13 and a strong back 3 with Pennell at the back plus Vuna, Biggs, Bryce Heem or Sam Smith to choose from on the wings.

The pack on the other hand will really struggle in the Jeff - especially the front row and set piece. Jonathan Thomas having to retire early was big blow for them. Sam Lewis is a good player replacing him however.

Dean Ryan and Ceri Jones certainly have their work cut out shaping the forwards they have into a competitive pack.

LondonTiger wrote:

Gloucester Rugby:

Rob Cook; Charlie Sharples, Bill Meakes, Mark Atkinson, Henry Purdy; Billy Twelvetrees (capt), Willi Heinz; Paddy McAllister, Richard Hibbard, John Afoa; Tom Savage, Elliott Stooke; Jacob Rowan, Matt Kvesic, Lewis Ludlow

Replacements:

Tom Lindsay, Yann Thomas, Paul Doran-Jones, Sione Kalamafoni, Ben Morgan, Callum Braley, Jonny May, Steve McColl

With 36 moving up to 10 and Willi Heinz (who) at 9, instead of the WC pairing of Hook and Laidlaw, Glaws look really beatable to me.


As with quins, Humphreys places his WC returnees on the bench.

Willi Heinz has very much gone under the radar. He was the Crusaders SH for c.5 years and I know played at least 50 times for them. Although he missed the whole of last season with a broken leg. He also doubled as their skills coach. He has played very well in pre-season and has the added benefit of having an English goldfish, so is EQP.

Still don't rate our chances at KP as we never win there!

Gooseberry wrote:I quite fancy Irish to take Tigers on this one as a bet. Its certainly not a great fixture for Tigers, one youd think they would be targetting to win if they have serious ambitions on the top 2 but coming at the worst time for them with absences and a pretty comprehensive rebuild of the squad still at an early stage.
Irish have recruited a bit of quality and could get off to a flyer.

I'd love you to be right but unfortunately we still have some to come back from the RWC (including some of the new guys) and seem to have quite a few injuries already ....

HongKongCherry wrote:

LondonTiger wrote:

Gloucester Rugby:

Rob Cook; Charlie Sharples, Bill Meakes, Mark Atkinson, Henry Purdy; Billy Twelvetrees (capt), Willi Heinz; Paddy McAllister, Richard Hibbard, John Afoa; Tom Savage, Elliott Stooke; Jacob Rowan, Matt Kvesic, Lewis Ludlow

Replacements:

Tom Lindsay, Yann Thomas, Paul Doran-Jones, Sione Kalamafoni, Ben Morgan, Callum Braley, Jonny May, Steve McColl

With 36 moving up to 10 and Willi Heinz (who) at 9, instead of the WC pairing of Hook and Laidlaw, Glaws look really beatable to me.


As with quins, Humphreys places his WC returnees on the bench.

Willi Heinz has very much gone under the radar. He was the Crusaders SH for c.5 years and I know played at least 50 times for them. Although he missed the whole of last season with a broken leg. He also doubled as their skills coach. He has played very well in pre-season and has the added benefit of having an English goldfish, so is EQP.

Still don't rate our chances at KP as we never win there!

You see now normally I would pray for the Northumbrian Gods of wind and rain and hellfire to bring their worst for Friday night...but having invested a not inconsiderable amount of money in a pitch intended for fast flowing rugby...that would be a bit daft wouldn't it....

Agree with LT's earlier comment. Glass look very beatable with 12trees at 10. He's a far better centre and there's no alternative on the bench if it doesn't go to plan.

LI should be able to push Tigers for the win. Tigers are likely to be missing six of their preferred pack and LI have recruited very well up front. If LI can find a ten to put them in the right areas of the field and can apply pressure to Burns it could go well for them.

king_carlos wrote:As said OLH is a bit suspect defensively but that Quins backline has a hell of a lot of pace in their outside backs. Yarde and Walker are rapid with Lowe and OLH also having great acceleration.

Lowe is one guy who I hope can stay fit as if England are looking to play a more expansive game with a quicker outside centre then he is a very good player to pressure Joseph and Daly.

