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Aviva Premiership Round Twenty

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prop_lyd
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Aviva Premiership Round Twenty Empty Aviva Premiership Round Twenty

Post by Fluxy Mon 11 Apr 2016, 10:00 am

Home teams to be named by 23:59 hours on Tuesday
Away teams to be named by 23:59 hours on Wednesday
Tactics by 23:59 hours on Thursday

Predictions to be PM’d to SJE by 23:59 hours on Sunday


Sale Sharks v Bath Rugby
AJ Bell Stadium
Light Cloud, 9 Degrees, 10mph East North Easterly Winds


Aviva Premiership Round Twenty 12 Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Jack McGrath09. Faf De Klerk 
02. Tommy Taylor10. Johnny Sexton
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. Maro Itoje11. Simon Zebo
05. Brodie Retalick12. Charlie Ngatai
06. Sean McMahon13. Malakai Fekitoa
07. Sam Cane14. Semesa Rokoduguni
08. CJ Stander15. Nick Abendanon
Subs:
16. Malcolm Marx 17. Ross Harrison 18. Martin Moore 19. Christian Day 20. Matt Kvesic 21. Danny Care 22. Bernard Foley 23. Keith Earls


Attack: We will be playing an expansive, high intensity game looking to keep the ball moving. 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.

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 when the initial contact is won we will look to commit numbers and get over the ball turning it over or at least slowing opposition ball up. Otherwise we will strengthen the line.

Defence: Similar set up to the Welsh with Sexton and Bendy defending deep to cover the backfield. Both wingers will step into the defensive line, to be part of the straight line blitz led by Fekitoa, to shut down space in the wider channels. Focused on winning the gain line collisions and driving the ball carrier back. Line speed is crucial.  Care will sweep behind the line to cover chips and grubbers.

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 get the backs on the ball in space. Defensively Itoje to get up in the air at the front and challenge on opposition ball looking to make it as messy as possible.


Bath Rugby
Manager – CJB

01. Eddy Ben Arous09. Richard Wigglesworth
02. Rory Best 10. Beauden Barrett 
03. Nepo Laulala 
04. Will Skelton 11. Juan Imhoff  
05. Graham Kitchener 12. Damian De Allende
06. Dan Lydiate  13. Jonathan Davies 
07. Justin Tipuric  14. Christian Wade   
08. Toby Falateu 15. Alex Goode
16. Steven Kitchoff 17. Mikey Haywood 18. Scott Wilson 19. James Gaskell 20. Josh Van Der Flier 21. Siya Kolisi 22. Maxime Machenaud 23. Sam Hill

Overall: We are gonna be looking to play front foot rugby and put Sale under immense pressure with our energy. Look for big carries and offloading at a high pace looking to create space and break the defense. Attack the set piece where we expect to be dominant and finish strongly off the bench 

Scrum: Use the set piece to get quick ball to restart our play. Skelton will add a lot of power to the scrum and we will look to get more power from our back five. Falateu will look to attack off the quick ball he gets.

Lineout: We will look to switch up the lineup with Falateu, Skelton and Kitchener options in the lineout. Kitchener will run the line out. Look to get up into the air quickly and down for a quick maul. We think we can dominate here against a poor set of jumpers. Skelton will offer quick ball option at the front. 

Breakdown: Look to generate quick ball for our backs to take advantage of. Tipuric is brilliant at the breakdown and we will also look to get the rest of the pack looking to help and clear out. 

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

Attack: Our half backs will control our rugby. Wiggles will set the tempoand play what he sees in front of him. Outside of him, Barrett will play flat and use his creativity to bring in the back line and make plays. He will be given a freedom to be creative. Look to bring in the rest of the back line, especially De Allende who we would like to get running at defenders.  Wade and Imhoff are very skilful and if the ball gets to them will look to draw in defenders. 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 EBA, Skelton and Falateu 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 Sale which can help nullify their offensive threats. 

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

Substitutes: Keep a high tempo with all our internationals off the bench.





Gloucester v Exeter Chiefs
Kingsholm Stadium
Light Rain Showers, 12 Degrees, 8mph West North Westerly Winds


Gloucester
Manager - Anonmattyt

01. Tendai 'Beast' Mtawarira09. Dan Robson
02. Andries Strauss10. Danny Cipriani (k)  
03. Uini Atonio
04. Eben Etzebeth11. Jonny May 
05. Tomas Lavanini12. Ryan Crotty
06. Pablo Matera13. Tevita Kuridrani
07. Ardie Savea14. Charlie Walker
08. Jaimie Heaslip15. Israel Folau
16. Nick Wood, 17. Luke Cowan-Dickie, 18. Tom Croft, 19. Elliott Stooke, 20. TJ Perenara, 21. Handre Pollard, 22 Metuisela Talebula
Glos aim to continue there great run of form with a win against an Exeter team that has been struggling of late.

Basic game plan- Glos are going to keep it simple. We have picked a much bigger pack than the opposition chock full of ball carriers. The aim is to win the confrontations get front foot ball and then get the Ball wide to our Backs.

Forwards 

- we have picked a big pack to get us on the front foot. The aim is to carry and then carry some more. We want to try and get past the tackler and When on look to offload.
- will look to employ the maul off lineouts in our half and tire out the Exeter pack
- look to go off top in their half and get Kurindrani and co running at Lopez 
- Look to get a nudge on when their ball and anchor on our own 
- Matera and Savea to target steals at breakdown 
- look to contest their ball in lineout and pressure thrower
- target Exeter front five with Webber Castro Auterac ball etc all in poor or no form 

Backs 
- Cipriani in great form and banging the goals over at moment.
- look to create quick ball for Robson to hit Cipriani to play
On front foot ball
- look to kick for territory when needed but apart from that keep ball in hand 
- look to move the ball off quick ball in their half.
- blitz defence with Robson sweeping 
- utilise Kurindrani and runners in channel to target Lopez 


Key points

- big pack to win collisions 
- full of ball carriers 
- great form throughout team 
- on a great run of form 




Exeter Chiefs Chief
         
Manager – Fluxy

01. Nick Auterac09. Nick White
02. Rob Webber10. Camille Lopez
03. Martin Castrogiovanni
04. Jake Ball11. James Lowe
05. Courtney Lawes12. Jan Serfontein
06. Marcell Coetzee13. Sam James
07. Yannick Nyanga14. JP Pietersen
08. Sergio Parisse15. Mike Haley 
_
16. Tom Youngs 17. Jefferson Poirot 18. Harry Williams 19. Lood De Jager 20. Fritz Lee 21. Sam Hidalgo-Clyne 22. Alex Losowksi 23. Teddy Thomas

Game Plan
In the greasy conditions we will be looking to play a territory based game, using the boots of White and Lopez to play in the Gloucester 22. When we have possession in and around their 22, we will use big carriers and carry close to the ruck, utilise the pick and go as well to suck defenders into defending the breakdown and the fringes. When there are clear gaps we will go wide to put men away over the try line.

In defence, as always we will smother the Gloucester with our up & out drift. Our focus will be on the gain line collisions and driving back in the tackle. Line speed and no dog-legs will be key factors. White will sweep in behind the defensive line to counter any kicks or breaks. Back three will sit a little deeper anticipating a kicking game from the opposition in the conditions. Haley to take risk when Gloucester are kicking into the wind. 

Specifics

  • Territory - When we kick we will aim to find touch as deep as possible in Gloucester territory and force them to throw into the line out close to their own line in poor conditions. This will be difficult with the wind favouring one side, one half, therefore into the wind we will carry to create room for our kickers, who can then look to angle low grubber kicks into Worcester territory. 
  • Lineout - Hit banker ball at the front and use the middle and look to play atypical driving maul from there. Lawes to contest every line out, but Ball specifically to target the back lifter of the Gloucester line out, to prevent setting a solid maul. 
  • Scrum - Get low and underneath their props and drive straight. Really test their props technical abilities rather than get in to a battle of strength. Make the most of only two front row on the bench!
  • Breakdown - When we carry in, we will flood the breakdown rucking well past the ball to free it for the next phase. Biggest impetus would be to ensure clean ball with the Matera and Savea on the prowl. In defence, if we have made a passive tackle and the carrier has momentum we will not over commit, 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 over the ball for the jackal. 
  • Attacking Play - We will also utilise the pick and go, keeping their defensive line on the back foot. We will then look to shift the direction of play and pull their defenders out of position to create gaps. White to also look to snipe around the fringes and keep us going forwards all the time.  


Key Points

  • Physicality & Dynamism – Look to dominate Gloucester physically. Gloucester have players that don't play their best rugby when they are forced to play one on one slow rugby, and with back five players more adept in the wider channels putting a lot of pressure on the front five to secure possession.  
  • Breakdown – The back row have been selected to cover the breakdown as well as for their dynamic carrying.
  • Build a Score - Lopez to build a score and take opportunities given to us within their ten metre.






Northampton Saints v Leicester Tigers
Franklin Gardens
Light Rain, 10 Degrees, 9mph North Westerly Winds


Northampton Saints
Manager: Dammit_Chris

01. Mako Vunipola09. Conor Murray
02. Dylan Hartley (c) 10. Lima Sopoaga (k)  
03. Jake Cooper Wooley
04. Joe Launchbury11. Julian Savea 
05. Jonny Gray12. Manu Tuilagi 
06. Facunda Isa13. Elliot Daly 
07. Brendon O'Connor14. Adam Ashley Cooper
08. Schalk Burger15. Ben Foden 
Replacements: 16. Ashley Johnson 17. Logi Mulipola 18. Ramiro Herrera 19. Paul Jedrasiak 20. Luke Wallace 21. Joe Simpson 22. Matt Giteau 23. Frank Halai

Tactics
Looking to play with our usual aggressive, physical style in the forwards with big runners getting us over the gainline and putting Tigers on the backfoot and not giving them any time on the ball. We'll look for Burger and Isa to make the breakdown extremely physical with O'Connor targeting turnovers. Our aim is to give our halfbacks good front foot ball to attack Tigers and use our strike runners in the backline to test their defence. We have selected a 9,10,13 combination to ensure we can win the tactical kicking battle. We will look to bring our impact bench on to finish the game strongly. 

