Aviva Premiership Round Two

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Gloucester Rugby v Saracens
Kingsholm
Light Cloud, 13 Degrees, 10mph SSW Winds

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 Gloucester
Manager – anonmattyt

01. Nick Wood	09. Dan Robson
02. Luke Cowan Dickie	10. Dan Cipriani
03. Nicholas Mas
04. Romain Taofifenua	11. Taqele Naiyaravoro
05. George Robson	12. Ryan Crotty
06. Ross Moriarity	13. Juan De Jongh
07. Ardie Savea	14. Johnny May
08. Wycliffe Palu	15. Israel Dagg

Subs:
16. Rob Evans 17. Joe Grey 18. Uini Atonio 19. Elliot Stooke 20. Julian Salvi 21. Justin Phillips 22. Johan Goosen 23. Metuisela Talebula

Freshness: Big question marks over the Sarries front 5 already at this early stage of the season with Best, Cole & Parling all having played significant roles for their countries.

Attack: We will be looking to put pressure on in the right areas of the field and will use the boots of Robson, Cipriani and Dagg to keep the game in opposition territory. Ball in hand look to get on the front foot with big carries from the forwards before Cips looks to get Naiyaravoro and May on the ball in space out wide.

Breakdown: Big abrasive pack selected to hit rucks with impact and secure fast ball for Cips to work with. Defensively we will look for a big emphasis on counter rucking looking to make opposition ball a real mess.

Defence: Straight line blitz defence focused on winning the gain line collisions and driving the ball carrier back. Line speed is crucial. Robson will sweep behind the line to cover chips and grubbers.

Scrum: Strong scrummaging unit in the front row with the support of a powerful 4-8 will look to get the better of the opposition and build a strong attacking platform. Mas will look to get between the opposition LH and HK and force penalties.

Lineout: Four mobile, athletic jumpers allows us to genuinely mix it up on attacking ball. Primarily looking to get the ball down and the maul formed to take advantage of our big abrasive pack. Robson will look to get up at the front on opposition ball.

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Saracens
Manager – Pooly

01. Alex Waller	09. Brad Weber
02. Rory Best(c)	10. Tom Taylor
03. Dan Cole
04. Patrick Tuipultou	11. Hosea Gear
05. Geoff Parling(c)	12. Maxime Mermoz
06. James Haskell	13. Henry Trinder
07. Heinrich Brussow	14. Chris Ashton
08. Nathan Hughes	15. Stuart Hogg

:-
16. Guilhem Guirado 17. Xavier Chocci 18. Tom Francis 19. Will Skelton 20. Will Fraser 21. Dave Denton 22. Sam Harrison 23. Scott Spedding

Tactics:

FOWARDS GAME 6/2 SPLIT ON BENCH, TARGET BREAKDWON, LINE OUT & CARRYING. - Big forward impact on bench to grind down opposition and dominate pack. Keep things tight and defensive and grind the opposition down. Hit the corners when on and target LCD throw all game, we can really turn the screw if success in this area.

TARGET SCRUM - Cole didn't have the best of world cups but he's a class up on Wood. We'll look to target the opposition HK/LH and get between them from the off.

TARGET BREAKDOWN - Numerous breakdown options (Haskell, Brussow, Hughes, Cole, Waller, Best). Look to slow Gloucester ball down and turnover. Very few options in the Gloucester team (only Savea?) and not much International experience.

BIG CARRYING TO TIE IN GLOUCESTER DEFENCE - Numerous "go to men" to get us over the gain line. Haskell, Hughes, Skelton, Tuip, Waller, Best, Denton, offering big options. If you could criticise the Gloucester pack it would be that they lack ball carriers in the pack, this could be an issue as the game goes on.

TARGET NAIYARAVORO DEFENCE - As we seen in the world cup he can be caught out in defence. Look to target

General - We'll be playing a structured physical game from the off, look to get at the opposition 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 bring in the opposition pack and then use big carrying options to punch holes through their 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 safe ball with world class line out options and experience. Will allow SH good clean ball and have big carriers running off the 9 at angles. Look to target opposition throw and put pressure on the hooker.

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. Scrum half to sweep behind the defensive line.

Attack - Keep things simple in our own half then look to unleash backs in opp 22 territory. Scrum half to dictate play from the breakdown and runners on his shoulder. Huge carrying pack 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.

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Sale Sharks v Worcester Warriors
AJ Bell Stadium
Light Cloud, 12 Degrees, 10mph S Winds

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 Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Ross Harrison	09. Danny Care
02. Tommy Taylor	10. Francois Steyn
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. Dave Attwood	11. Nemani Nadolo
05. Maro Itoje	12. Kyle Eastmond
06. Peter O'Mahony	13. George Pisi
07. Matt Todd	14. Semesa Rokoduguni
08. Steven Luatua	15. Nick Abendanon

Subs:
16. Jack McGrath 17. Benjamin Kayser 18. Martin Moore 19. Matt Garvey 20. Matt Kvesic 21. Faf De Klerk 22. Johnny Sexton 23. Simon Zebo

Attack: We will be playing an expansive, high intensity game looking to keep the ball alive as much as possible. Look to use a rugby league shape with runners on the gain line and out the back door to force the opposition into making defensive decisions. Numerous playmakers across the back line allows us to constantly change the point of attack. Care to keep the fringe defence honest with his snipping runs.

Banana blitz: Look to really target the Worcester banana blitz. Use offloads in the collision or runners out the backdoor to get outside the Worcester shooter and get in behind the line. Steyn and later Sexton will use chips and cross fields to the wingers to take advantage of the space in behind the Worcester defence in wider areas.
 
Breakdown: Quick ball is the aim on attack. Mobile pack and physical back line to clear out rucks and ensure we get it. We will look to get over the gain line off all carries to give a target to hit. Defensively we will look to commit numbers to the breakdown looking to get over the ball and turn it over or at least slow opposition ball up.
 
Defence: Straight line blitz defence focused on winning the gain line collisions and driving the ball carrier back. Line speed is crucial. Todd will look to defend on Eastmond's shoulder specifically looking to stop offloads and get over the ball at the breakdown. Care will sweep behind the line to cover chips and grubbers.
 
Scrum: Strong scrummaging unit in the front row with the support of a powerful 4-8 will look to get the better of the opposition and build a strong attacking platform. We will look to put a slight wheel on where possible to take the opposition backrow out of play and then attack the space available and look for one on ones in the backline.
 
Lineout: Five mobile, athletic jumpers allows us to genuinely mix it up on attacking ball. Primarily looking to play off the top and get the backs on the ball in space particularly Roko and Nadolo. Will also look to use Luatua around the back or in midfield off a shortened line. Defensively POM to get up in the air at the front and challenge on opposition ball looking to make it as messy as possible.

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Worcester Warriors
Manager – prop_lyd

01. Val Ruskin	09. Lee Dickson (c)
02. Ross Batty	10. Jules Plisson
03. Davit Kubriashvilli
04. Stuart Hooper	11. Venriki Goneva
05. Tom Savage	12. Cory Allen
06. Jordan Taufua	13. Jarrad Payne
07. George Smith	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Ben Morgan	15. Mathew Tait

:-
16. Ken Owens 17. Ryan Grant 18.WP Nel 19.Jacques Potgeiter 20. Jackson Wray 21. Gareth Davies 22. Dan Biggar 23. Jamie Roberts

Tactics:
Tactics:
We want another fairly high tempo match with pace across our backline and a pack who can carry strong across the board and will be available for offloads. We have a very strong impact bench with the Welsh contingent all coming in with form and we all saw what Nel did to Sio at scrum time!

Forwards: Bar Morgan all of our forwards have been with us throughout pre-season, use our Georgian props to anchor the scrum whilst Hooper looks to challenge alot of ball. We will look to carry for 2-3 phases and secure ball in the first instance before sending it out wide.

Breakdown: Smith and Taufua have been picked to get over the ball and slow down their breakdown, we will look to use 3 players to secure quick ball for us but will slow the game down if needed. Looking to create clear ball and nullify the impact of the Sale team.

Half-Backs: Both experienced enough to control the game and put us in the right positions, Dickson will look to go for tempo from tap penalties but we will look to go for points when available.

Outside Backs: Route one for Allen who showed up well for Wales in his one game, alot of pace outside and strength in Goneva, we will look to drag their defence wide and target  outside shoulders with players running for the offload. Goneva will look to target weak defence and use his raw power to get over the gainline. We will only look to kick to touch and not aimlessly as we know how strong Sale are in the counter attack area.

Attack: Quick ball, fast paced using our backline with forwards hitting the angles, happy to slow it down but don't want to get involved in an arm wrestle, will look to avoid too much time at the breakdown with the Sale backrow strong here.

Defence: Controlled by Payne who will marshall a blitz-banana defence, we will look to slow some of their ball down but mainly look to plug any gaps in defence initially, Dickson to sweep behind.