Quite, and quite. Lowe has had a really hard time coming back from a serious neck injury (which he described as a "dislocated head") but hopefully is over it now and has had a full preseason to get up to match fitness. I suspect he would struggle to overtake Joseph and a fully fit Tuilagi, but I hope England take a look at him if his form and fitness are there.

And I agree with propdavid that the Sloan/Lowe combination has real potential (as eventually will Roberts/Lowe - I suspect he will have a very fruitful time picking lines off Dr Jamie) - but injury means we've only seen it a couple of times so far.

Really pleased to see people saying Irish have recruited well and look strong. Sadly, we are ravaged by injuries, particularly in the pack and so I am not feeling too confident ahead of Sunday.

Gooseberry wrote:I quite fancy Irish to take Tigers on this one as a bet. Its certainly not a great fixture for Tigers, one youd think they would be targetting to win if they have serious ambitions on the top 2 but coming at the worst time for them with absences and a pretty comprehensive rebuild of the squad still at an early stage.
Irish have recruited a bit of quality and could get off to a flyer.

SirBurger wrote:Really pleased to see people saying Irish have recruited well and look strong. Sadly, we are ravaged by injuries, particularly in the pack and so I am not feeling too confident ahead of Sunday.

I can only echo what SirBurger has said. We have a long injury list already. Definitely out injured are Palframan, Rouse, Gilsenan, Trayfoot, Guest and Waldouck. Possibly injured as far as I have heard are Smallbone, Ellis, Steele and Geraghty. Franks, Cowan and Maitland are still on World Cup duty and Treviranus as captain had to return to Samoa with their squad and is not back yet. Aulika and Sinclair are back and will likely be straight back into the matchday squad, as much down to necessity as anything.

If it makes you feel any better Rizzo, Slater, Kitchener, Crane, Williams, Manu, Benjamin and Camacho are all injured. O'Connor and Kitto still have ITM commitments with Goneva, Cole, Youngs x2 and Ayerza either at the RWC or have had no time with the no coaching set up.

I'm going to predict a starting line up of;

Mulipola, Bateman, Balmain
Fitzgerald, De Chaves
Croft, Pearce, McCaffrey
Harrison, Burns
Bai, Betham
Thompstone, Tait, Smith

I'm predicting a starting line up for us of...

Fenby, Ojo, Fowlie, Griffin, Lewington, Noakes, McKibbin;
Court, Paice, Aulika, Symons, Skivington, McCusker, Sinclair, Narraway.

LondonTiger wrote:

Harlequins Team
15. Ollie Lindsay-Hague
14. Marland Yarde
13. George Lowe
12. Harry Sloan
11. Charlie Walker
10. Nick Evans©
9. Karl Dickson

1. Mark Lambert
2. Dave Ward
3. Adam Jones
4. James Horwill
5. Sam Twomey
6. Jack Clifford
7. Luke Wallace
8. Mat Luamanu

16. Joe Gray
17. Joe Marler
18. Kyle Sinckler
19. Charlie Matthews
20. Nick Easter
21. Tito Tebaldi
22. Ben Botica
23. Mike Brown

Slightly surprised that new club skipper Danny Care does not feature at all. COS brings England players in on the bench.

On paper that's a very strong side. Obviously games aren't won on paper and we'll need to match the usual Wasps ferocity if we're to get anywhere, spending less time getting turned over in our own 22 would be nice this season.

We (Falcons) must win this one.

We're a touch stronger on paper imo, esp in the pack. If we can gain parity in the scrum (how many times did we say that last season....) I'd expect us to win by 7.

So important for us to get points on the board while other teams are missing key players. I'm quietly confident for this season but a lot hinges on the scrum and how Delany settles in.

HK

I spoke to soon....the skies are black...the trees are beginning to sway....its about to blow a hoolie!!!

Sgt_Pooly wrote:We (Falcons) must win this one.

We're a touch stronger on paper imo, esp in the pack. If we can gain parity in the scrum (how many times did we say that last season....) I'd expect us to win by 7.

So important for us to get points on the board while other teams are missing key players. I'm quietly confident for this season but a lot hinges on the scrum and how Delany settles in.