Set Piece
We've been rotating our pack to ensure that is fresh for the end of the season, we want to put pressure on the Tigers second row at scrum time, especially with Mako making Telegraph's team of week for the second week in a row for his scrummaging! We've selected a team that has a strong lineout presence with Hartley's accuracy and allow us to mix up our attack and get quality ball for Tuilagi and Savea to run off. 

Gainline/Physical Battle
We want to put real emphasis on the gainline battle, so have picked powerful ball carriers throughout our pack and strike runners in our backline. We want to suck in Tigers backline to stop our pack going forward and create space outwide for our backline. We want to use Tuilagi to suck in defenders and then use Daly's pace to exploit space and bring in our back three. 

Breakdown
We are aiming to make this a really physical battle with Burger and Isa and provide O'Connor with a platform to seek turnovers and attack. We will look to use the breakdown ability of Launchbury and Gray to make sure we get an advantage over Tigers and attack the breakdown as a team. We want quick ball for Murray to exploit. 

Attack
We will look to get our forwards on the ball and running off Sopoaga to make inroads into the Tigers defensive line and provide space for our strike runners in the backline to exploit and get Tuilagi, Daly, Savea and AAC on the ball as often as possible. The light rain won't stop us wanting to play a quick high-tempo game and go through the phases. 

Kicking
With Murray, Sopoaga and Daly we feel we have a strong kicking game and will look to ensure we dominate the territory battle, which will help us keep Tigers pinned back in their half and make them play from deep.  

Defence
Similar style defence to that which Saracens play in real life, putting a lot of pressure on the attacking team and force them into mistakes. Lot of big hitters in the pack, Murray to sweep behind the defensive line.



Leicester TigersAviva Premiership Round Twenty 4
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

01. Mikheil Nariashvili09. Nick Phipps
02. Stephen Moore (c)     10. Freddie Burns (k)
03. Owen Franks
04. Steve Mafi11. Matt Banahan
05. Victor Matfield12. Billy Twelvetrees
06. Juan Smith13. Mathieu Bastareaud
07. JMF Lobbe14. Drew Mitchell
08. Wycliffe Palu15. Mike Brown
.
16. Schalk Brits 17. Max Lahiff 18. Brian Mujati 19. George Skivington 20.  21. Micky Young 22. Francois Trinh-Duc 23. Henry Purdy

Tactics

In wet conditions we will play sensibly, looking to play a structured game built around our big carriers getting us over the gainline consistently.

Attack the scrum as a weapon - and call when we can, if we are getting an advantage. Nariashvili to look to target JCW and to look to really get the shove on.

Use the rolling maul - Moore to lead from the back guided by Phipps, and use a regular weapon off lineouts won by Matfield.

No overly ambitious passing - In wet conditions we will either look to kick to gain territory or look to keep ball in hand and take it through the middle.

Lobbe, Smith, Bastareaud and Moore are the men charged with reaching the breakdown first and look to turnover possession. We will always look to attack quickly off any turnover ball.

At the lineout use Matfield as our banker ball and Mafu, Smith and Lobbe as alternative jumpers - we will rotate the target. 
With the boots of Phipps, Burns and 36, we will look to get the ball deep in Saints territory and then contest all lineouts. We will relentlessly target the opposition's throws.

Gigantic XV made up of massive line-breakers right throughout the side, that will look to tire down Saints defence. 
The likes of Palu, Bastareaud, Mafi, Smith, Banahan and Moore used consistently to get us over the gainline.

We want to control of the tempo of the game as much as we can through our 9/10/12/15.

- 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. Phipps to sweep behind with an eye on short kicks.

Burns to kick all penalties.







Saracens v Harlequins
Allianz Park
Light Cloud, 11 Degrees, 10mph North Westerly Winds


Saracens
Manager – Pooly

01. Ben Franks09. Morgan Parra
02. Guilhem Guirado10. Nicolas Sanchez
03. Dan Cole
04. Sam Whitelock11. George North
05. Geoff Parling12. Sonny Bill Williams
06. James Haskell13. Conrad Smith
07. John Hardie14. Chris Ashton
08. Dave Denton15. Stuart Hogg
:-
16. Richard Hibbard 17. Alex Waller 18. Jannie du Plessis 19. Brad Davies 20. Temani Harrison 21. Henry Taylor 22. Henry Trinder 23. Pat Lambie

Tactics:

TARGET HEALY IN THE SCRUM - Look to get at Healy in the scrum with Cole and JDP. Look to get in between Healy and the hooker and splinter the Quins scrum. 

TARGET JANTJIES - FIRST GAME FOR QUINS - Put a lot of pressure on Jantjies with Haskell and Hardie in his face from the off. An away game at Sarries is not the place to start a new 10. Get Big runners down his channel and really shake him off his game. 

HOME ADVANTAGE _ TOP 4 TO PLAY FOR - QUINS SAFE IN 2ND - Huge game for us and we'll be really up for it. Quins have named a good lineup but are safe in 2nd and will have mindset for finals.

GET HOOPER OUT OF THE GAME AND TARGET BREAKDOWN - Look to take Hooper out the equation around the ruck area and target the breakdown. With Hooper having little influence, we feel we can get on top here with Cole, Guirado, Hardie, Haskell etc. 


General - We'll be playing a structured physical game from the off, look to get at the opposition and target the breakdown. 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. Look to control the tempo and areas we play with kicking options at halfback.

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.


Harlequins
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Cian Healy09. Ruan Pienaar
02. Agustin Creevy10. Elton Jantjies (k)
03. Kieran Brookes
04. Pieter Steph Du Toit11. Jack Nowell 
05. George Kruis12. Robbie Henshaw
06. Jaco Kriel 13. Jonathan Joseph
07. Michael Hooper (c)14. Santiago Cordero
08. Mamuka Gorgodze15. Damian McKenzie
16. Scott Baldwin 17. Ethan Waller 18. Kyle Sinckler 19. Luke Romano 20. Jamie Gibson 21. Karl Dickson 22. Juan Martin Hernandez 23. Joe Tomane

Tactics

Game Plan - Look to play at a very quick pace when we have the ball in hand. We'll look to get our big carriers throughout our pack carrying the ball hard and getting across the gain line running off Pienaar, Jantjies and McKenzie who will come in as first receiver option. Jantjies and McKenzie are to attack the line and draw in defenders to put others into space especially our centres and back three. Kriel and Hooper will look to carry in wider channels where they can be incredibly effective in getting us onto the front foot. 

Our kicking game will be based upon trying to retain possession. When kicking for territory we will look to hit touch so we can use Kruis and Du Toit to really pressure the Saracens line out but we will also look to use up and unders to use the expertise of Henshaw and our outside backs to retain possession or to force errors. We will especially look to target Ashton with this. We feel we have really solid primary kicking options in Pienaar, Jantjies and McKenzie to gain an advantage in this area.

Set Piece - Look to use our line out as an attacking weapon with Kruis and Du Toit as our key operators. We will look to mix between full and shortened lines and use the ball straight from 9 to either 12 or Gorgodze on a short line out to get us on the front foot straight away. At the scrum we will look to get Brookes up so Gorgodze can attack on a wheel. 

Defence - Look to use a drift defence with and up and out shape to use the pack of our side to our advantage. Use chop tackles to bring the carriers straight to the ground and try to get the first man over the ball with Kriel, Hooper and Creevy especially targeting this.

Key Points 

Goal Kicking - We have the top two point scorers in the Super 15 in McKenzie and Jantjies. Keep the score board ticking over.

Impact off the bench - We have guys who get themselves on the ball and will carry hard in our forwards subs. In the backs we have Hernandez and the bang in form Tomane to come on and exploit tired legs. 

Conditions - The dry conditions are perfectly suited to our side. We are able to play at pace with a mobile pack and with a back line which can be lethal with ball in hand from 10 to 15. 

Form: We feel we have form on our side with McKenzie, Du Toit, Joseph, Jantjies and Kruis to highlight just a few of our side who are in the form of their lives.

Team form: Won the last 5 on the bounce and only lost four all season. Eyes are firmly on securing a home semi final and know that only 3 wins from 3 games will guarantee this for us.





Worcester Warriors v Wasps
Sixways Stadium
Light Rain Showers, 12 Degrees, 7mph North Westerly Winds


Worcester Warriors
Manager – prop_lyd

01. Alisdair Dickinson09. Gareth Davies
02. Ross Batty10. Dan Biggar (k)
03. WP Nel
04. Yohann Maestri11. Waisake Naholo
05. Leone Nakawara12. Jamie Roberts
06. Jordan Taufua13. Huw Jones
07. Sam Warburton (c)14. James Short
08. Ben Morgan15. Brice Dulin
:-
16. Ken Owens 17. Joe Moody 18. Henry Thomas 19. Tom Savage 20. George Smith 21. Sam Harrison 22. Jules Plisson 23. Mathew Tait

We come into this game looking to secure our highest league position so far. Yes  there is disappointment amongst  the camp but we are using that to look at being more clinical and look at our vocal home support to spur us on.

Up front we have a pack full of carriers and will be looking to mix up our game by running off 9, 10 and 12 as well as using the pick and go. We will use the leech man to throw the carrier through the contact meaning Wasps are on the back foot and we have that extra moment to secure our clean ball.