Bench: Alot of talent and internaitonal experience to come on here and look to cause impact and havoc across the backline and in the front row. Nel and our Welsh players will all look to disrupt Sale's cohesiveness and bring form to the game here wanting to make an impact and stretch a lead.

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Northampton Saints v Newcastle Falcons
Franklins Garden
Light Cloud, 11 Degrees, 9mph SSW Winds

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 Northampton Saints
Manager – Dammit_Chris

01. Thomas Domingo	09. Joe Simpson
02. Dylan Hartley(c)	10. George Ford
03. Logi Mulipola
04. Joe Launchbury	11. Niko Matawulu
05. Michael Paterson	12. Alex Dunbar
06. Samu Manoa	13. Elliot Daly
07. Jacques du Plessis	14. Nick Cummins
08. Billy Vunipola	15. Leigh Halfpenny(k)

Replacements:

16. Ashley Johnson 17. Mako Vunipola 18. Martin Castrogiovanni 19. Sam Burgess 20. Sergio Parisse 21. Manu Tuilagi 22. Lima Sopoaga 23. Ben Foden

Tactics
We will be looking to play a hard physical game and win the battle of the packs to get our backline on the front foot with good attacking ball. Our aim is to win the contact and gainline areas and stop Falcons building momentum. We;ve selected a big pack, with a lot of strong ball carriers and a strong set piece. We want to give Simpson and Ford a solid attacking platform and will unload the bench to up the tempo and finish strongly.

Set Piece
We've picked an experienced front row, which is supported by a powerful 4-8 to target the Falcons scrum, especially when the benches are unloaded. We'll look to give Vunipola a platform to attack Farrell. We are going to be looking for quick attacking ball off the top of lineouts for our backs to attack with Launch, Paterson, du Plessis and Manoa all good options

Gainline/Physical Battle
Selected a forward pack that has a lot of big ball carriers and will look to get them on the ball and aim to wear down the Falcons defence and suck in defenders. Our bench has been picked specifically add more ball carriers and physicality as the game goes on.

Breakdown
Will look to make this a really physical battle and target Clark and Ruddock in this area. we'll look to make Falcons battle for every bit of possession. By having big ball carriers we will look to get over the gainline when possible and make it easier to secure quick ball for Simpson.

Attack
Ford to control the attack, looking to play off a strong forward pack and winning collisions/gainline area. With an open game expected it will play into Simpson's style and he'll look to snipe whenever there is a gap in the defence. Will use Dunbar and Cummins as ball carriers in the backs. Halfpenny to take points whenever they are on offer and build a lead.

Defence
Similar style defence to that which Saracens play in real life, putting a lot of pressure on the attacking team and aiming to stop Falcons getting success on the gainline. Simpson to sweep behind.

Subs
Will look to win the game on the strength of our bench in the final twenty minutes, having spent large parts of the game wearing the home side down in a really physical contest. Each of our players is impact and should ensure we finish well (Matawulu to cover no9 and both du Plessis and Manoa cover lock).

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 Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Bambam

01. Matt Mullan	09. Rhys Webb
02. Jamie George	10. Owen Farrell (k)
03. Nepo Laulala
04. Ed Slater (c)	11. Charlie Sharples
05. Flip Van Der Merwe	12. Scott Williams
06. Rhys Ruddock	13. Jonathan Davies
07. Callum Clark	14. David Strettle
08. David Ewers	15. Charles Piutau

:-
16.George Mcguigan 17.Matt Stevens 18. Luc Ducalcon 19. Dom Barrow 20. Jack O'Donaghue 21.Greig Laidlaw 22. Ian Madigan 23. Jean De Villiers

Tactics

Set piece - Look to get after Mulipola with Mullan using his experience and know how to really put him under pressure in the scrum with Slater and Flip a big scrummaging lock pair, and with the power coming through a big back row we'll look to really munch them in the scrum. Flip to call the lineout, play it safe in our own territory but look to get ball off the top further forward. Flip to look to mark Paterson, force them to go to the back with risky throws or play safe.

Breakdown - We think they lack pace in the back 5 of their pack, we've got a very mobile pair of flankers and we'll look to just beat them to the ball and try and win turnovers, with Clark having excellent technique there. On their ball, big hitting players in the front 5 and Ewers to knock them back behind the gainline.

Defence - Run a blitz based system with JD2 leading the defence, but if they are starting to get outside us look to drift more and back the forwards to make their one on one tackles. Target Ford for big hits to throw him off his game, we think they lack playmaking options outside him. Keep an eye on the fringes for SImp

Kicking - Webb, Davies and Piutau to offer kicking options to help Farrell, kick in behind Matawalu and Cummins, neither are renowned kickers. We've got excellent chasers to cut off the easy pass to Halfpenny, force the wings to kick deep from their territory. On attacking ball, use grubbers and chips away from the sweeper to slow their defensive line.  

Attack - Webb to run the attack like a French 9, keep the ball moving quickly and take snipes around the ruck if its on. Farrell to keep the ball moving and take control when he needs to, we've got a 9 and centre combo who will be familiar to each other from international camps, trust them to look after the ball, but don't be afraid to attack the line if they overcommit to Webb or the centres.

Centres to run lines off Webb, Piutau also able to do so but the wings to stay out wide and use their exceptional finishing

Defence - strong defence throughout the backs, we'll challenge them to break the line in one on one tackles.

Bench - International quality galore in the backs, Laidlaw to close out the game, Madigan to help us open it up if necessary

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Wasps v Bath Rugby
Ricoh Arena
Light Cloud, 12 Degrees, 10mph SSW Winds

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London Wasps
Manager: CJ

01. Nathan Catt	09. Rhodri Williams
02. Cory Flynn	10. Francois Trinh-Duc
03. James Johnston
04. George Skivington	11. Craig Gilroy
05. Patrice Albacette	12. Kyle Godwin
06. Chris Robshaw	13. George Moala
07. John Barclay (c)	14. Manuel Montero
08. Tom Guest	15. Chris Pennell

:-
16. Eddy Ben Arous, 17. Scott Spurling, 18. Tom West,  19. Grant Gilchrist , 20 Carl Fearns. , 21. Ben Spencer , 22. Charlie Hodgson, 23. George Lowe

Tactics:

Breakdown: With Barclay an inform specialist 7 and Robshaw playing at 6 with a lot to prove, we will really focus on causing damage at the breakdown. Keep players generally out of the breakdown except a few players in defence, looking to cleverly slow the ball or press for the turnover, but commit to and hit offensive rucks hard to maintain quick ball. 

Robshaw looking to do what he's good at and hit rucks with his workrate and slow ball but steal it if it is on, with Barclay the more focussed on turnovers, backed up by Skivington's workrate too, but we will look at what is on at the breakdown and play adaptively.  

Attack: In attack, we will build slow ball into quick ball with carrying in pods, inside balls to the forwards and Moala off 9-10 and mauling. We will also look for space to kick into if it appears with a good chasing back 3. But we need to earn the right to go wide.5

Once we have committed defenders, created space or quick ball, we will spin wide and primarily use a two wave attack, using Moala etc to break the gainline then recycling or offloading the ball using Godwin as a second playmaker and exploiting the space for our back 3. Our back row are adept at supporting back play and will come into this to provide inside options should the space appear there.

Position: In field position, we will look to play in their 22, and press at the breakdown and laws in their 22 to try to pressurise them into errors or turnovers or penalties, but will be conservative in our own half and not risk penalties there. We can kick behind their wings and also high chaseable kicks for possession- neither winger is large and Wade has positional issues in defence and our back 3 are good under the high ball. 

Defence: In defence we will blitz led by Moala, and Williams sweeping. 
Due to the nature of their HBs, I want Robshaw in there pressurising them to cut off that link and stifle the outside backs. I would like to see an early press on Wade to stop him having the space that makes him lethal. We have a lot of workrate in that pack, so go hard in defence (and attack) all day to wear down the opposition into mistakes.

Set Piece: We will try to use the set piece to quickly get the ball out to our backs to use as an attacking platform for moves, not a penalty machine, but will target their lineouts with several good jumpers for us lead by Albacete and Hibbard variable. In the scrum, I want to try to hold on and tire their front row in the tight as they are powerful but quite large. I want to bring Ben Arous on against a tiring scrum if we can.

We will take on any easy points, Pennell and Godwin acting as a support kicker for FTH. 