Agree mate.

I think that's a fairly strong front 5 we have out though.

1 Vickers - Solid
2 Lawson - Good at the core skills
3 Vea - Wait to see...but if he plays like he did for LW then we'll have a good one.
4 Botha - proven performer, can he reach those heights still? Hopefully yes.
5 Green - The unfancied workhorse and strong guy in there.

Burns out for 6-8 weeks broken jaw, Owen williams is back.


Leicester Tigers (v London Irish, away, Sunday 3.15pm)
15 Mathew Tait (c)
14 Adam Thompstone
13 Peter Betham
12 Seremaia Bai
11 Matt Smith
10 Tommy Bell
9 Sam Harrison
1 Logovi'i Mulipola
2 Greg Bateman
3 Fraser Balmain
4 Mike Williams
5 Mike Fitzgerald
6 Tom Croft
7 Lachlan McCaffrey
8 Laurence Pearce

Replacements
16 Harry Thacker
17 Riccardo Brugnara
18 Tiziano Pasquali
19 Sebastian de Chaves
20 Opeti Fonua
21 Ben White
22 Owen Williams
23 George Catchpole

Meh - beaten to the punch.

Real shame as Freddie looked really good in the warm ups and his goal kicking was exceptional.

London Irish team to play Leicester Tigers:
15. Andrew Fenby; 14. Alex Lewington; 13. Tom Fowlie; 12. Eoin Griffin; 11. Topsy Ojo*; 10. Chris Noakes; 9. Brendan McKibbin; 1. Tom Court*; 2. David Paice*; 3. Halani Aulika*; 4. George Skivington (Captain); 5. Matt Symons; 6. Jebb Sinclair*; 7. Luke Narraway*; 8. Rob McCusker*
Replacements: 16. Gerard Ellis; 17. Tom Smallbone; 18. Leo Halavatau; 19. Eoin Sheriff; 20. David Sisi; 21. Scott Steele; 22. Shane Geraghty*; 23. Fergus Mulchrone
*Denotes International

Saracens team to face Sale Sharks:
15 Alex Goode (184)
14 Chris Ashton (77)
13 Tim Streather (24)
12 Duncan Taylor (69)
11 Mike Ellery (7)
10 Charlie Hodgson (107)
9 Neil de Kock (236)
1 Rhys Gill (143)
2 Jamie George (130)
3 Petrus Du Plessis (101)
4 Maro Itoje © (29)
5 Jim Hamilton (24)
6 Michael Rhodes (0) *on debut
7 Kelly Brown (112)
8 Jackson Wray (114)
Replacements:
16 Dave Porecki (0) *on debut
17 Mako Vunipola (78)
18 Titi Lamositele (2)
19 George Kruis (103)
20 Will Fraser (59)
21 Ben Spencer (16)
22 Nick Tompkins (19)
23 Ben Ransom (48)

Sale:

15. Mike Haley, 14. Tom Arscott, 13. Sam James, 12. Sam Tuitupou, 11. Will Addison, 10. Danny Cipriani, 9. Chris Cusiter, 1. Ross Harrison, 2. Tommy Taylor, 3. Brian Mujati, 4. Josh Beaumont, 5. Bryn Evans, 6. Dan Braid (captain), 7. David Seymour, 8. Mark Easter


Replacements: 16. Neil Briggs, 17. James Flynn, 18. Vadim Cobilas, 19. Jonathan Mills, 20. Magnus Lund, 21. Peter Stringer, 22. Nick Macleod, 23. Mark Jennings

CHIEFS TEAM TO FACE BATH
15 Phil Dollman 14 Matt Jess 13 Ian Whitten 12 Sam Hill 11 James Short 10 Gareth Steenson (capt) 9 Will Chudley 1 Ben Moon 2 Luke Cowan-Dickie 3 Alex Brown 4 Mitch Lees 5 Damian Welch 6 Dave Ewers 7 Don Armand 8 Thomas Waldrom 16 Jack Yeandle 17 Alec Hepburn 18 Moray Low 19 Ollie Atkins 20 Julian Salvi 21 Dave Lewis 22 Henry Slade 23 Olly Woodburn

WOW Salvi not even starting.

although Armand had a beast preseason from what i hear.