Robshaw and Barclay are good at  the breakdown so we are coming at them with power to clear our rucks and use Taufua and Warburton to put pressure on their ball and isolate their ball carrier. The choke tackle will be used to halt them in their tracks.

Wasps are focusing on Roberts so we will look to let him have the ball initially, meaning that 2 defenders are drawn in before getting quick ball and using our man advantage  out wide to spread it and use the form of Short and Dulin hitting angles. Jones  is comfortable at 12 and we will swap him and Roberts at times to keep Wasps guessing and to allow us to exploit any blitz defence.

At the set piece we have brought in Taufua and Maestri to shore things up and to put pressure on the Wasps throw, we will look to double stack initially and, on our ball we will bring it down to suck in the Wasps pack and nullify their breakdown pace.

Our half backs will play heads  up rugby, most teams set up against Wales as Wasps are and yet Biggar still uses the up and under to great effect and we will use this when Wasps blitz  to look to have 2 waves coming at them, Biggar, Dulin and Roberts will look to reclaim the ball and Davies and Naholo will hold back to cover any return kicks.

In defence we will look to use  our usual blitz with Jones flying up to prevent the ball being spun out wide. If  possible we will have a forward on Biggar's shoulder to support the tackle and  look for the angled running. We will look to slow down their ball legally when possible but that is mainly for Warburton's turnovers.

We have a solid bench and the impact of Smith will be huge looking to target a tired Wasps breakdown and exploit the gaps with his experience.

Whilst we are looking to  stop Wasps playing we are also focusing on ending the season on a high with positive forwards carrying and heads up rugby using both our carrying and kicking to exploit Wasps depending on their defence system.

Any feedback on my tactics would be much appreciated as I've tried to be more specific.




Wasps
Manager: CJ

01. James Slipper09. Tomas Cubelli
02. Richardt Strauss10. Finn Russell
03. Sekope Kepu
04. George Merrick11. Tommy Bowe
05. Kearnan Myall12. Christian Lealifiano
06. Chris Robshaw13. Michele Campagnaro
07. John Barclay14. Rene Ranger
08. Victor Vito (c)15. Chris Pennell
:-
16. Nathan Catt 17. Elliott Dee, 18. Tom West 19. Donnacha Ryan, 20 Carl Fearns, 21. Niko Matawalu , 22. Charlie Hodgson 23.  Duncan Taylor

Tactics:


On the back of a morale-raising win against this team in Europe, we look to start very fast and hit Worcester very hard at the start of the match, to keep over momentum and psychologically switch Worcester from looking for revenge to remembering they lost last week. 

The main changes we have made for this match are replacing Spurling with the more experienced and powerful Strauss to improve the set piece, bringing back the experienced and dangerous Tommy Bowe to make the most of scoring opportunities in light rain, Ranger on the wing to physically handle Naholo and really test his tackling technique and Campagnaro at 13 to add dynamism and physicality. 

On the bench we have the experience of Hodgson to steer home a match, with Niko still there as a gamebreaker and Taylor adding versatility, attacking ability and form, and we bring in Fearns and Dee to add power in the pack.

Breakdown:
 minimal numbers especially in defence, two flankers working in tandem with one always shadowing the ball to ensure we are first there and get quick ball in attack and deciding whether to play the ball (for the slowing or turnover) or hold off and pressurise the 9 in defence. 

Attack: 
Keep an eye open for space behind their wings, especially on the turnover, to kick at and attack with our strong chasers
Build up slow ball with the forwards

As it was successful last week, we will want again look to use Lealiifano to commit Roberts and pivot and loop off him as a playmaker (offloading if needed with the flankers there as a clean up option - a Robshaw special), meaning we get a reset attack against a now shortened defence with a one man advantage - like Sexton-loop with Ireland. We can then get powerful runners in Vito, our front row, Campagnaro and Ranger to push this strained defence into either cracking or shortening further, creating a potential overlap for finisher Bowe.

Look to attack both wingers off the blind side with short passes to big carriers and the back 3, as well as snipes off 9

If their blitz is too fast up to bypass playing off 12 as above, start to use the snipe, chip and inside offloads. Keep them guessing.

Also to stop Roberts predicting Lealiifano's carrying too easily, we will sometimes, especially in the middle of the match, pop the ball off a flat Russell to Vito or Ranger to smash straight up into him, then recycle from that and now have Lealiifano in the line as another playmaker and a different dimension to attack.

Defence: 
Blitz led by Lealiifano, with 9 sweeping, run back kicks, tight fringe defence led by Myall.

With this set up, the Welsh 9-10-12 axis, we know what to expect. Double man Roberts to hold him up and use the likes of Robshaw to hit him early and tackle his momentum-making carries out of the game. Pressurise the 9 to stop him having the space to snipe. Little running from Biggar so press Roberts harder and expect a lot of kicking that we will run back. 

We will have our backrow also ready for running from Morgan and look to double man him when possible too, to hold him up.

Setpiece: Should be a good frontrow battle, look to scrummage fairly and get our ball out quickly to avoid tiring our props too much. Mix up options at the lineout, using the driving maul in their 22 and compete on the ground not in the air.

Other: 

Take any points on offer in this drizzle. With our back 3, I think we should also be looking to run back as much ball as possible, though as their back 3 are also more runners than ball fielders, I am happy to kick at them with a good chase and when their positioning is off, especially with the class kicking at 9, 10, 12 and 15.

In summary:


Continue with specific plan to neutralise Roberts in attack and defence

Look to space behind their defensive line and back 3 with clever kicking and sniping

2 flanker approach chasing the ball and playing the breakdown as they see it

Start the match at high intensity, looking to score early psychological points

Look to loop and pivot off 12 to keep playing with space when the defensive line comes up, but with a plan B and C






Newcastle Falcons v London Irish
Kingston Park
Light Rain, 7 Degrees, 12mph North Easterly Winds


Aviva Premiership Round Twenty 8 Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Bambam

01. Matt Mullan09. Rhys Webb 
02. Jamie George  10. Owen Farrell 
03. Davit Kubriashvili
04. Guido Petti11. Charles Piutau
05. Flip Van Der Merwe12. Stuart McCloskey
06. David Ewers13. Luke Marshall
07. Francois Louw14. David Strettle
08. Kieran Read (c) 15. Ben Smith
:-
16.Dane Coles 17.Alec Hepburn 18. Charlie Faumuina 19. Ed Slater 20. Chris Henry 21. Greig Laidlaw 22. Gareth Anscombe  23. Rob Miller

Tactics

Game plan - Use the big pack to really put their front 5 under pressure, particularly targeting Alexander in the scrum with Mullan's technique. Compete hard for the ball at the ruck to get on top, look to smash through their lightweight 10-13 combo

Key points 

Target Alexander in the scrum with our quality front row
Louw the only true 7 on the field, win us turnovers
Target the lightweight 10-13 combo with heavy carrying to get us going forward


Set piece - Look to really put their props under maximum pressure with Mullan and Kubs, we've got a great scrummaging lock pairing to help. If no weakness, use as restart. Flip to call lineout, mark their second rows and force long throws where Read is waiting. On our ball, use the back row options to mix it up

Breakdown - Louw, Read, Ewers and Coles to lead the way on turnovers. Others focus on strong clear outs and maintaining a strong defensive line. Coles and Read able to split staying close to the ruck, or turning the ball over in wider areas like they do for NZ. On our ball, smash them off the ball, use pod system to ensure support if they are having success. Louw is up against Wood at 7, we think we have the advantage and want him to go for turnovers at every opportunity

Kicking - Smith and Marshall to offer options outside Farrell with their accurate boots. Kick in behind the wings for territory, aim for space not the man. Challenge Nanai Williams positioning with Piutau chasing hard and put the high ball up on Yarde at every opportunity

Attack - Webb to snipe if on, but look to get the ball out quickly to Farrell, and get Mccloskey /Marshall through gaps. Challenge their midfield defensively with McCloskey and Marshall running hard lines at their channels with Piutau and Smith coming into the line. Big carrying forwards to set a platform, run at Cruden and Slade all day long to put them on the back foot off first phase, see how they handle it

Defence - no weak links in the backline, use a blitz in their territory, in ours use the drift to maintain the line and challenge them to beat us one on one

Bench - Impact forwards in Coles, Faumuina, Slater to carry hard against tiring defenders. Henry brings us the dual 7 approach to chase turnovers if needed late on,  Laidlaw brings experience to help us close it out, Anscombe can offer us a second receiver option


London Irish 
Manager: Driver

01. Scott Sio09. Aaron Smith
02. Bismarck Du Plessis 10. Aaron Cruden (k)
03. Ben Alexander
04. Alun Wyn Jones11. Marland Yarde
05. Sebastien Vahaamahina12. Henry Slade
06. Jerome Kaino13. JJ Engelbrecht
07. Tom Wood14. Tim Nanai Williams
08. Duane Vermeulen (c)15. Delon Armitage
16.Harry Thacker 17.Ben Moon 18.Thomas Du Poit 19.Matt Symons 20.Sean O'Brian 21.Ben Youngs 22.Brad Barritt 23.Bryan Habana





Last edited by Fluxy on Fri 15 Apr 2016, 10:41 am; edited 6 times in total

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Aviva Premiership Round Twenty Empty Re: Aviva Premiership Round Twenty

Post by Sgt_Pooly Mon 11 Apr 2016, 10:54 am

Should be a good one Steve

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Post by dammit_chris Mon 11 Apr 2016, 8:26 pm

Northampton Saints
Manager: Dammit Chris

1. Mako Vunipola
2. Dylan Hartley (c)
3. Jake Cooper Wooley
4. Joe Launchbury
5. Jonny Gray
6. Faconda Isa
7. Brendon O'Connor
8. Schalk Burger
9. Conor Murray
10. Lima Sopoaga (k)  
11. Julian Savea
12. Manu Tuilagi
13. Elliot Daly
14. Adam Ashley Cooper
15. Ben Foden

Replacements
16. Ashley Johnson 17. Logi Mulipola 18. Ramiro Herrera 19. Paul Jedrasiak 20. Luke Wallace 21. Joe Simpson 22. Matt Giteau 23. Frank Halai

Tactics
Looking to play with our usual aggressive, physical style in the forwards with big runners getting us over the gainline and putting Tigers on the backfoot and not giving them any time on the ball. We'll look for Burger and Isa to make the breakdown extremely physical with O'Connor targeting turnovers. Our aim is to give our halfbacks good front foot ball to attack Tigers and use our strike runners in the backline to test their defence. We have selected a 9,10,13 combination to ensure we can win the tactical kicking battle. We will look to bring our impact bench on to finish the game strongly.