Overall:
1) breakdowns- commit on attack, few in defence, Robshaw to slow, Barclay to turnover 
2) 2 wave attack with pack providing inside options
3) target wingers with kicking 
4) harass 9-10 with Robshaw
5) press in their 22, conservative in ours

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Bath Rugby
Manager – CJB

01. Steven Kitchoff	09. Richard Wigglesworth
02. Richard Hibbard	10. Christian Lealifano
03. Ben Tameifuma
04. Graham Kitchener	11. Hallam Amos
05. Alexandre Flanquardt	12. Harold Vorster
06. Siya Kolisi	13. Michele Campagnaro
07. Justin Tipuric	14. Christian Wade
08. Josh Beaumont	15. Liam Williams

16. Mikey Haywood 17. Richard Barrington 18. Samson Lee 19. Charlie Matthews 20. Toby Falateu 21. Maxime Machenaud 22. George North 23. Alex Goode


Overall: We are gonna be looking to play front foot rugby. Look to overwhelm Wasps in the loose with big carries. High tempo offloading game looking to create space and break the defense. Attack the set piece. Try to get on top early and use the momentum.

Scrum: Use the set piece to get quick ball to restart our attack. Ben Tameifuma will look to dominate Catt and interrupt the Wasps scrum. Beaumont will look to attack off the quick ball he gets

Lineout: We will look to switch up the lineup with Kitch, Flanquardt and Kolisi options in the lineout. Kitchener will run the line out. Look to get up into the air quickly and down for a quick maul.

Breakdown: Look to generate quick ball for our backs to take advantage of. Tips and Kolisi  are adept at the breakdown. Only send numbers in if confident we can get the ball, otherwise look to set the defence and dare Wasps to beat us.

Defence: Run a blitz defence. Wiggles worth to drift behind expecting kicks.

Attack: Our half backs will control our rugby. Wiggles will set the tempo and play what he sees in front of him. Outside of him, LLF will play flat and use his creativity to bring in the back line and make plays. We have strong runners with Campagnaro, Vorster, Wade and Amos. We will look to get the ball in their hands. Wade and Amos will look to attack when the high ball is aimed at them. Both will love a chance to run in an open field. Look to target Chris Pennell.

The pack will also be involved when we have the ball for a prolonged period. We have strong carriers who excel in the loose. Look to get the ball in the hands of Kitchoff, Big Ben and Kolisi in order to break the line and make yards. 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. Exploit the holes we create and look to tire out Wasps which can help nullify their offensive threats.

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

Substitutes: Keep a high tempo.

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Exeter Chiefs v London Irish
Sandy Park
Thick Cloud, 13 Degrees, 10mph S Winds

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Exeter Chiefs 
Manager – Fluxy

01. Nic Auterac	09. Nic White
02. Rob Webber	10. Nick Evans (k)
03. Jake Cooper-Wooley
04. Paul O'Connell (c)	11. Andrew Trimble
05. James Horwill	12. Toby Flood
06. Brad Shields	13. Darren Cave
07. Steffon Armitage	14. Cory Jane
08. Fritz Lee	15. Mike Haley

_
16. Jack Yeandle 17. Cian Healy 18. Mike Ross 19. Juandre Kruger 20. CJ Stander 21. Connor Murray 22. Alex Losowski 23. James O'Connor

Game plan this week is focussed on ball retention based around high intensity; dynamic carrying, rucking and defence. Our aim is to control possession and go through the phases and starve Irish of any possession. We will look to play off our ten, with either forward pods running of his shoulder or through the hands of our backs. This is to tie in the Irish defence and then look to capitalise on the overlaps with two play makers in the back line capable of spotting opportunities. 

Scrum - Control the set piece and use it to restart our game plan and create point of attacks. We will always look for parity to obtain clean possession. Big front five will hold our own ball and a full eight drive in defence, looking to isolate the opposition 8 and scrumhalf for our backrow to engulf. 

Line out – POC returns to lead the line-out, and will obtain quick, clean possession from our dynamic jumpers and lifters. Look to drive possession with full line out numbers in their 22. In the middle of the field, look to cut numbers and use Fritz & Shields to run at the Irish ten.


Breakdown - Look for strong carries from our pack, tying in the opposition forwards. We’ll be looking to keep the ball alive and look for the offload when on, to keep moving the point of attack against this Irish back row. Rule the collision with big our physical pack and dominate the opposition pack in the contact.

Defence – Utilise an 'up & out' defence, where the line comes up flat and then pushes the attackers towards the touch line, White sweeping up the scraps behind. Look to chop attackers down early. If there is an opportunity to compete for the ball we flood the breakdown with Armitage leading the way. If not look to maintain the integrity of the defensive line and get numbers out. Get up off the line and cut down the Irish time on the ball, especially in the wide channels with their elusive runners. Win the battle of the gain line and cut them down before it. 

Backs – Heads up rugby from the halfbacks. They will keep the tight defence honest with inside balls and snipes. We will look to attack the ten channel, as Cruden and Slade maybe be adept tacklers, however their diminutive stature will guarantee yards won at the gain line and force the Irish defence to retreat, or give away penalties by not coming through the ‘gate’ at the breakdown correctly.

Build a Score - Evans to convert any penalty within their ten metre to keep scoreboard ticking. Unless ten metres from the line then we kick for the line-out and set the maul. 

Home Advantage & Impact Bench - Use the bench late on to shift momentum and up the energy levels late on against a tired Irish defence, with support from the Chiefs fans at home creating an imposing atmosphere for the Irish lads.

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London Irish
Manager: Ozzy3213  
                 

01. Joe Marler	09. Ben Youngs
02. Liam Coltman	10. Aaron Cruden
03. David Wilson
04. Matt Symons (c)	11. Marland Yarde
05. James Broadhurst	12. Samu Kerevi
06. Sebastien Vahaamahina	13. Henry Slade
07. Marcell Coetzee	14. Anthony Watson
08. Sean O'Brien	15. Delon Armitage

16. Tom Youngs 17. Ben Moon 18. Ben Alexander 19. Romain Millo-Chluski  20. Blake Gibson 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, fast offloading game, keeping the ball alive moving the Chiefs defence around. 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.  Youngs will sweep in behind the defensive line to counter any chips/grubbers.

Specifics

• Lineout.  Symons will call, as he does for the Chiefs in Super Rugby.  In decent conditions we will mix it up on our ball, utilising Symons, Broadhurst and Vahaamahina as receivers, whilst also at times shortening the line and using our back row forwards as crash ball options off first phase.  Defensively we will look to compete for the ball and disrupt wherever possible, making any ball secured by Exeter as scrappy as we can.
  
• Scrum.  Hit channel one ball and get it out the back and into open play quickly, looking to maximise the space available with the opposition forwards packed down.  On there ball, 8 man shove and look to drive them off as their hooker lifts his foot to hook the ball.  Wilson to stay tight and straight.  Flanker on that side to stay bound and keep Wilson straight.
  
• Breakdown.  When we carry into contact, if we are taken to ground, we will flood the breakdown.  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 want to keep the ball alive as much as possible.  We will look to get big carriers down the 12 channel and use Watson and Yarde in particular trying to isolate front 5 forwards in the defensive line and use their pace, power and footwork to go past them and get us on the front foot.  If the ball is slow and the Chiefs are blitzing we will also utilise the pick and go, with the aim of keeping the blitz honest and forcing them slowly onto the back foot before going wider out.  Youngs 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 deep for the corners and get the Chiefs back three on the turn, with a strong kick chase to isolate them
  

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Leicester Tigers v Harlequins
Welford Road
Light Cloud, 12 Degrees, 10mph SSW Winds

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Leicester Tigers
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

01. Alex Corbisiero	09. Kahn Fotuali'i
02. Hika Ellliot	10. Freddie Burns (K)
03. Census Johnston
04. Luke Jones	11. Matt Banahan
05. Kearnan Myall	12. Billy Twelvetrees
06. Juan Smith (c)	13. Mathieu Basteraud
07. Jacques Burger	14. Rene Ranger
08. Thomas Waldrom	15. Mike Brown

.
16. Christopher Tolofua 17. Max Lahiff 18. Brian Mujati 19. Pascal Pape 20. Tom Johnson 21. Micky Young 22. Brock James 23. Cheslin Kolbe



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 scrums - Big powerful props to look to really get the shove on, and if gaining an advantage look to target.

- Attack at all lineouts. Use Jones or Smith at the front and Myall off the top as our three key options.
Shortened lineouts with Waldrom in midfield as crash or decoy option.
Target Buchanan (and Baldwin) on all Quins throws with Myall and Jones to always to look to steal and really give opposition problems.

- Gigantic XV made up of massive line-breakers, used in the tight to tire down the opposition defence.
The likes of Waldrom, Smith, Basteraud and Elliot plus Jones, Banahan and Ranger to be used to get us over the gainline.

- Look to win battle at the breakdown - Smith and Burger to really look to get into the breakdown and give the opposition 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 Twelverees.
We want to control the game, mixing up the point of our attack consistently.

- In attacking play, we want our dangeorus on the back three as much as possible. Use the form of Brown as much as possibe.

- 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.