I never like the thought of Salvi as a bench player personally felt he didn't offer enough impact as he would starting.

Bath Rugby team to face Exeter Chiefs

15 Tom Homer
14 Semesa Rokoduguni
13 Matt Banahan
12 Kyle Eastmond
11 Anthony Watson
10 George Ford
9 Chris Cook
1 Nick Auterac
2 Ross Batty
3 Henry Thomas
4 Stuart Hooper (c)
5 Dave Attwood
6 Matt Garvey
7 Alafoti Faosiliva
8 Leroy Houston

Replacements

16 Rob Webber
17 Max Lahiff
18 David Wilson
19 Sam Burgess
20 Guy Mercer
21 Niko Matawalu
22 Max Clark
23 Jeff Williams

Interesting to see which teams have called up WC players, and which have not.

Itoje captain and Fraser on the bench

Burgess as a back row replacement

Watson starting is not a call i agree on by Bath

Devoto injured?

Welly wrote: Watson starting is not a call i agree on by Bath

I can see why they have drafted Georgie back in, but agree Watson surely could have used a week off.

I really hope this is the year that player well-fare is dealt with properly. Surely most of the England players need a good two weeks off to recover, mentally and physically.

LondonTiger wrote:Saracens team to face Sale Sharks:
15 Alex Goode (184)
14 Chris Ashton (77)
13 Tim Streather (24)
12 Duncan Taylor (69)
11 Mike Ellery (7)
10 Charlie Hodgson (107)
9 Neil de Kock (236)
1 Rhys Gill (143)
2 Jamie George (130)
3 Petrus Du Plessis (101)
4 Maro Itoje (29)
5 Jim Hamilton (24)
6 Michael Rhodes (0) *on debut
7 Kelly Brown (112)
8 Jackson Wray (114)
Replacements:
16 Dave Porecki (0) *on debut
17 Mako Vunipola (78)
18 Titi Lamositele (2)
19 George Kruis (103)
20 Will Fraser (59)
21 Ben Spencer (16)
22 Nick Tompkins (19)
23 Ben Ransom (48)

Brian Mujati vs Rhys Gill.

That could be very unpleasant as Gill is a penalty machine....

Backrow battle could be tough.

Some decent impact on the bench.

Like the backs though.

BamBam wrote:Itoje captain and Fraser on the bench

Burgess as a back row replacement

Itoje at 4 and Captain is an interesting call.

How long will Fraser stay fit? By all accounts he had a big op during the summer to fix the problem once and for all. Lets hope it worked.

Cannot believe how excited I am. Slightly gutted I've got to wait until Sunday for our game!

Ozzy3213 wrote:Cannot believe how excited I am. Slightly gutted I've got to wait until Sunday for our game!

I was just about to post a similar thing Ozzy. The pre-season is the best and most exciting part of the year, unfortunately reality tend to hit home 80 minutes after kick-off for me

Welly wrote: Watson starting is not a call i agree on by Bath

Why not?

its not like England wore him out as he only got the ball a handful of times, get him back in the mix I say.

So glad we have proper rugby back this weekend.

Burns out for 6-8 weeks with a broken jaw. Kitch also out

I expect Watson will get more of a rest when Agulla is back from the world cup. Plus when Joseph is available again, Banahan is another option on the wing.

Ford isn't my favourite coach but he isn't a stupid one either. He's a guy I would trust to rotate his players as needed once they are all back.

Is Devoto injured?

Bit of a shame it's the Wuss Saints game that's on tv tonight, will all other games be put online the following day?

Yappy you can watch the other games live on Bet365. You just need an account with some money in it, you don't need to bet or spend anything. I shall be watching the Glaws game tonight.

yappysnap wrote:Bit of a shame it's the Wuss Saints game that's on tv tonight, will all other games be put online the following day?

They will be fully online withing 24 hours on AP website, but as HKC you can watch (though in a tiny window) via Bet365.