Set Piece
We've been rotating our pack to ensure that is fresh for the end of the season, we want to put pressure on the Tigers second row at scrum time, especially with Mako making Telegraph's team of week for the second week in a row for his scrummaging! We've selected a team that has a strong lineout presence with Hartley's accuracy and allow us to mix up our attack and get quality ball for Tuilagi and Savea to run off.

Gainline/Physical Battle
We want to put real emphasis on the gainline battle, so have picked powerful ball carriers throughout our pack and strike runners in our backline. We want to suck in Tigers backline to stop our pack going forward and create space outwide for our backline. We want to use Tuilagi to suck in defenders and then use Daly's pace to exploit space and bring in our back three.

Breakdown
We are aiming to make this a really physical battle with Burger and Isa and provide O'Connor with a platform to seek turnovers and attack. We will look to use the breakdown ability of Launchbury and Gray to make sure we get an advantage over Tigers and attack the breakdown as a team. We want quick ball for Murray to exploit.

Attack
We will look to get our forwards on the ball and running off Sopoaga to make inroads into the Tigers defensive line and provide space for our strike runners in the backline to exploit and get Tuilagi, Daly, Savea and AAC on the ball as often as possible. The light rain won't stop us wanting to play a quick high-tempo game and go through the phases.

Kicking
With Murray, Sopoaga and Daly we feel we have a strong kicking game and will look to ensure we dominate the territory battle, which will help us keep Tigers pinned back in their half and make them play from deep.  

Defence
Similar style defence to that which Saracens play in real life, putting a lot of pressure on the attacking team and force them into mistakes. Lot of big hitters in the pack, Murray to sweep behind the defensive line.


Last edited by dammit_chris on Thu 14 Apr 2016, 9:18 pm; edited 2 times in total

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Post by Fluxy Tue 12 Apr 2016, 9:16 am

Conditions updated OK

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Post by Sgt_Pooly Tue 12 Apr 2016, 10:44 am

Saracens
Manager – Pooly

01. Ben Franks09. Morgan Parra
02. Guilhem Guirado10. Nicolas Sanchez
03. Dan Cole
04. Sam Whitelock11. George North
05. Geoff Parling12. Sonny Bill Williams
06. James Haskell13. Conrad Smith
07. John Hardie14. Chris Ashton
08. Dave Denton15. Stuart Hogg
:-
16. Richard Hibbard 17. Alex Waller 18. Jannie du Plessis 19. Brad Davies 20. Temani Harrison 21. Henry Taylor 22. Henry Trinder 23. Pat Lambie

Tactics:

TARGET HEALY IN THE SCRUM - Look to get at Healy in the scrum with Cole and JDP. Look to get in between Healy and the hooker and splinter the Quins scrum.

TARGET JANTJIES - FIRST GAME FOR QUINS - Put a lot of pressure on Jantjies with Haskell and Hardie in his face from the off. An away game at Sarries is not the place to start a new 10. Get Big runners down his channel and really shake him off his game.

HOME ADVANTAGE _ TOP 4 TO PLAY FOR - QUINS SAFE IN 2ND - Huge game for us and we'll be really up for it. Quins have named a good lineup but are safe in 2nd and will have mindset for finals.

GET HOOPER OUT OF THE GAME AND TARGET BREAKDOWN - Look to take Hooper out the equation around the ruck area and target the breakdown. With Hooper having little influence, we feel we can get on top here with Cole, Guirado, Hardie, Haskell etc.


General - We'll be playing a structured physical game from the off, look to get at the opposition and target the breakdown. 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. Look to control the tempo and areas we play with kicking options at halfback.

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.


Last edited by Sgt_Pooly on Thu 14 Apr 2016, 5:24 am; edited 1 time in total

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Post by Driver Tue 12 Apr 2016, 12:10 pm

Big game at KP.

Home side have to win or they are out of the top 4 race. Our own fortune is still very much in our hands at Irish.
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Post by Fluxy Tue 12 Apr 2016, 12:21 pm

Big games this week, a lot will depend on European results as well.

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Aviva Premiership Round Twenty Empty Re: Aviva Premiership Round Twenty

Post by Steven_Sharks Tue 12 Apr 2016, 12:39 pm

Harlequins
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Cian Healy09. Ruan Pienaar
02. Agustin Creevy10. Elton Jantjies (k)
03. Kieran Brookes
04. Pieter Steph Du Toit11. Jack Nowell 
05. George Kruis12. Robbie Henshaw
06. Jaco Kriel 13. Jonathan Joseph
07. Michael Hooper (c)14. Santiago Cordero
08. Mamuka Gorgodze15. Damian McKenzie
16. Scott Baldwin 17. Ethan Waller 18. Kyle Sinckler 19. Luke Romano 20. Jamie Gibson 21. Karl Dickson 22. Juan Martin Hernandez 23. Joe Tomane

Tactics

Game Plan - Look to play at a very quick pace when we have the ball in hand. We'll look to get our big carriers throughout our pack carrying the ball hard and getting across the gain line running off Pienaar, Jantjies and McKenzie who will come in as first receiver option. Jantjies and McKenzie are to attack the line and draw in defenders to put others into space especially our centres and back three. Kriel and Hooper will look to carry in wider channels where they can be incredibly effective in getting us onto the front foot. 

Our kicking game will be based upon trying to retain possession. When kicking for territory we will look to hit touch so we can use Kruis and Du Toit to really pressure the Saracens line out but we will also look to use up and unders to use the expertise of Henshaw and our outside backs to retain possession or to force errors. We will especially look to target Ashton with this. We feel we have really solid primary kicking options in Pienaar, Jantjies and McKenzie to gain an advantage in this area.

Set Piece - Look to use our line out as an attacking weapon with Kruis and Du Toit as our key operators. We will look to mix between full and shortened lines and use the ball straight from 9 to either 12 or Gorgodze on a short line out to get us on the front foot straight away. At the scrum we will look to get Brookes up so Gorgodze can attack on a wheel. 

Defence - Look to use a drift defence with and up and out shape to use the pack of our side to our advantage. Use chop tackles to bring the carriers straight to the ground and try to get the first man over the ball with Kriel, Hooper and Creevy especially targeting this.

Key Points 

Goal Kicking - We have the top two point scorers in the Super 15 in McKenzie and Jantjies. Keep the score board ticking over.

Impact off the bench - We have guys who get themselves on the ball and will carry hard in our forwards subs. In the backs we have Hernandez and the bang in form Tomane to come on and exploit tired legs. 

Conditions - The dry conditions are perfectly suited to our side. We are able to play at pace with a mobile pack and with a back line which can be lethal with ball in hand from 10 to 15. 

Form: We feel we have form on our side with McKenzie, Du Toit, Joseph, Jantjies and Kruis to highlight just a few of our side who are in the form of their lives.

Team form: Won the last 5 on the bounce and only lost four all season. Eyes are firmly on securing a home semi final and know that only 3 wins from 3 games will guarantee this for us.


Last edited by Steven_Sharks on Thu 14 Apr 2016, 10:36 am; edited 4 times in total (Reason for editing : Huget injured (replaced with Tomane))

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Post by prop_lyd Tue 12 Apr 2016, 1:06 pm

Worcester Warriors
Manager – prop_lyd

01. Alisdair Dickinson09. Gareth Davies
02. Ross Batty10. Dan Biggar (k)
03. WP Nel
04. Yohann Maestri11. Waisake Naholo
05. Leone Nakawara12. Jamie Roberts
06. Jordan Taufua13. Huw Jones
07. Sam Warburton (c)14. James Short
08. Ben Morgan15. Brice Dulin
:-
16. Ken Owens 17. Joe Moody 18. Henry Thomas 19. Tom Savage 20. George Smith 21. Sam Harrison 22. Jules Plisson 23. Mathew Tait

We come into this game looking to secure our highest league position so far. Yes there is disappointment amongst the camp but we are using that to look at being more clinical and look at our vocal home support to spur us on.

Up front we have a pack full of carriers and will be looking to mix up our game by running off 9, 10 and 12 as well as using the pick and go. We will use the leech man to throw the carrier through the contact meaning Wasps are on the back foot and we have that extra moment to secure our clean ball.

Robshaw and Barclay are good at the breakdown so we are coming at them with power to clear our rucks and use Taufua and Warburton to put pressure on their ball and isolate their ball carrier. The choke tackle will be used to halt them in their tracks.

Wasps are focusing on Roberts so we will look to let him have the ball initially, meaning that 2 defenders are drawn in before getting quick ball and using our man advantage out wide to spread it and use the form of Short and Dulin hitting angles. Jones is comfortable at 12 and we will swap him and Roberts at times to keep Wasps guessing and to allow us to exploit any blitz defence.