---

Harlequins
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Tony Woodcock	09. Henry Pyrgos
02. Rob Buchanan	10. Steven Myler (k)
03. John Afoa
04. Jim Hamilton	11. Teddy Thomas
05. George Kruis	12. Robbie Henshaw
06. Jaco Kriel	13. Jonathan Joseph
07. Tom Wood	14. Yoann Huget
08. Mamuka Gorgodze (c)	15. Jack Nowell

16. Scott Baldwin 17. Gurthro Steenkamp 18. Kieran Brookes 19. Nick Easter 20. Damien Chouly 21. Karl Dickson 22. Damian McKenzie 23. Luther Burrell


Tactics

Game plan based around ball retention and building pressure in the opposition park. Looking to get our carriers on the front foot with strong carrying and effective rucking. Pyrgos to buzz around the rucks controlling the pace and look to allow Myler to play flat. Look to get our strong carriers into space such as Kriel and Gorgodze and get players around them so the offload is on or to recycle the ball quickly. Look to spread the Leicester pack around the park by playing from touchline to touchline and get our quicker backs one on one with the Leicester forwards.

In defence look to choose when we target the breakdown when we have a defensive line set or when the Leicester carriers are isolated. When we have our line set will look to be really physical in defence and knock Leicester backwards and look to get the choke tackle in. When we are scrambling in defence its all about hitting the legs hard and getting the man down. 

Look to use a 5 man line out outside the 22m lines with the option of a forward at 9 to set the drive.

Use Myler's boot to get us into good areas of the pitch. Kicking to space or looking to get Huget and Henshaw underneath the high ball so we can retain possession or force a knock on, really looking to target Ranger. 

Use bench as an when. Bring on McKenzie as a 2nd playmaker on 60 and bring on our bench to really add impact in between 50 and 70 when we really think we can start to take control of the game and turn the screw.

---

 Northampton Saints
Manager – Dammit_Chris

01. Thomas Domingo	09. Joe Simpson
02. Dylan Hartley(c)	10. George Ford
03. Logi Mulipola
04. Joe Launchbury	11. Niko Matawulu
05. Michael Paterson	12. Alex Dunbar
06. Samu Manoa	13. Elliot Daly
07. Jacques du Plessis	14. Nick Cummins
08. Billy Vunipola	15. Leigh Halfpenny(k)

Replacements:

16. Ashley Johnson 17. Mako Vunipola 18. Martin Castrogiovanni 19. Sam Burgess 20. Sergio Parisse 21. Manu Tuilagi 22. Lima Sopoaga 23. Ben Foden

Tactics
We will be looking to play a hard physical game and win the battle of the packs to get our backline on the front foot with good attacking ball. Our aim is to win the contact and gainline areas and stop Falcons building momentum. We;ve selected a big pack, with a lot of strong ball carriers and a strong set piece. We want to give Simpson and Ford a solid attacking platform and will unload the bench to up the tempo and finish strongly.

Set Piece
We've picked an experienced front row, which is supported by a powerful 4-8 to target the Falcons scrum, especially when the benches are unloaded. We'll look to give Vunipola a platform to attack Farrell. We are going to be looking for quick attacking ball off the top of lineouts for our backs to attack with Launch, Paterson, du Plessis and Manoa all good options

Gainline/Physical Battle
Selected a forward pack that has a lot of big ball carriers and will look to get them on the ball and aim to wear down the Falcons defence and suck in defenders. Our bench has been picked specifically add more ball carriers and physicality as the game goes on.

Breakdown
Will look to make this a really physical battle and target Clark and Ruddock in this area. we'll look to make Falcons battle for every bit of possession. By having big ball carriers we will look to get over the gainline when possible and make it easier to secure quick ball for Simpson.

Attack
Ford to control the attack, looking to play off a strong forward pack and winning collisions/gainline area. With an open game expected it will play into Simpson's style and he'll look to snipe whenever there is a gap in the defence. Will use Dunbar and Cummins as ball carriers in the backs. Halfpenny to take points whenever they are on offer and build a lead.

Defence
Similar style defence to that which Saracens play in real life, putting a lot of pressure on the attacking team and aiming to stop Falcons getting success on the gainline. Simpson to sweep behind.

Subs
Will look to win the game on the strength of our bench in the final twenty minutes, having spent large parts of the game wearing the home side down in a really physical contest. Each of our players is impact and should ensure we finish well (Matawulu to cover no9 and both du Plessis and Manoa cover lock).

Gloucester
Manager – anonmattyt

01. Nick Wood	09. Dan Robson
02. Luke Cowan Dickie	10. Dan Cipriani
03. Nicholas Mas
04. Romain Taofifenua	11. Taqele Naiyaravoro
05. George Robson	12. Ryan Crotty
06. Ross Moriarity	13. Juan De Jongh
07. Ardie Savea	14. Johnny May
08. Wycliffe Palu	15. Israel Dagg

Subs:
16. Rob Evans 17. Joe Grey 18. Uini Atonio 19. Elliot Stooke 20. Julian Salvi 21. Justin Phillips 22. Johan Goosen 23. Metuisela Talebula

Freshness: Big question marks over the Sarries front 5 already at this early stage of the season with Best, Cole & Parling all having played significant roles for their countries.

Attack: We will be looking to put pressure on in the right areas of the field and will use the boots of Robson, Cipriani and Dagg to keep the game in opposition territory. Ball in hand look to get on the front foot with big carries from the forwards before Cips looks to get Naiyaravoro and May on the ball in space out wide.

Breakdown: Big abrasive pack selected to hit rucks with impact and secure fast ball for Cips to work with. Defensively we will look for a big emphasis on counter rucking looking to make opposition ball a real mess.

Defence: Straight line blitz defence focused on winning the gain line collisions and driving the ball carrier back. Line speed is crucial. Robson will sweep behind the line to cover chips and grubbers.

Scrum: Strong scrummaging unit in the front row with the support of a powerful 4-8 will look to get the better of the opposition and build a strong attacking platform. Mas will look to get between the opposition LH and HK and force penalties.

Lineout: Four mobile, athletic jumpers allows us to genuinely mix it up on attacking ball. Primarily looking to get the ball down and the maul formed to take advantage of our big abrasive pack. Robson will look to get up at the front on opposition ball.

Leicester Tigers
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

01. Alex Corbisiero	09. Kahn Fotuali'i
02. Hika Ellliot	10. Freddie Burns (K)
03. Census Johnston
04. Luke Jones	11. Matt Banahan
05. Kearnan Myall	12. Billy Twelvetrees
06. Juan Smith (c)	13. Mathieu Basteraud
07. Jacques Burger	14. Rene Ranger
08. Thomas Waldrom	15. Mike Brown

.
16. Christopher Tolofua 17. Max Lahiff 18. Brian Mujati 19. Pascal Pape 20. Tom Johnson 21. Micky Young 22. Brock James 23. Cheslin Kolbe



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 scrums - Big powerful props to look to really get the shove on, and if gaining an advantage look to target.

- Attack at all lineouts. Use Jones or Smith at the front and Myall off the top as our three key options.
Shortened lineouts with Waldrom in midfield as crash or decoy option.
Target Buchanan (and Baldwin) on all Quins throws with Myall and Jones to always to look to steal and really give opposition problems.

- Gigantic XV made up of massive line-breakers, used in the tight to tire down the opposition defence.
The likes of Waldrom, Smith, Basteraud and Elliot plus Jones, Banahan and Ranger to be used to get us over the gainline.

- Look to win battle at the breakdown - Smith and Burger to really look to get into the breakdown and give the opposition 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 Twelverees.
We want to control the game, mixing up the point of our attack consistently.

- In attacking play, we want our dangeorus on the back three as much as possible. Use the form of Brown as much as possibe.

- 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.

Harlequins
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Tony Woodcock	09. Henry Pyrgos
02. Rob Buchanan	10. Steven Myler (k)
03. John Afoa
04. Jim Hamilton	11. Teddy Thomas
05. George Kruis	12. Robbie Henshaw
06. Jaco Kriel	13. Jonathan Joseph
07. Tom Wood	14. Yoann Huget
08. Mamuka Gorgodze (c)	15. Jack Nowell

16. Scott Baldwin 17. Gurthro Steenkamp 18. Kieran Brookes 19. Nick Easter 20. Damien Chouly 21. Karl Dickson 22. Damian McKenzie 23. Luther Burrell


Tactics

Game plan based around ball retention and building pressure in the opposition park. Looking to get our carriers on the front foot with strong carrying and effective rucking. Pyrgos to buzz around the rucks controlling the pace and look to allow Myler to play flat. Look to get our strong carriers into space such as Kriel and Gorgodze and get players around them so the offload is on or to recycle the ball quickly. Look to spread the Leicester pack around the park by playing from touchline to touchline and get our quicker backs one on one with the Leicester forwards.

In defence look to choose when we target the breakdown when we have a defensive line set or when the Leicester carriers are isolated. When we have our line set will look to be really physical in defence and knock Leicester backwards and look to get the choke tackle in. When we are scrambling in defence its all about hitting the legs hard and getting the man down. 

Look to use a 5 man line out outside the 22m lines with the option of a forward at 9 to set the drive.

Use Myler's boot to get us into good areas of the pitch. Kicking to space or looking to get Huget and Henshaw underneath the high ball so we can retain possession or force a knock on, really looking to target Ranger. 

Use bench as an when. Bring on McKenzie as a 2nd playmaker on 60 and bring on our bench to really add impact in between 50 and 70 when we really think we can start to take control of the game and turn the screw.

Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Ross Harrison	09. Danny Care
02. Tommy Taylor	10. Francois Steyn
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. Dave Attwood	11. Nemani Nadolo
05. Maro Itoje	12. Kyle Eastmond
06. Peter O'Mahony	13. George Pisi
07. Matt Todd	14. Semesa Rokoduguni
08. Steven Luatua	15. Nick Abendanon

Subs:
16. Jack McGrath 17. Benjamin Kayser 18. Martin Moore 19. Matt Garvey 20. Matt Kvesic 21. Faf De Klerk 22. Johnny Sexton 23. Simon Zebo

Attack: We will be playing an expansive, high intensity game looking to keep the ball alive as much as possible. Look to use a rugby league shape with runners on the gain line and out the back door to force the opposition into making defensive decisions. Numerous playmakers across the back line allows us to constantly change the point of attack. Care to keep the fringe defence honest with his snipping runs.

Banana blitz: Look to really target the Worcester banana blitz. Use offloads in the collision or runners out the backdoor to get outside the Worcester shooter and get in behind the line. Steyn and later Sexton will use chips and cross fields to the wingers to take advantage of the space in behind the Worcester defence in wider areas.
 
Breakdown: Quick ball is the aim on attack. Mobile pack and physical back line to clear out rucks and ensure we get it. We will look to get over the gain line off all carries to give a target to hit. Defensively we will look to commit numbers to the breakdown looking to get over the ball and turn it over or at least slow opposition ball up.
 
Defence: Straight line blitz defence focused on winning the gain line collisions and driving the ball carrier back. Line speed is crucial. Todd will look to defend on Eastmond's shoulder specifically looking to stop offloads and get over the ball at the breakdown. Care will sweep behind the line to cover chips and grubbers.
 
Scrum: Strong scrummaging unit in the front row with the support of a powerful 4-8 will look to get the better of the opposition and build a strong attacking platform. We will look to put a slight wheel on where possible to take the opposition backrow out of play and then attack the space available and look for one on ones in the backline.
 
Lineout: Five mobile, athletic jumpers allows us to genuinely mix it up on attacking ball. Primarily looking to play off the top and get the backs on the ball in space particularly Roko and Nadolo. Will also look to use Luatua around the back or in midfield off a shortened line. Defensively POM to get up in the air at the front and challenge on opposition ball looking to make it as messy as possible.

Mark

London Wasps
Manager: CJ

01. Nathan Catt	09. Rhodri Williams
02. Cory Flynn	10. Francois Trinh-Duc
03. James Johnston
04. George Skivington	11. Craig Gilroy
05. Patrice Albacette	12. Kyle Godwin
06. Chris Robshaw	13. George Moala
07. John Barclay (c)	14. Manuel Montero
08. Tom Guest	15. Chris Pennell

:-
16. Eddy Ben Arous, 17. Scott Spurling, 18. Tom West,  19. Grant Gilchrist , 20 Carl Fearns. , 21. Ben Spencer , 22. Charlie Hodgson, 23. George Lowe

Tactics:

Breakdown: With Barclay an inform specialist 7 and Robshaw playing at 6 with a lot to prove, we will really focus on causing damage at the breakdown. Keep players generally out of the breakdown except a few players in defence, looking to cleverly slow the ball or press for the turnover, but commit to and hit offensive rucks hard to maintain quick ball. 

Robshaw looking to do what he's good at and hit rucks with his workrate and slow ball but steal it if it is on, with Barclay the more focussed on turnovers, backed up by Skivington's workrate too, but we will look at what is on at the breakdown and play adaptively.  

Attack: In attack, we will build slow ball into quick ball with carrying in pods, inside balls to the forwards and Moala off 9-10 and mauling. We will also look for space to kick into if it appears with a good chasing back 3. But we need to earn the right to go wide.5

Once we have committed defenders, created space or quick ball, we will spin wide and primarily use a two wave attack, using Moala etc to break the gainline then recycling or offloading the ball using Godwin as a second playmaker and exploiting the space for our back 3. Our back row are adept at supporting back play and will come into this to provide inside options should the space appear there.

Position: In field position, we will look to play in their 22, and press at the breakdown and laws in their 22 to try to pressurise them into errors or turnovers or penalties, but will be conservative in our own half and not risk penalties there. We can kick behind their wings and also high chaseable kicks for possession- neither winger is large and Wade has positional issues in defence and our back 3 are good under the high ball. 

Defence: In defence we will blitz led by Moala, and Williams sweeping. 
Due to the nature of their HBs, I want Robshaw in there pressurising them to cut off that link and stifle the outside backs. I would like to see an early press on Wade to stop him having the space that makes him lethal. We have a lot of workrate in that pack, so go hard in defence (and attack) all day to wear down the opposition into mistakes.

Set Piece: We will try to use the set piece to quickly get the ball out to our backs to use as an attacking platform for moves, not a penalty machine, but will target their lineouts with several good jumpers for us lead by Albacete and Hibbard variable. In the scrum, I want to try to hold on and tire their front row in the tight as they are powerful but quite large. I want to bring Ben Arous on against a tiring scrum if we can.

We will take on any easy points, Pennell and Godwin acting as a support kicker for FTH. 

Overall:
1) breakdowns- commit on attack, few in defence, Robshaw to slow, Barclay to turnover 
2) 2 wave attack with pack providing inside options
3) target wingers with kicking 
4) harass 9-10 with Robshaw
5) press in their 22, conservative in ours

Exeter Chiefs 

Manager – Fluxy

01. Nic Auterac	09. Nic White
02. Rob Webber	10. Nick Evans (k)
03. Jake Cooper-Wooley
04. Paul O'Connell (c)	11. Andrew Trimble
05. James Horwill	12. Toby Flood
06. Brad Shields	13. Darren Cave
07. Steffon Armitage	14. Cory Jane
08. Fritz Lee	15. Mike Haley

_
16. Jack Yeandle 17. Cian Healy 18. Mike Ross 19. Juandre Kruger 20. CJ Stander 21. Connor Murray 22. Alex Losowski 23. James O'Connor

Game plan this week is focussed on ball retention based around high intensity; dynamic carrying, rucking and defence. Our aim is to control possession and go through the phases and starve Irish of any possession. We will look to play off our ten, with either forward pods running of his shoulder or through the hands of our backs. This is to tie in the Irish defence and then look to capitalise on the overlaps with two play makers in the back line capable of spotting opportunities. 

Scrum - Control the set piece and use it to restart our game plan and create point of attacks. We will always look for parity to obtain clean possession. Big front five will hold our own ball and a full eight drive in defence, looking to isolate the opposition 8 and scrumhalf for our backrow to engulf. 

Line out – POC returns to lead the line-out, and will obtain quick, clean possession from our dynamic jumpers and lifters. Look to drive possession with full line out numbers in their 22. In the middle of the field, look to cut numbers and use Fritz & Shields to run at the Irish ten.


Breakdown - Look for strong carries from our pack, tying in the opposition forwards. We’ll be looking to keep the ball alive and look for the offload when on, to keep moving the point of attack against this Irish back row. Rule the collision with big our physical pack and dominate the opposition pack in the contact.

Defence – Utilise an 'up & out' defence, where the line comes up flat and then pushes the attackers towards the touch line, White sweeping up the scraps behind. Look to chop attackers down early. If there is an opportunity to compete for the ball we flood the breakdown with Armitage leading the way. If not look to maintain the integrity of the defensive line and get numbers out. Get up off the line and cut down the Irish time on the ball, especially in the wide channels with their elusive runners. Win the battle of the gain line and cut them down before it. 

Backs – Heads up rugby from the halfbacks. They will keep the tight defence honest with inside balls and snipes. We will look to attack the ten channel, as Cruden and Slade maybe be adept tacklers, however their diminutive stature will guarantee yards won at the gain line and force the Irish defence to retreat, or give away penalties by not coming through the ‘gate’ at the breakdown correctly.

Build a Score - Evans to convert any penalty within their ten metre to keep scoreboard ticking. Unless ten metres from the line then we kick for the line-out and set the maul. 

Home Advantage & Impact Bench - Use the bench late on to shift momentum and up the energy levels late on against a tired Irish defence, with support from the Chiefs fans at home creating an imposing atmosphere for the Irish lads.