At the set piece we have brought in Taufua and Maestri to shore things up and to put pressure on the Wasps throw, we will look to double stack initially and, on our ball we will bring it down to suck in the Wasps pack and nullify their breakdown pace.

Our half backs will play heads up rugby, most teams set up against Wales as Wasps are and yet Biggar still uses the up and under to great effect and we will use this when Wasps blitz to look to have 2 waves coming at them, Biggar, Dulin and Roberts will look to reclaim the ball and Davies and Naholo will hold back to cover any return kicks.

In defence we will look to use our usual blitz with Jones flying up to prevent the ball being spun out wide. If possible we will have a forward on Biggar's shoulder to support the tackle and look for the angled running. We will look to slow down their ball legally when possible but that is mainly for Warburton's turnovers.

We have a solid bench and the impact of Smith will be huge looking to target a tired Wasps breakdown and exploit the gaps with his experience.

Whilst we are looking to stop Wasps playing we are also focusing on ending the season on a high with positive forwards carrying and heads up rugby using both our carrying and kicking to exploit Wasps depending on their defence system.

Any feedback on my tactics would be much appreciated as I've tried to be more specific.


Last edited by prop_lyd on Fri 15 Apr 2016, 8:25 am; edited 2 times in total (Reason for editing : Hooper retirement)
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Aviva Premiership Round Twenty Empty Re: Aviva Premiership Round Twenty

Post by Guest Tue 12 Apr 2016, 1:20 pm

1. Beast
2. Strauss
3. Antonio
4 Erzbeth
5. Lavanini
6. Matera
7 Savea
8 Heaslip
9 Robson
10 Cipriani
11 May
12 Crotty
13'Kurindrani
14 Walker
15 Folau
16 Wood
17 LCD
18 Croft
19 Stooke
20 TJ Perenara
21 Pollard
22 Talebula


Glos aim to continue there great run of form
With a win against an Exeter team that has been struggling of late.

Basic game plan- Glos are going to keep it simple. We have picked a much bigger pack than the opposition chock full of ball carriers. The aim is to win the confrontations get front foot ball and then get the
Ball wide to our Backs.

Forwards

- we have picked a big pack to get us on the front foot. The aim is to carry and then carry some more. We want to try and get past the tackler and When on look to offload.
- will look to employ the maul off lineouts in our half and tire out the Exeter pack
- look to go off top in their half and get Kurindrani and co running at Lopez
- Look to get a nudge on when their ball and anchor on our own
- Matera and Savea to target steals at breakdown
- look to contest their ball in lineout and pressure thrower
- target Exeter front five with Webber Castro Auterac ball etc all in poor or no form

Backs
- Cipriani in great form and banging the goals over at moment.
- look to create quick ball for Robson to hit Cipriani to play
On front foot ball
- look to kick for territory when needed but apart from that keep ball in hand
- look to move the ball off quick ball in their half.
- blitz defence with Robson sweeping
- utilise Kurindrani and runners in channel to target Lopez
-

Key points

- big pack to win collisions
- full of ball carriers
- great form throughout team
- on a great run of form
-


Last edited by anonmattyt on Fri 15 Apr 2016, 9:43 am; edited 2 times in total

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Post by BamBam Tue 12 Apr 2016, 2:49 pm

Aviva Premiership Round Twenty 8 Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Bambam

01. Matt Mullan09. Rhys Webb
02. Jamie George  10. Owen Farrell
03. Davit Kubriashvili
04. Guido Petti11. Charles Piutau
05. Flip Van Der Merwe12. Stuart McCloskey
06. David Ewers13. Luke Marshall
07. Francois Louw14. David Strettle
08. Kieran Read (c) 15. Ben Smith
:-
16.Dane Coles 17.Alec Hepburn 18. Charlie Faumuina 19. Ed Slater 20. Chris Henry 21. Greig Laidlaw 22. Gareth Anscombe  23. Rob Miller

Tactics

Game plan - Use the big pack to really put their front 5 under pressure, particularly targeting Alexander in the scrum with Mullan's technique. Compete hard for the ball at the ruck to get on top, look to smash through their lightweight 10-13 combo

Key points

Target Alexander in the scrum with our quality front row
Louw the only true 7 on the field, win us turnovers
Target the lightweight 10-13 combo with heavy carrying to get us going forward


Set piece - Look to really put their props under maximum pressure with Mullan and Kubs, we've got a great scrummaging lock pairing to help. If no weakness, use as restart. Flip to call lineout, mark their second rows and force long throws where Read is waiting. On our ball, use the back row options to mix it up

Breakdown - Louw, Read, Ewers and Coles to lead the way on turnovers. Others focus on strong clear outs and maintaining a strong defensive line. Coles and Read able to split staying close to the ruck, or turning the ball over in wider areas like they do for NZ. On our ball, smash them off the ball, use pod system to ensure support if they are having success. Louw is up against Wood at 7, we think we have the advantage and want him to go for turnovers at every opportunity

Kicking - Smith and Marshall to offer options outside Farrell with their accurate boots. Kick in behind the wings for territory, aim for space not the man. Challenge Nanai Williams positioning with Piutau chasing hard and put the high ball up on Yarde at every opportunity

Attack - Webb to snipe if on, but look to get the ball out quickly to Farrell, and get Mccloskey /Marshall through gaps. Challenge their midfield defensively with McCloskey and Marshall running hard lines at their channels with Piutau and Smith coming into the line. Big carrying forwards to set a platform, run at Cruden and Slade all day long to put them on the back foot off first phase, see how they handle it

Defence - no weak links in the backline, use a blitz in their territory, in ours use the drift to maintain the line and challenge them to beat us one on one

Bench - Impact forwards in Coles, Faumuina, Slater to carry hard against tiring defenders. Henry brings us the dual 7 approach to chase turnovers if needed late on, Laidlaw brings experience to help us close it out, Anscombe can offer us a second receiver option


Last edited by BamBam on Thu 14 Apr 2016, 5:00 pm; edited 3 times in total

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Post by Driver Tue 12 Apr 2016, 6:50 pm

London Irish Team

1.Scott Sio
2.Bismark Du Plessie
3.Ben Alexander
4.Alun Wyn Jones
5.Sebastain Vaahanamia
6.Jerome Kaino
7.Tom Wood
8.Duane Vermaulen (C)

9.Aaron Smith
10.Aaron Cruden (K)
11.Marlande Yarde
12.Henry Slade
13.JJ Engelbrectt
14.Anthony Watson
15.Tim Nani Williams

16.Harry Thacker 17.Ben Moon 18.Thomas Du Poit 19.Matt Symons 20.Sean O'Brian 21.Ben Youngs 22.Brad Barritt 23.Delon Armitage
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Post by SirJohnnyEnglish Tue 12 Apr 2016, 10:37 pm

Aviva Premiership Round Twenty 12 Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Jack McGrath09. Faf De Klerk 
02. Tommy Taylor10. Johnny Sexton
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. Maro Itoje11. Simon Zebo
05. Brodie Retalick12. Charlie Ngatai
06. Sean McMahon13. Malakai Fekitoa
07. Sam Cane14. Semesa Rokoduguni
08. CJ Stander15. Nick Abendanon
Subs:
16. Malcolm Marx 17. Ross Harrison 18. Martin Moore 19. Christian Day 20. Matt Kvesic 21. Danny Care 22. Bernard Foley 23. Keith Earls


Attack: We will be playing an expansive, high intensity game looking to keep the ball moving. 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.

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 when the initial contact is won we will look to commit numbers and get over the ball turning it over or at least slowing opposition ball up. Otherwise we will strengthen the line.

Defence: Similar set up to the Welsh with Sexton and Bendy defending deep to cover the backfield. Both wingers will step into the defensive line, to be part of the straight line blitz led by Fekitoa, to shut down space in the wider channels. Focused on winning the gain line collisions and driving the ball carrier back. Line speed is crucial.  Care will sweep behind the line to cover chips and grubbers.

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 get the backs on the ball in space. Defensively Itoje to get up in the air at the front and challenge on opposition ball looking to make it as messy as possible.


Last edited by SirJohnnyEnglish on Fri 15 Apr 2016, 8:13 am; edited 1 time in total

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Post by Driver Wed 13 Apr 2016, 10:01 am

Delon Armitage takes Anthony Watsons place at 15 with TNW moving onto the wing
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Post by Fluxy Wed 13 Apr 2016, 10:05 am

Who is on the bench then buddy?