Bath Rugby
Manager – CJB

01. Steven Kitchoff	09. Richard Wigglesworth
02. Richard Hibbard	10. Christian Lealifano
03. Ben Tameifuma
04. Graham Kitchener	11. Hallam Amos
05. Alexandre Flanquardt	12. Harold Vorster
06. Siya Kolisi	13. Michele Campagnaro
07. Justin Tipuric	14. Christian Wade
08. Josh Beaumont	15. Liam Williams

16. Mikey Haywood 17. Richard Barrington 18. Samson Lee 19. Charlie Matthews 20. Toby Falateu 21. Maxime Machenaud 22. George North 23. Alex Goode


Overall: We are gonna be looking to play front foot rugby. Look to overwhelm Wasps in the loose with big carries. High tempo offloading game looking to create space and break the defense. Attack the set piece. Try to get on top early and use the momentum.

Scrum: Use the set piece to get quick ball to restart our attack. Ben Tameifuma will look to dominate Catt and interrupt the Wasps scrum. Beaumont will look to attack off the quick ball he gets

Lineout: We will look to switch up the lineup with Kitch, Flanquardt and Kolisi options in the lineout. Kitchener will run the line out. Look to get up into the air quickly and down for a quick maul.

Breakdown: Look to generate quick ball for our backs to take advantage of. Tips and Kolisi are adept at the breakdown. Only send numbers in if confident we can get the ball, otherwise look to set the defence and dare Wasps to beat us.

Defence: Run a blitz defence. Wiggles worth to drift behind expecting kicks.

Attack: Our half backs will control our rugby. Wiggles will set the tempo and play what he sees in front of him. Outside of him, LLF will play flat and use his creativity to bring in the back line and make plays. We have strong runners with Campagnaro, Vorster, Wade and Amos. We will look to get the ball in their hands. Wade and Amos will look to attack when the high ball is aimed at them. Both will love a chance to run in an open field. Look to target Chris Pennell.

The pack will also be involved when we have the ball for a prolonged period. We have strong carriers who excel in the loose. Look to get the ball in the hands of Kitchoff, Big Ben and Kolisi in order to break the line and make yards. 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. Exploit the holes we create and look to tire out Wasps which can help nullify their offensive threats.

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

Substitutes: Keep a high tempo.

Saracens
Manager – Pooly

01. Alex Waller	09. Brad Weber
02. Rory Best(c)	10. Tom Taylor
03. Dan Cole
04. Patrick Tuipultou	11. Hosea Gear
05. Geoff Parling(c)	12. Maxime Mermoz
06. James Haskell	13. Henry Trinder
07. Heinrich Brussow	14. Chris Ashton
08. Nathan Hughes	15. Stuart Hogg

:-
16. Guilhem Guirado 17. Xavier Chocci 18. Tom Francis 19. Will Skelton 20. Will Fraser 21. Dave Denton 22. Sam Harrison 23. Scott Spedding

Tactics:

FOWARDS GAME 6/2 SPLIT ON BENCH, TARGET BREAKDWON, LINE OUT & CARRYING. - Big forward impact on bench to grind down opposition and dominate pack. Keep things tight and defensive and grind the opposition down. Hit the corners when on and target LCD throw all game, we can really turn the screw if success in this area.

TARGET SCRUM - Cole didn't have the best of world cups but he's a class up on Wood. We'll look to target the opposition HK/LH and get between them from the off.

TARGET BREAKDOWN - Numerous breakdown options (Haskell, Brussow, Hughes, Cole, Waller, Best). Look to slow Gloucester ball down and turnover. Very few options in the Gloucester team (only Savea?) and not much International experience.

BIG CARRYING TO TIE IN GLOUCESTER DEFENCE - Numerous "go to men" to get us over the gain line. Haskell, Hughes, Skelton, Tuip, Waller, Best, Denton, offering big options. If you could criticise the Gloucester pack it would be that they lack ball carriers in the pack, this could be an issue as the game goes on.

TARGET NAIYARAVORO DEFENCE - As we seen in the world cup he can be caught out in defence. Look to target

General - We'll be playing a structured physical game from the off, look to get at the opposition 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 bring in the opposition pack and then use big carrying options to punch holes through their 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 safe ball with world class line out options and experience. Will allow SH good clean ball and have big carriers running off the 9 at angles. Look to target opposition throw and put pressure on the hooker.

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. Scrum half to sweep behind the defensive line.

Attack - Keep things simple in our own half then look to unleash backs in opp 22 territory. Scrum half to dictate play from the breakdown and runners on his shoulder. Huge carrying pack 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.

Worcester Warriors
Manager – prop_lyd

01. Val Ruskin	09. Lee Dickson (c)
02. Ross Batty	10. Jules Plisson
03. Davit Kubriashvilli
04. Stuart Hooper	11. Venriki Goneva
05. Tom Savage	12. Cory Allen
06. Jordan Taufua	13. Jarrad Payne
07. George Smith	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Ben Morgan	15. Mathew Tait

:-
16. Ken Owens 17. Ryan Grant 18.WP Nel 19.Jacques Potgeiter 20. Jackson Wray 21. Gareth Davies 22. Dan Biggar 23. Jamie Roberts

Tactics:

Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Bambam

01. Matt Mullan	09. Rhys Webb
02. Jamie George	10. Owen Farrell (k)
03. Nepo Laulala
04. Ed Slater (c)	11. Charlie Sharples
05. Flip Van Der Merwe	12. Scott Williams
06. Rhys Ruddock	13. Jonathan Davies
07. Callum Clark	14. David Strettle
08. David Ewers	15. Charles Piutau

:-
16.George Mcguigan 17.Matt Stevens 18. Luc Ducalcon 19. Dom Barrow 20. Jack O'Donaghue 21.Greig Laidlaw 22. Ian Madigan 23. Jean De Villiers

Tactics

Set piece - Look to get after Mulipola with Mullan using his experience and know how to really put him under pressure in the scrum with Slater and Flip a big scrummaging lock pair, and with the power coming through a big back row we'll look to really munch them in the scrum. Flip to call the lineout, play it safe in our own territory but look to get ball off the top further forward. Flip to look to mark Paterson, force them to go to the back with risky throws or play safe.

Breakdown - We think they lack pace in the back 5 of their pack, we've got a very mobile pair of flankers and we'll look to just beat them to the ball and try and win turnovers, with Clark having excellent technique there. On their ball, big hitting players in the front 5 and Ewers to knock them back behind the gainline.

Defence - Run a blitz based system with JD2 leading the defence, but if they are starting to get outside us look to drift more and back the forwards to make their one on one tackles. Target Ford for big hits to throw him off his game, we think they lack playmaking options outside him. Keep an eye on the fringes for SImp

Kicking - Webb, Davies and Piutau to offer kicking options to help Farrell, kick in behind Matawalu and Cummins, neither are renowned kickers. We've got excellent chasers to cut off the easy pass to Halfpenny, force the wings to kick deep from their territory. On attacking ball, use grubbers and chips away from the sweeper to slow their defensive line.

Attack - Webb to run the attack like a French 9, keep the ball moving quickly and take snipes around the ruck if its on. Farrell to keep the ball moving and take control when he needs to, we've got a 9 and centre combo who will be familiar to each other from international camps, trust them to look after the ball, but don't be afraid to attack the line if they overcommit to Webb or the centres.

Centres to run lines off Webb, Piutau also able to do so but the wings to stay out wide and use their exceptional finishing

Defence - strong defence throughout the backs, we'll challenge them to break the line in one on one tackles.

Bench - International quality galore in the backs, Laidlaw to close out the game, Madigan to help us open it up if necessary

London Irish
Manager: Ozzy3213  
                 

01. Joe Marler	09. Ben Youngs
02. Liam Coltman	10. Aaron Cruden
03. David Wilson
04. Matt Symons (c)	11. Marland Yarde
05. James Broadhurst	12. Samu Kerevi
06. Sebastien Vahaamahina	13. Henry Slade
07. Marcell Coetzee	14. Anthony Watson
08. Sean O'Brien	15. Delon Armitage

16. Tom Youngs 17. Ben Moon 18. Ben Alexander 19. Romain Millo-Chluski  20. Blake Gibson 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, fast offloading game, keeping the ball alive moving the Chiefs defence around. 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.  Youngs will sweep in behind the defensive line to counter any chips/grubbers.

Specifics

• Lineout.  Symons will call, as he does for the Chiefs in Super Rugby.  In decent conditions we will mix it up on our ball, utilising Symons, Broadhurst and Vahaamahina as receivers, whilst also at times shortening the line and using our back row forwards as crash ball options off first phase.  Defensively we will look to compete for the ball and disrupt wherever possible, making any ball secured by Exeter as scrappy as we can.
  
• Scrum.  Hit channel one ball and get it out the back and into open play quickly, looking to maximise the space available with the opposition forwards packed down.  On there ball, 8 man shove and look to drive them off as their hooker lifts his foot to hook the ball.  Wilson to stay tight and straight.  Flanker on that side to stay bound and keep Wilson straight.
  
• Breakdown.  When we carry into contact, if we are taken to ground, we will flood the breakdown.  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 want to keep the ball alive as much as possible.  We will look to get big carriers down the 12 channel and use Watson and Yarde in particular trying to isolate front 5 forwards in the defensive line and use their pace, power and footwork to go past them and get us on the front foot.  If the ball is slow and the Chiefs are blitzing we will also utilise the pick and go, with the aim of keeping the blitz honest and forcing them slowly onto the back foot before going wider out.  Youngs 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 deep for the corners and get the Chiefs back three on the turn, with a strong kick chase to isolate them.
  

Won't let me edit my post for some reason:

Worcester Warriors
Manager – prop_lyd

01. Val Ruskin	09. Lee Dickson (c)
02. Ross Batty	10. Jules Plisson
03. Davit Kubriashvilli
04. Stuart Hooper	11. Venriki Goneva
05. Tom Savage	12. Cory Allen
06. Jordan Taufua	13. Jarrad Payne
07. George Smith	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Ben Morgan	15. Mathew Tait

:-
16. Ken Owens 17. Ryan Grant 18.WP Nel 19.Jacques Potgeiter 20. Jackson Wray 21. Gareth Davies 22. Dan Biggar 23. Jamie Roberts

Tactics:
Tactics:
We want another fairly high tempo match with pace across our backline and a pack who can carry strong across the board and will be available for offloads. We have a very strong impact bench with the Welsh contingent all coming in with form and we all saw what Nel did to Sio at scrum time!

Forwards: Bar Morgan all of our forwards have been with us throughout pre-season, use our Georgian props to anchor the scrum whilst Hooper looks to challenge alot of ball. We will look to carry for 2-3 phases and secure ball in the first instance before sending it out wide.

Breakdown: Smith and Taufua have been picked to get over the ball and slow down their breakdown, we will look to use 3 players to secure quick ball for us but will slow the game down if needed. Looking to create clear ball and nullify the impact of the Sale team.

Half-Backs: Both experienced enough to control the game and put us in the right positions, Dickson will look to go for tempo from tap penalties but we will look to go for points when available.

Outside Backs: Route one for Allen who showed up well for Wales in his one game, alot of pace outside and strength in Goneva, we will look to drag their defence wide and target outside shoulders with players running for the offload. Goneva will look to target weak defence and use his raw power to get over the gainline. We will only look to kick to touch and not aimlessly as we know how strong Sale are in the counter attack area.

Attack: Quick ball, fast paced using our backline with forwards hitting the angles, happy to slow it down but don't want to get involved in an arm wrestle, will look to avoid too much time at the breakdown with the Sale backrow strong here.

Defence: Controlled by Payne who will marshall a blitz-banana defence, we will look to slow some of their ball down but mainly look to plug any gaps in defence initially, Dickson to sweep behind.

Bench: Alot of talent and internaitonal experience to come on here and look to cause impact and havoc across the backline and in the front row. Nel and our Welsh players will all look to disrupt Sale's cohesiveness and bring form to the game here wanting to make an impact and stretch a lead.

Good Luck SirJ

RESULTS:

Gloucester 27 (T:3 P:4)
Saracens 25 (T:1 C:1 P:6)

Sale Sharks 30 (T:4 C:2 P:2)
Worcester Warriors 23 (T:1 P:6)

Northampton Saints 27 (T:3 P:4)
Newcastle Falcons 27 (T:3 P:4)

Wasps 24 (T:2 C:1 P:4)
Bath 22 (T:1 C:1 P:5)

Exeter Chiefs 26 (T:2 C:2 P:4)
London Irish 28 (T:3 C:2 P:3)

Leicester Tigers 25 (T:1 C:1 P:6)
Harlequins 29 (T:3 C:1 P:4)

BONUS:

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

Bad luck CJB

Gloucester 26 - 23 Saracens
Set piece wise pretty even with for me with both Tight heads getting the upper hand. Nothing in the lineout. Two physical backrows which will provide a thrilling aside during the pack battle. Much more off the bench for the Saracens pack. Half backs to Gloucester although Im a big Weber fan. Feel that the Gloucester outside backs are far stronger and will do much more damage with the ball they get. Undoubtedly some fatigue in the Saracens pack for Best, Cole and Parling which hurts them. A very close match stolen by Gloucester doing more with the ball they get. 

Gloucester 23 - 26 Saracens
Early season grudge match is a terrific battle. Glos right to pick out the fitness of the front 5 forwards, and what would have been a significant advantage has been slightly negated. Agree that the Glos pack lacks a bit of bite, and think that is a win for Sarries, who have a very strong back row on the field. Behind the scrum, man for man Glos are stronger, but Sarries have a fair bit more off the bench. Very tough one to call, I'll go with the pack strength and late impact for a Sarries win

Glos 24-23 Sarries


Gloucester 26 - 26 Sarries


Gloucester 23-26 Sarries
Front five goes to Sarries. See there being quite a bit more about the Sarries back row. Prefer the Gloucester half backs but not much in the outside backs. Like the 6-2 split on the bench from Sarries to really push home the forward advantage. Despite being away they pick up a huge win. 

Gloucester 26 - 23 Saracens
Gloucester edge the starting pack battle, but Hughes is stand out in the backrow battle - prefer make up of the Gloucester one though. Carries could finish the stronger in the pack with the bench, but due to the conditions it plays into the Gloucester backline that much more and see them edging the game due to that. 

Gloucester 25 - 24 Saracens
Tough to split up front, both relatively solid on each set piece. The carrying is also about even in both sides, with a decent mixture of dynamic and strong carrying. The half backs for Gloucester will spark the back line into life and cause the Sarries some real issues. Sarries back line has some pace men which will yield some good metres, however the Glaws back line are no slouches. There are some slightly more intelligent kicking options in the Glaws back line and this will yield them some little morale winning territory gains and in turn result in a narrow home victory.

Sale 24 - 24 Worcester
Two front rows who look vulnerable in this period. Bit more about the Worcester trio though. Sale edge the back 5's in the scrum but unsure about Luatua as an 8 and think Worcester edge the back row but the locks let them down in comparison to the Sale pair. Half backs pretty even but I think I prefer the Worcester outside backs as I prefer there balance as personnel wise there is little between them. Two solid benches. All in all I think Worcester edge the contest but Sale at home get the draw. Just something wrong with the balance of the Sale side at the moment just doesn't look quite right. 

Sale 27 - 21 Worcester
Both front 5s are well matched, a lot of power coming through the Sale second row might just give them the edge. Just favour Worcester's well balanced back row, not sure about Luatua as an 8. Sale stronger in the backline, and think they have a gameplan to get the best out of their backline, with Nadolo a big threat. Worcester are going to be very good later in the season, but for this one I have to go with Sale


Sale 30 - 29 Worcester


Sale 36-24 Warriors 
Prefer the Sale front five. Sale can also dominate the back row exchanges. Prefer both of the Sale half backs and they have more dangerous finishers. 

Sale 23-22 Worcester 
Not a huge amount in the front rows with both sides missing key players, scrums will be pretty tight. Engine rooms again close, not totally sold on Itoje there currently, I think he's a better option at 6 for SJE. Wuss take the backrow with a better balance and a step up at 8 but generally pack is a close contest.

Not a huge fan of Steyn at 10 but halfbacks pretty even with Care stronger at 9 and similar story in the centres. Back 3 just to Sale and good options from the bench from both sides.

Sale 22 - 18 Worcester
Not sure with Steyn at no10 but Sale still have too much strength in the forwards and home advantage. Just can't see them getting the flow in the backs to build a big lead. 

Sale Sharks 28 - 26 Worcester Warriors
Warriors pose a real strong test for the Sharks and cause some real issues in the set piece for the Sharks. Around the park the physicality is the biggest threat, but the rangey ability of the Sharks pack allows them to be dynamic in their carrying and get good go forward. Sharks are electric ball in hand with Care leading the way by keeping the tempo of the game high. Wuss have some good ball runners, but just lack a little x factor in the backs. Their big guns will make a difference, but Sale secure the home win.

Northampton 26 - 27 Newcastle
Nothing between the packs for me though Saints have nothing to speak of at the breakdown which hurts them as they'll struggle to slow down the Newcastle ball. In the backs I think Newcastle take it in every position for me besides 10 with form and balance hurting the Saints at the moment. Whilst Saints are looking to physically dominate I don't think Newcastle will take a step back and match them in the back 5 especially which not many can do. Great win for Newcastle who have just got the personnel right to get the much coveted away win.  