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Aviva Premiership Round Twenty Empty Re: Aviva Premiership Round Twenty

Post by Driver Wed 13 Apr 2016, 10:49 am

Bryan Habana
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Post by LukeLovesLuka Wed 13 Apr 2016, 2:11 pm

Leicester TigersAviva Premiership Round Twenty 4
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

01. Mikheil Nariashvili09. Nick Phipps
02. Stephen Moore (c)     10. Freddie Burns (k)
03. Owen Franks
04. Steve Mafi11. Matt Banahan
05. Victor Matfield12. Billy Twelvetrees
06. Juan Smith13. Mathieu Bastareaud
07. JMF Lobbe14. Drew Mitchell
08. Wycliffe Palu15. Mike Brown
.
16. Schalk Brits 17. Max Lahiff 18. Brian Mujati 19. George Skivington 20.  21. Micky Young 22. Francois Trinh-Duc 23. Henry Purdy

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Aviva Premiership Round Twenty Empty Re: Aviva Premiership Round Twenty

Post by Fluxy Wed 13 Apr 2016, 4:09 pm

Exeter Chiefs Chief
         
Manager – Fluxy

01. Jefferson Poirot09. Sam Hidalgo-Clyne
02. Tom Youngs10. Alex Losowski
03. Martin Castrogiovanni
04. Jake Ball11. James Lowe
05. James Horwill (c)12. Ollie Devoto
06. Marcell Coetzee13. Sam James
07. Yannick Nyanga14. Teddy Thomas
08. Fritz Lee15. Cory Jane
_
16. Jack Yeandle 17. Thomas Domingo 18. Harry Williams 19. Lood De Jager 20. Brad Shields 21. Chris Cook 22. Alex Losowksi 23. Mike Haley


Last edited by Fluxy on Tue 26 Apr 2016, 11:06 pm; edited 3 times in total

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Post by ChequeredJersey Wed 13 Apr 2016, 10:04 pm

Manager: CJ


01. James Slipper
09. Tomas Cubelli
02. Richardt Strauss
10. Finn Russell
03. Sekope Kepu

04. George Merrick11. Tommy Bowe
05. Kearnan Myall12. Christian Lealiifano
06. Chris Robshaw
13. Michele Campagnaro
07. John Barclay14.  Rene Ranger
08. Victor Vito (c)
15. Chris Pennell
:-
16. Nathan Catt 17. Elliott Dee, 18. Tom West 19. Donnacha Ryan, 20 Carl Fearns, 21. Niko Matawalu , 22. Charlie Hodgson 23.  Duncan Taylor

Tactics:


On the back of a morale-raising win against this team in Europe, we look to start very fast and hit Worcester very hard at the start of the match, to keep over momentum and psychologically switch Worcester from looking for revenge to remembering they lost last week.

The main changes we have made for this match are replacing Spurling with the more experienced and powerful Strauss to improve the set piece, bringing back the experienced and dangerous Tommy Bowe to make the most of scoring opportunities in light rain, Ranger on the wing to physically handle Naholo and really test his tackling technique and Campagnaro at 13 to add dynamism and physicality.

On the bench we have the experience of Hodgson to steer home a match, with Niko still there as a gamebreaker and Taylor adding versatility, attacking ability and form, and we bring in Fearns and Dee to add power in the pack.


Breakdown:
minimal numbers especially in defence, two flankers working in tandem with one always shadowing the ball to ensure we are first there and get quick ball in attack and deciding whether to play the ball (for the slowing or turnover) or hold off and pressurise the 9 in defence.

Attack:
Keep an eye open for space behind their wings, especially on the turnover, to kick at and attack with our strong chasers
Build up slow ball with the forwards

As it was successful last week, we will want again look to use Lealiifano to commit Roberts and pivot and loop off him as a playmaker (offloading if needed with the flankers there as a clean up option - a Robshaw special), meaning we get a reset attack against a now shortened defence with a one man advantage - like Sexton-loop with Ireland. We can then get powerful runners in Vito, our front row, Campagnaro and Ranger to push this strained defence into either cracking or shortening further, creating a potential overlap for finisher Bowe.

Look to attack both wingers off the blind side with short passes to big carriers and the back 3, as well as snipes off 9

If their blitz is too fast up to bypass playing off 12 as above, start to use the snipe, chip and inside offloads. Keep them guessing.

Also to stop Roberts predicting Lealiifano's carrying too easily, we will sometimes, especially in the middle of the match, pop the ball off a flat Russell to Vito or Ranger to smash straight up into him, then recycle from that and now have Lealiifano in the line as another playmaker and a different dimension to attack.


Defence:
Blitz led by Lealiifano, with 9 sweeping, run back kicks, tight fringe defence led by Myall.

With this set up, the Welsh 9-10-12 axis, we know what to expect. Double man Roberts to hold him up and use the likes of Robshaw to hit him early and tackle his momentum-making carries out of the game. Pressurise the 9 to stop him having the space to snipe. Little running from Biggar so press Roberts harder and expect a lot of kicking that we will run back.

We will have our backrow also ready for running from Morgan and look to double man him when possible too, to hold him up.

Setpiece: Should be a good frontrow battle, look to scrummage fairly and get our ball out quickly to avoid tiring our props too much. Mix up options at the lineout, using the driving maul in their 22 and compete on the ground not in the air.

Other:

Take any points on offer in this drizzle. With our back 3, I think we should also be looking to run back as much ball as possible, though as their back 3 are also more runners than ball fielders, I am happy to kick at them with a good chase and when their positioning is off, especially with the class kicking at 9, 10, 12 and 15.


In summary:


Continue with specific plan to neutralise Roberts in attack and defence

Look to space behind their defensive line and back 3 with clever kicking and sniping

2 flanker approach chasing the ball and playing the breakdown as they see it

Start the match at high intensity, looking to score early psychological points

Look to loop and pivot off 12 to keep playing with space when the defensive line comes up, but with a plan B and C


Last edited by ChequeredJersey on Thu 14 Apr 2016, 10:28 pm; edited 2 times in total
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Post by CJB Wed 13 Apr 2016, 11:39 pm

Bath Rugby
Manager – CJB
01. Eddy Ben Arous09. Richard Wigglesworth
02. Rory Best 10. Beauden Barrett
03. Nepo Laulala
04. Will Skelton 11. Juan Imhoff  
05. Graham Kitchener 12. Damian De Allende
06. Dan Lydiate  13. Jonathan Davies
07. Justin Tipuric  14. Christian Wade  
08. Toby Falateu 15. Alex Goode
16. Steven Kitchoff 17. Mikey Haywood 18. Scott Wilson 19. James Gaskell 20. Josh Van Der Flier 21. Siya Kolisi 22. Maxime Machenaud 23. Sam Hill

Overall: We are gonna be looking to play front foot rugby and put Sale under immense pressure with our energy. Look for big carries and offloading at a high pace looking to create space and break the defense. Attack the set piece where we expect to be dominant and finish strongly off the bench

Scrum: Use the set piece to get quick ball to restart our play. Skelton will add a lot of power to the scrum and we will look to get more power from our back five. Falateu will look to attack off the quick ball he gets.

Lineout: We will look to switch up the lineup with Falateu, Skelton and Kitchener options in the lineout. Kitchener will run the line out. Look to get up into the air quickly and down for a quick maul. We think we can dominate here against a poor set of jumpers. Skelton will offer quick ball option at the front.

Breakdown: Look to generate quick ball for our backs to take advantage of. Tipuric is brilliant at the breakdown and we will also look to get the rest of the pack looking to help and clear out.

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

Attack: Our half backs will control our rugby. Wiggles will set the tempoand play what he sees in front of him. Outside of him, Barrett will play flat and use his creativity to bring in the back line and make plays. He will be given a freedom to be creative. Look to bring in the rest of the back line, especially De Allende who we would like to get running at defenders. Wade and Imhoff are very skilful and if the ball gets to them will look to draw in defenders. 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 EBA, Skelton and Falateu 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 Sale which can help nullify their offensive threats.

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

Substitutes: Keep a high tempo with all our internationals off the bench.


Last edited by CJB on Fri 15 Apr 2016, 12:07 am; edited 1 time in total

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Post by prop_lyd Thu 14 Apr 2016, 9:17 pm

Only just got in from training, got.to train against Newport rfc so and knackered, is itnok if I get tactics in early tomorrow morning? Sorry about this
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Post by ChequeredJersey Thu 14 Apr 2016, 9:18 pm

If it's fine by Johnny it's fine by me, doing mine just now
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Post by prop_lyd Thu 14 Apr 2016, 9:37 pm

Cheers fella, will do them before 9 tomorrow!
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Post by Fluxy Thu 14 Apr 2016, 11:56 pm

Will do mine in the morning and get the page updated by 0900. So get them in by then

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Post by Fluxy Fri 15 Apr 2016, 9:35 am

Injuries checked, couldn't see any indiscretions!

Predos open. Pooly or SJE will confirm who is receiving them.

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Post by SirJohnnyEnglish Fri 15 Apr 2016, 9:37 am

Predictions to SJE please

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Post by Guest Fri 15 Apr 2016, 9:42 am

Tactics added

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Post by Fluxy Fri 15 Apr 2016, 9:44 am

Okay for me to add them SJE?

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Post by SirJohnnyEnglish Fri 15 Apr 2016, 10:06 am

Yep work away Fluxy. Tactic deadlines are only a discussion for next season currently thumbsup

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Post by Fluxy Fri 15 Apr 2016, 10:18 am

Updated, wanted to ensure that I wasn't doing anything incorrectly! OK

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Post by LukeLovesLuka Fri 15 Apr 2016, 10:27 am

Tactics

In wet conditions we will play sensibly, looking to play a structured game built around our big carriers getting us over the gainline consistently.

- Attack the scrum as a weapon - and call when we can, if we are getting an advantage. Nariashvili to look to target JCW and to look to really get the shove on.

- Use the rolling maul - Moore to lead from the back guided by Phipps, and use a regular weapon off lineouts won by Matfield.

- No overly ambitious passing - In wet conditions we will either look to kick to gain territory or look to keep ball in hand and take it through the middle.

- Lobbe, Smith, Bastareaud and Moore are the men charged with reaching the breakdown first and look to turnover possession. We will always look to attack quickly off any turnover ball.

- At the lineout use Matfield as our banker ball and Mafu, Smith and Lobbe as alternative jumpers - we will rotate the target. 
With the boots of Phipps, Burns and 36, we will look to get the ball deep in Saints territory and then contest all lineouts. We will relentlessly target the opposition's throws.

- Gigantic XV made up of massive line-breakers right throughout the side, that will look to tire down Saints defence. 
The likes of Palu, Bastareaud, Mafi, Smith, Banahan and Moore used consistently to get us over the gainline.

- We want to control of the tempo of the game as much as we can through our 9/10/12/15.

- 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. Phipps to sweep behind with an eye on short kicks.

- Burns to kick all penalties.

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Post by Fluxy Fri 15 Apr 2016, 10:41 am

Put them in for you Luke OK

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Post by SirJohnnyEnglish Mon 18 Apr 2016, 12:09 pm

RESULTS:

Sale Sharks 30 (T:4 C:2 P:2)
Bath 24 (T:2 C:1 P:4)

Gloucester 25 (T:2 P:5)
Exeter 22 (T:1 C:1 P:5)

Northampton Saints 28 (T:3 C:2 P:3)
Leicester Tigers 21 (P:7)

Saracens 27 (T:3 C:3 P:2)
Harlequins 25 (T:2 P:5)

Worcester Warriors 27 (T:3 C:3 P:2)
London Wasps 21 (P:7)

Newcastle Falcons 29 (T:3 C:1 P:4)
London Irish 21 (P:7)

BONUS:
Full: CJB, Fluxy, Prop, Bam, Chris, SJE, Pooly & CJ
Score: Matt

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Post by SirJohnnyEnglish Mon 18 Apr 2016, 12:10 pm

Sale 27 - 22 Bath

Laulala is a weak link with no form in the scrum, and would expect Sale to be on top in the set piece. Prefer the physicality of the back 5 of Sale's pack and think they'll have the advantage. Half backs pretty even, both strong at centre while Sale have the back 3. With home advantage this is a good win for the leaders

Sale Sharks 25 - 22 Bath Rugby

Relatively even between both packs, with good mobility and breakdown big attributes for both sets of forwards. The Bath back line is more of a threat with ball in hand than the Sharks, however the territorial kicking of the Sharks will keep Bath at arms length. The biggest impact will come from the benches, where Sharks will benefit from the change of pace and impact. Bath will keep Sharks honest however but just lose out. 

Sale 26-23 Bath
Feel Sale can get the edge in the front 5 with a great 2nd row pairing adding good grunt.Back row alot closer, Bath playing an all Welsh back row with great balance but Sale also bringing a lot of class here.Difficult to split. Half backs edged to Sale and think this will release a solid centre pairing. Bath also bringing good pairing in the centres but think Sale will be a bit more dangerous off good ball. Solid form in the back 3 for both. Good impact off bench for Bath but Kvesic running against tired legs will really help Sale. Bath's tactics want a solid set piece and don't think they will actually get this, they are set up well for the attack wanting to draw in Sale and spread it. Sale defence set up very well and think they will get the solid ball from the set piece to give their quick attack.

Sale 23-22 Bath

Not a massive amount in the front 5's, slight edge in the the 2nd row for Sale but nothing huge. 2 good backrows on show and Bath will put up a really contest around the breakdown. I prefer the Bath halfbacks and I think Bath just shade the centres too. really good contest and Bath look much improved but just come up short in a great game.

Sale 32 - 30 Bath
Really interesting game, can see both teams getting a lot of points, Bath have a good advantage in the no2 shirt, but really like Sale's second row combination. More experience in Bath backrow, but good form from Sale. Prefer halfback combination of Bath, but Sexton the standout. Sale have that bit more power in the backline, but can see Bath getting a lot of tries as Ngati settles into the midfield. 


Sale Sharks v Bath 25-24

Sale 24 - 23 Bath

Ben Arous a big acquisition for Bath and can maybe attack Zirakashvilli but McGrath in great form and so scrum is close. Sale edge the lineout and then the backrows and breakdown are very tight, with the cohesion of the Welsh backrow a factor, but ultimately I think Cane and McMahon take the breakdown. Bath will get some decent front foot ball that they look to use in their tactics (both teams will with their packs and strengths) and this makes Barrett very dangerous, but Sexton's control could keep Sale playing in better areas. Wade and Goode have flaws but in amazing form and will really test Sale but Sale's powerful centres have an edge. Altogether, Bath come very very close to an upset but Sale hold on at home

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Post by SirJohnnyEnglish Mon 18 Apr 2016, 12:10 pm

Gloucester 23 - 21 Exeter

Castro could struggle against Beast, and Glos locks are top notch. I'm a big Coetzee fan, great signing by Fluxy and think they can get on top at the breakdown here, but will be close. Glos edge the halfbacks, and are stronger man for man in the outside backs. Both set up to try and dominate physically, don't see either getting a big advantage which keeps it close, but at home Glos take it

Glos 22-22 Chiefs
Bit more for Glos in the front row, Chiefs bringing great grunt to the 2nd row and can hold the set piece here. Back row both teams bringing good experience but feel Glos could get a slight edge here, not enough to make a big difference though. Half backs go to Glos currently. Think it's the same in the centres with Krudrani playing fairly solid at the moment. Outside this Glos a step up in back 3. Bench good for Exeter and Glos slip up with only 22 players named and only 1 prop on the bench here. Glos using their larger pack and want to play heads sup rugby. Chiefs lineouts much clearer and want to go for territory and put pressure on the Glos lineouts. Chiefs want to keep the scoreboard ticking and this will work well. A massive slip from Glos not having enough on the bench turns this into a draw.

Gloucester 26-21 Exeter
Prefer the Gloucester front five. Back row battle is a tough one but id probably go Exeter. Exeter have the big edge at half back. Outside of that Gloucester look the more dangerous 

Gloucester 22-22 Exeter
Both scrums have issues on the TH side. Great battle through the back five of the pack and hard to see either sided getting on top. Good form for the Glaws halfbacks but the Exeter pair proven at a higher level. Glos a step up at 13 and 15 but backs tight else where. Glos have named the bench a man short and Antonio will be blowing in the 2nd half. Glaws looking to use the power of their side and take advantage of the running game of the likes of Savea. Chiefs playing territory and want to attack the set piece a little bit. Glaws would have enough but no TH backup causes issues late on

Gloucester 25-24 Exeter Chiefs 
Has Matt gone in with 22 players? Not having a tight head on the bench is going to impact them as Antonio is a lump and game will suffer as it goes on. But the Gloucester pack has a big old advantage in terms of power and can see them getting quite a few points, as Chiefs new players settle in. Light rain showers won't stop both sides being able to play and just don't think Chiefs will have enough to take advantage of lack of a TH (just). 

Gloucester 22 -21 Exeter

Both sides picked tasty flanker combos re the breakdown and would love to see that battle. Think Exeter have a touch more experience there, and the better 8 who wants to be a back Wink. Gloucester look bigger than Exeter, and look to use it and this could be hard to play a territory game and drift defence against. I think Gloucester on a greasy surface take a slight advantage from the set piece. Can't separate the HBs, though quite different. Gloucester will just make enough space for lightning backs outwide and just win

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Post by SirJohnnyEnglish Mon 18 Apr 2016, 12:10 pm

Saints 30 - 24 Leicester

Saints look to have the advantage pretty much throughout the pack, although would expect Matfield to nick a few lineouts. Round the park though, Tigers just a bit short on the power and breakdown prowess that Saints have. Murray not in great form, but Saints still stronger at halfback, while the Tuilagi-Daly combo could be very good. At home, think Saints win this with some comfort, Leicester just a bit lacking in quality in key areas

Northampton Saints 23 - 19 Leicester Tigers

Both set pieces solid in this one, but Saints pack will get around the park a little quicker than the Tigers pack. The Tigers forwards are though a little more experienced and provide a little wily play to catch the Saints out. Both back lines have the carrying to help get over the gain line and aid the forwards given the conditions. Burns and Sopoaga in good form and will kick the points for both sides. Difference here is there is a bit more pace from the Saints back line, which will help them get around the Tigers defence. Saints pick the home win, with Tigers also picking up the LBP late on. 

Saints 30-24 Tigers
Front 5 to Saints with a stronger and solid set up here. Back row slightly closer but again think that the grunt of the Saints will get them on top. Same at half backs with Burns doing well but Saints will relish their quick ball for the half backs. Same at half backs, just feel Tigers will struggle with 12T against Tuilagi. Slight saving grace defensively for Tigers in the back 3 who are solid defensively. Saints looking to be aggressive, defend hard and look to play heads up rugby, Tigers looking to target the breakdown and use their strong carriers but think Saints can match them here.

Northampton 20-20 Tigers

Not convinced with the Saints scrum with both props not the strongest, tidy unit for Tigers and they look strong. I really like the Saints lock combo but to be picky, they're bot the greatest at the line out and they'll come unstuck with Matfield ruling the skies. Tigers with a bit more balance in the backrow and they'll get a pack advantage overall. Murray really helps out Saints in the backs and they'll get an edge here although I prefer the balance of the Tigers centres. Savea finally in some good form for Chris helps out the backs. Tigers with the better paack but perhaps not enough in the backs to get the win.

Tigers 22-25 Saints
Tigers have a better front row, Saints the better lock combination. I prefer the Saints back row combo marginally. Half backs go to the Saints and outside of that I see them wreaking havoc. 