Saints 26-25 Falcons

Saints 30 - 29 Falcons

Saints 27-23 Newcastle
The edge in the front fives goes to the Saints. Prefer the Saints back row but do think Newcastle will have success in slowing down the Saints ball. One each In the half backs. Newcastle more dangerous and both sets of subs are strong. Not sure about a tired Matawalu ending the game at scrum half but at home they do enough to seal a win

Northampton 20-22 Newcastle 
Form a bit of an issue in the Saints front row but I think they'll level off and neither side will gain much of an advantage. Falcons engine stronger as a combo and can just get a nudge in the line out. Prefer the Saints backrow and they have better carrying/breakdown options here.

Falcons take the 9's and fly halfs pretty close, perhaps Farrell just shading it on recent form. Falcons a step up again in the centres and a good battle in the back 3's. Falcons probably the best WC team at the minute, good contest.

Northampton 23-26 Newcastle 
Not an awful lot between the sides at the set pieces. Both packs on the big side and can see some nasty collisions in this one. Wouldn't say either team is particularly strong at the breakdown. Both 10s had their struggles at the World Cup but Webb the better scrummie. Both back threes dangerous on front foot but Saints wings can be caught behind. Falcons with an edge in midfield with a strong pair. Game plan wise Saints don't get the gain line/breakdown advantage they were expecting and Ford won't always be on the front foot. Forward impact late on strong though. Falcons with a bit more variety to the attacking structures and targeted the Saints wingers well. Laidlaw and Madigan give impact but not fully bedded in yet. Tight game feel Falcons have set themselves up better and have more of a threat through midfield for a famous away win.

Northampton Saints 26 - 25 Newcastle Falcons
Two very physical sides go toe to toe here and really hit hard to make some big dents in each other. Saints will be a little tighter at the scrum and will create a solid platform for their back row to roam with the ball and influence the play. The Falcons back row will get over the ball and slow the Saints possession and cause real problems. The Falcons back line is dangerous ball in hand and clever in playing for the territory. Saints at home are a tough task at home and they will just eek out the result against the Falcons.

Wasps 23 - 22 Bath
Very little in it upfront. Bath look stronger at the scrum but I prefer the Wasps back 5. Very good breakdown battle. Half backs about even for me with control for Bath but attacking strength favouring Wasps. Think I prefer the outside backs of Wasps with a bit more experience. Two high intensity game plans which I don't really suit either pack brilliantly. Hard to see past a home win here but it is very close.

Wasps 24 - 23 Bath
Bath have the class in the front 5 to really put some pressure on a weakened Wasps outfit. Both sides lack a carrier in the back row, but Wasps better equipped with the dual 7s. One a piece at half back, while its pretty much dead even throughout the back line. Bath have a bit more quality off the bench, and that is a crucial factor for me. Tactically I think Bath aren't equipped to play the carrying game that they are trying to. I'll give this one to the home team, but bench makes it close

Wasps 18-19 Bath

Wasps 25-25 Bath
Bath with the stronger front row, not sure what has happened to Catt of late but he could struggle here. 2 good engine rooms with plenty to offer but Bath probably just take the backrow with a few stronger options.

Little in the halfback battle with both pairing working well together and again in the centres, although a bit more threat in the Bath back 3. Good, close contest. 

Wasps 22 - 25 Bath
Can just see Bath getting the edge in the pack, but do really like the Wasps tactics. So many good attacking options in the Bath backline so they'll be able to take advantage there. 

Wasps 18-14 Bath
Scrum advantage to Bath with a strong set of props. Similar carrying threat to both packs but Wasps the stronger breakdown side. FTD a class act at 10 shades the halfbacks. Both back threes are seriously dangerous but the Wasps midfield has a bit more about. Some defensive issues for both sides particularly with the kick in behind. Wasps looking for territory and can see them getting the better of the aerial battle. Good emphasis on the breakdown as well. Bath looking for a quick open style and not sure their halfbacks can always play that game. Feel they have the players though to get over the gain line and get the offload off. Wasps keep this game in the right areas to keep the scoreboard ticking for themselves.

Wasps 22 - 20 Bath Rugby 
A solid Wasps pack will set about their work well, however they struggle at the scrum with the bath front row causing issues to the Wasps scrum. The Wasps line out is much more effective and creates a good foothold in the game. Wasps are dangerous ball in hand in the back line, compared to a much more controlling half back duo from Bath. The Bath bench will come on and add some real impact, but can really see Wasps keeping to their game plan and Hodgson coming on to keep the game rolling and to boot a match winning penalty.

Exeter 24 - 24 London Irish
Irish control the scrum and expect that until Healy and Ross come on Exeter will struggle. Back 5 of the pack I give the edge to Exeter marginally though it's a very good battle. Expect Exeter to control the lineout with the breakdown pretty even. Half backs even with Cruden struggling for any rating at all with Flood offering extra control from 12. Outside backs to Irish I think though lacking experience outside of Armitage. Can't call this one.

Exeter 29 - 33 London Irish
Irish look very strong with their England players back, and a tough challenge for any side. Think they are stronger at the scrum, evens at lineout. I don't think Vaahaamina is a 6, and think Exeter have the back row strength to take advantage. Behind the scrum, even with Cruden lacking form, so much quality and dangerous threats surround a quality 9, 10, 13 playmaking combo. Think Exeter will keep it close with their game plan, but Irish win

Chiefs 25-26 Irish

Exeter 28 - 27 Irish

Exeter 23-30 Irish 
Irish edge the front five. Not much in the back row at all. Half backs go to Irish and they are a lot scarier in the outside backs.

Exeter 27-24 Irish
Wilson lacking form for Irish holds them back a bit and evens the props up, Exeter a step up at hooker. Big quality jump in the engine room for Exeter and they'll edge line out also. Prefer the Exeter flanks but SOB a good option at 8 despite not playing there recently.

Little in the halfback contest with both sets able to produce some magic on the day, Cruden's lack of form evens him up somewhat against Evans. Both midfields have 12 issues and can't separate really. Irish with the better options at back 3 but possibly weaker defence, good battles. 

Exeter 22 - 23 London Irish
Two even pack battles, just see a slight edge for the away team. Big factor that sways the game is that I don't think the away team has enough people to get over the gainline in the backline. Irish just edge it and when Cruden comes back the scores will be higher.

Exeter 24-24 Irish
Can see Irish getting on top at the scrum until the benches come into play but Exeter have the better of the battle between the back fives of the pack with a better balanced back row and more quality at lock. Irish halfbacks with more quality but question marks starting over Cruden now. Irish midfield gives a bit more ball in hand but Kerevi has defensive issues. Good back three battle overall. Exeter bench can really make an impact late on though with some big carriers and Murray coming on to control the tempo. Both sides looking for an open game and to keep the ball alive and can see a good high scoring game in this one. Chiefs at home and with a pack advantage should take this but the Irish halfbacks do well to keep them in the game.

Leicester 24 - 30 Harlequins
Leicester's front 5 has plenty of power, but Quins can match them here, while being a lot better around the field imo. Breakdown will be a massive battle, with no stand out fetcher. Halfbacks are close, but Quins will blow the Tigers side away with the outside backs, can just see any turnover ball being a huge threat, especially with the back 3 speed. Tigers lack a bit of sparkle in the backline to beat the top sides, but are set up very well

Tigers 31-32 Quins

Leicester 28 - 28 Quins

Tigers 19-24 Quins
Quins take the advantage in the front five. Quins back row can really be dominating here as well. One each in the half backs. Quins have more outside here and have enough to get the job done away.

Leicester 25-25 Harlequins
Both looseheads really struggling for form evens this contest up and thus will be a pretty even scrum contest. Not much in the engine rooms, possible lineout edge to Tigers with no real leader for Quins, Wood helps though. Tigers just shade the backrow, not too many breakdown options for Quins could be an issue.

Not too much in the halfbacks on current form and a good battle. Little in the 12's but Joseph gives Quins the overall centre battle and I really like the Quins back 3.

Leicester Tigers 19 - 17 Harlequins
Home advantage sways this one as Tigers have so many big line breakers and they are right to focus on that area. Just see them having that little bit more in the pack.

Leicester 24-28 Harlequins
Not an awful lot between the sides at the set pieces. Expect Burger to get the odd turnover but high work rate of the Quins pack ensures good ball for the halfbacks. Strong carriers in both packs. Halfbacks are one a piece and both will look to control the tempo. Quins with more from 11-15. Bast gives Tigers a good focal point but could be drawn out defensively by the Quins midfield. Some question marks over the Quins midfield defensively as well. Quins looking to play the game in the Tigers half. Good aerial battle with Brown competing against the Quins backs but fancy Quins to edge the territory overall and feel they have the spark in the backs to outscore Tigers.

Leicester Tigers 24 - 25 Harlequins

Dang you stormed Fortress Sandy Park Pete! Well done this week!

Well done sir j. That 12 point loss killed me off big time!

Was not expecting that result!

Thanks Fluxy. Sorry for not predicting fellas, weekends are just manic at the moment (weekdays aren't much better to be honest!).