Saints 20-18 Tigers
Would expect Tigers to get an edge from the set piece. Saints front 5 offers more around the park. Tigers with an edge in the backrow with a powerful unit although Saints more capable of nicking a turnover. Halfbacks are tight but edge to Saints. More of an attacking spark through the Saints backs. Both sides looking to play territory and a power game when in the right areas. Would expect Saints to get the better of the kicking dual but would expect Tigers to edge the contact battle. Looks a messy affair but Saints win with the backs sneaking in for an important try

Northampton Saints v Leicester Tigers. 20-19

Saints 27 - 20 Tigers

I think Saints have a nasty tight 5 which has the elements to win both set pieces. They also edge the breakdown with O'Connor and Burger and generally have a really good pack that can carry. However, the power and nous of Tigers' back row not to be underestimated. Burns in great form, but Saints' halfbacks probably better class. Tigers have a lot of good players outside Burns but it looks a tad one dimensional (not too bad in this rain) against a very dangerous and more varied Saints backline, and Saints win quite comfortably

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Post by SirJohnnyEnglish Mon 18 Apr 2016, 12:11 pm

Saracens 24 - 26 Harlequins

What a game this is. Very tough to split the front 5s, Healy lacks form but don't think Cole is scrummaging strongly enough to take advantage. Think Hughes out is massive for Sarries, and think the back rows pretty much cancel each other out. Jantjies form gives Quins the halfback advantage, while SBW not playing 15s this year means Henshaw and JJ will be the stronger pairing. Back 3s very close, both FBs in excellent form, and the wings offer plenty of go forward. Really tough to call, think the advantage at halfback and off the bench in the backs is what will just give Quins a huge away win

Saracens 24 - 25 Harlequins

Tough contest up front. Healy not being in the best of form as of late, hinders Quins, but same can be said for Franks, so both negated. Again the line out is hotly contested, however neither will really upset each others source, with both units effective as securing possession. The breakdown is relatively even between both sides, and again possession will be secure, but the time slowing up ball will help defences to be set. Both half backs very controlling, with Jantjies throwing more creativity into the mix and putting his centres into holes. SBW is a target for them, playing between sevens and 15's will cause him some issues in defence. Both back threes are a threat ball in hand, but can see the Quins back three getting involved more and creating more opportunities. Good impact from the Sarries bench, however Quins will pinch the late win through the boot of Mackenzie

Sarries 25-24 Quins
Even in front row with both tightheads getting on top. One a piece in the second row here. Back row a close battle with Sarries looking aggressive with strong options, Quins going for more breakdown options and think Hooper will get on top of Hardie in this instance. One a piece at half back with Sanchez being one of the only bright sparks for the Jaguars. Quins take the centre pairing with both playing well whereas SBW in 7s. Tough to split outside of this in the back 3 with good form and danger from both. Very strong impact bench for Sarries will help. Sarries looking to target Quins in specific areas which will work especially setting up against Hooper, solid structure in their tactics and set up. Quins want quick ball which I think they may struggle to get, a solid kicking game will work and I think Sarries could steal this with good tactics working down specific areas of Quins' game.

Sarries 27-25 Quins
Pretty close in the front fives but Sarries have a slight advantage. The Quins back row has more about it. Sarries have the stronger half back combo and both teams are good outside of that. 

Sarries 28-26 Quins
Slight scrum edge for Sarries. Great battle at the breakdown but Quins with a bit more carrying through the pack. Great battle between the halfbacks with good form for both 10s but Jantjes not yet settled in. Edge to the Quins midfield with SBW away and Smith not doing much since the world cup. Both back threes dangerous in their own ways. Both sides with plenty to play for still. Sarries with the usual structured approach looking to play a tight carrying game while Quins with a fast paced open game. Jantjes will be helped out from 9 and 15 but Sarries right to target him and at home should edge this.

Saracens 23 - 23 Harlequins
Just can't give SBW ratings, he's not playing union anymore and ultimately for me is the decisive factor in the game that stops the home side having chance of winning. Only reason Quins don't get the win is because they have a new no10 starting for the first time and will take him a few games to settle despite playing well. Can see Quins getting a good advantage in the backrow but not quite enough to win. 

Saracens 22 - 19 Harlequins

I'd give the scrum to Sarries, with Cole looking good again, and the lineout even honours. Unsure re Denton in the Saracens pack, their backrow is otherwise top notch and should be good for balance, aided by Guirado's work. Breakdown very tough to call, both sides will win penalties here, and Quins probably get more use of their forwards in the backline. Big fan of Saracens' halfbacks but Jantjes playing really good rugby and makes the halfback battle close with lots of skilful attacking kicks and attacking from 10. Saracens' backline has back 3 now in very good form, and excellent centres but both hard to rate right now. Quins have a really nicely balanced back 3 that does everything and excellent, if not in their top form, at centre. Another tough match to call, at home and with the set piece in their favour, Saracens win though

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Post by SirJohnnyEnglish Mon 18 Apr 2016, 12:11 pm

Worcester 26 - 23 Wasps

Re run of last week's quarter final. Again very tough to call with CJs tactics on point as usual. Think the extra physicality in the back 5 of Wuss pack this week and home advantage will mean Wasps find it difficult to repeat their European success. Wasps new look backline looks very dangerous now, and if they can get some quality in the forwards will pay dividends

Worcester Warriors 21 - 20 Wasps

There is a lot of power from the Warriors front five, and to be fair in the back row, which will help get Warriors over the line in the conditions. The workman-like Wasps pack will be resolute and make it hard work for Warriors to break down the defence the Wasps defence. The back row combination for the Wasps will slow Warriors momentum however, as they will pick up a few turnovers. The Wasps back line is dangerous, with a good mix of creativity and control that will put the Warriors back line under pressure. However the tactical kicking of Biggar and the presence of Roberts, allows the Wuss back line to function and get their pack in good spots on the field. It is a close contest, and the benches impact it, as the Wasps front row replacements, don't provide the same impact as the Wuss subs and will allow Warriors secure a narrow home victory. 

Worcester 24-22 Wasps

Good front row contest but Wasps lack a fair bit of quality in the locks and this will hinder them. Good backrow contest and a great battle in the halfbacks. Wasps backline transformed and they really push this one close. They just need some extra quality in the engine room and they could have took this one.

Warriors 24-21 Wasps
Front row to Wasps but second row goes to Warriors. As a combination I think the Warriors have a bit more about their back row. One each in the half backs. Outside of this is a difficult one as well. At home Warriors take the win. 

Worcester 25-22 Wasps
A repeat of last weeks game but Worc with reinforcements in the pack with Maestri and particularly Taufua coming in. Ranger an improvement at wing for Wasps but Bowe struggling for a rating. Dual flanker approach and attacking structure works well for Wasps but use of Roberts as a dummy should see Worc get a lot of joy in the wider areas and reinforcements sees them take it this week.

Worcester Warriors 24 - 21 Wasps
Wasps backline has come on so much in recent weeks, a few signings in the pack and they won't be near a relegation battle at all. The WC players in the home team's pack makes the difference and that backline is pretty special - though Wasps match them with attacking flair and tactics are very good. Just one or two big signings in the pack and it will see a big change. 

Worcester Warriors v Wasps. 18-17

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Aviva Premiership Round Twenty Empty Re: Aviva Premiership Round Twenty

Post by SirJohnnyEnglish Mon 18 Apr 2016, 12:11 pm

Newcastle Falcons 20 - 18 London Irish

Both set pieces for these sides are quite even. Alexander being targeted allows Falcons to at least disrupt the Irish possession. Two very powerful back row units, the Falcons unit is a little more balanced than their Irish counterparts. The sublime half back combination from Irish means that they are always a threat be in ball in hand, or kicking for territory. This provides time for their centres. The Falcons half backs are also equally adept, keeping the falcons defence honest. Given the conditions, the Yarde/TNW combo puts a lot of pressure on Delon to clear, whereas on the other side the falcons back three are more comfortable kicking and clearing the lines. A close contest, but the Falcons will edge Irish at home.

Falcons 27-22 Irish
Front 5's pretty even here with both nullifying each other well. Good back rows and think that Falcons could get this here with a very good balance. Half backs I will call even with Webb and Farrell in good form. Same in the centres but Falcons looking stronger in the back 3. Nothing in the benches. A MASSIVE slip up but Irish not putting tactics in, Falcons targeting breakdown well and looking to use a solid bench set out well in tactics.

Falcons 27-23 Irish

Irish with no tactics really hurts them. It's a good contest and Irish probably take the sides on paper. Falcons need a bit of quality in the centres were they're not looking too strong against other sides. They've got lucky in this one with no direction for the away side

Newcastle 27-19 Irish 
Newcastle are too good to play without any tactics

Falcons 32-22 Irish
On the lineups this is a tight affair. Irish shade halfbacks but feel Falcons stronger 11-15. Falcons more capable of a turnover. Falcons still with a shot of the playoffs and with no game plan Irish will struggle here.

Newcastle 28 - 20 London Irish 
No tactics from Irish? Newcastle looking very strong, would definitely look at getting Piautu playing at 13 or 15 to get him more involved as in incredible form. Miller a bit wasted on the bench as well. Very strong starting 15 for Falcons and with no tactics from Irish this is a big win for them.


Newcastle Falcons v London Irish 20-20

Falcons 26 -20 London Irish

I think I just give the scrum to Newcastle, and lineout too, though Irish compete well there. Mullan will hurt Alexander. Lovely backrow battle, both well balanced on the whole but whilst the carrying is probably equal, I think Falcons can take the breakdown. Both combos at 9-10 suit their set ups well, Webb-Farrell contrasting and complementing each other and Smith-Cruden lethal and world class. The key backs to watch for me are the excellent and fluid Slade winning the centre Match up but Piutau a lethal threat. With no tactics, it's too big a task for Irish

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Aviva Premiership Round Twenty Empty Re: Aviva Premiership Round Twenty

Post by Fluxy Mon 18 Apr 2016, 12:16 pm

Bit miffed that I couldn't at least get a draw, having a full squad compared an in-complete squad

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Post by BamBam Mon 18 Apr 2016, 12:27 pm

Sorry Flux, if I'd spotted that I would have given you the win!

Thought I would manage a bonus point given the lack of tactics!

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Aviva Premiership Round Twenty Empty Re: Aviva Premiership Round Twenty

Post by prop_lyd Mon 18 Apr 2016, 12:31 pm

Nice to get good feedback about my 2nd rows!! Only taken about 3 seasons to improve there!
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