Aviva Premiership - Round 7

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Leicester Tigers vs London Irish
Welford Road
Rain - 6 degrees, 10mph North Easterly Winds

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Leicester Tigers

01. Ellis Genge	09. Ben Youngs
02. Tom Youngs	10. George Ford
03. Dan Cole
04. Dominic Barrow	11. Jonny May
05. Vaea Fifita	12. Matt Toomua
06. CJ Stander	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Brad Shields	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Sione Kalamafoni	15. Telusa Veainu

.
Subs: 16. Harry Thacker 17. Simon McIntyre 18. Pat Cilliars 19. Matt Symons 20. Mike Williams 21. Jono Kitto 22. Joe Ford 23. Nick Malouf
:-
Tactics:
- Solid set piece to set tone and provide solid platform
- Look to play high intensity rugby with a drift defence, not allowing for space for the opp
- Attack the breakdown when it's on with numerous option
- Physical pack to win collision and numerous carrying options to get us over the gain line
- Keep the intensity up with a strong bench
- Get Telusa Veainu into the game whenever possible, he's a match winner in these conditions

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London Irish
Manager – Bambam

01. Gordon Reid	09. TJ Perenara
02. Asafo Aumua	10. Aaron Cruden (k)
03. Ben Franks
04. Sebastien De Chaves	11. Joe Cokanasiga
05. Brodie Retallick (c)	12. Jordie Barrett
06. Jack Clifford	13. Johnny Williams
07. Luke Wallace	14. Marland Yarde
08. Jack Conan	15. Jordan Larmour

:-
16. David Paice 17. Danny Hobbs-Ayowemi 18. Ollie Hoskins 19. Josh McNally 20. Max Northcote-Green 21. Scott Steele 22. James Grayson 23. Fergus Mulchrone

Big carriers to open up the field for us - Aumua out wide, Conan and Retallick tight to the ruck
Wallace play as true 7, look for turnovers, Clifford play it as you see it, either support for turnovers or add to the defensive line - we want dominant tackles
Perenara snipe whenever its on, keep them honest.
Cruden and Jordie the dual playmakers, split the field when its an option and stretch the defence
Jordie is our movable chess piece - look for mis matches, Williams can play 12 to give you a go at slower defenders
Larmour to run everything back when its on, Jordie step back when they are obviously going to kick to offer a kicking option

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Newcastle Falcons vs Exeter Chiefs
Kingston Park
Light showers - 4 degrees, 9mph North Easterly Winds

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Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Ozzy

01. Sam Lockwood	09. Sonatane Takulua
02. Kyle Cooper	10. Toby Flood
03. Owen Franks
04. Dominic Bird	11. Sinoti Sinoti
05. Iain Henderson	12. Juan Pablo Socino
06. Mark Wilson	13. Maxine Mermoz
07. Nili Latu	14. Vereniki Goneva
08. Opeti Fonua	15. Alex Tait

:-
16. Ben Sowery 17. Sami Mavinga 18. David Wilson 19. Sean Robinson 20. Will Welch 21. Micky Young 22. Craig Willis 23. DTH Van Der Merwe

TACTICS
- Blitz defence with good line speed with 9 and 15 sweeping.
- Look to get the ball to the wingers and put them in space, can cause serious damage from anywhere on the park
- Big runners carrying close to the ruck but looking to keep the ball alive with offloads to runners on their shoulder.
- Fast paced game with high tempo offloading game. similar to Falcons in real life but with better players!
- Powerful front 5 to set tone and all good with ball in hand to keep the ball alive
- Some excellent real life form

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Exeter Chiefs 
Manager – Fluxy

01. Ben Moon	09. Conor Murray
02. Luke Cowan-Dickie	10. Henry Slade (k)
03. Harry Williams
04. Jonny Hill	11. Jack Nowell
05. Sam Skinner	12. Ollie Devoto
06. James Chisholm	13. Sam Hill
07. Don Armand (c)	14. Jacob Stockdale
08. Thomas Waldrom	15. Lachlan Turner

. 
16. Jack Yeandle, 17. Alec Hepburn, 18. Greg Holmes, 19. Sam Whitelock 20. Sam Simmonds, 21. Jack Maunder 22. Anthony Belleau, 23. James Short

Look to play the real life Chiefs style of play, a high-intensity game in both defence and attack. Dynamic carrying and rucking at the fore, keeping it narrow until we create quick enough possession to feed our back line.  

- Use the set piece as a weapon to launch attacks, especially the maul, with the likes of Waldrom or Armand to launch themselves off the back of mauls. 
- Pick & goes - in twos and threes around the fringes, to starve Newcastle of possession and is a great weapon of the Chiefs over the years. 
- It will be phases of carrying, running at least in pairs to help maintain a leg drive. This is the standard Chiefs style, and causes the opposition defence to be drawn into the defend through the middle, creating space out wide for our back line to exploit. 
- Half-backs to dictate the game and play for territory. Slade to also kick available points when on offer - to keep the scoreboard ticking over. 
- Devoto to act as the second playmaker and look to spread the ball wide to back three when the space is available to attack, or to take pressure off Slade on clearances.
- Wingers to come in off their wings and look for work, and get them 1v1 on a forward to make the most of their footwork and speed to beat the slow Falcons forwards. 
- Not worried about how Falcons will play, we will chop them low and early to allow our back row to compete and slow their ball down. The game is based around us having possession for long periods and forcing Newcastle to panic when they have the ball, as they will want to do something immediately with it, if they get it, and this should yield mistakes and forced opportunities for us to capatilise on.

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Northampton Saints vs Gloucester Rugby
Franklins Gardens
Rain - 6 degrees, 10mph North Easterly Winds

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Northampton Saints
Manager: StNick

01. Alex Waller	09. Cobus Reinach
02. Dylan Hartley	10. Johnny Sexton (k)
03. Paul Hill
04. Courtney Lawes	11. Tom Collins
05. Michael Paterson	12. Luther Burrell
06. Tom Wood	13. Rob Horne
07. Kwagga Smith	14. George North
08. Facundo Isa	15. Alex Goode

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16 Campese Ma'afu, 17 Mikey Haywood, 18 Kieran Brookes, 19 Christian Day, 20 Jamie Gibson, 21 Nic Groom, 22 Steven Myler, 23 Bundee Aki

Tactics
- Use Isa as the main carrier, supported by Lawes, Hartley, Wood
- Sexton to kick all pens for goal in range, otherwise go for corner
- Bring North off his wing to look for work
- Use Norths height with cross field kicks
- Goode to act as second playmaker on occasion

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Gloucester Rugby
Manager - Prop_Lyd

01. Val Ruskin	09. Aaron Smith
02. Richard Hibbard	10. Richie Mo'unga (k)
03. John Afoa
04. Tom Savage (c)	11. Charlie Sharples
05. Franco Mostert	12. Billy Twelvetrees
06. Lewis Ludlow	13. Jon Davies
07. Ruan Ackerman	14. Ollie Thorley
08. Ben Morgan	15. Jason Woodward

_
16. James Hanson 17. Josh Honeck 18. Gareth Denman 19. Ed Slater 20. Jake Polledri  21. Ben Vellacott 22. Billy Burns 23. Tom Marshall

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Tactics
*Look to grind them down in the front 5 with a hefty pack not afraid to do dirty work,
*Forwards to work in pods round the corner 2 phases then wide and hit gaps,
*JD2 and 12T to play what's in front of them and look to put runners through,
*Mo'unga to look to get quick ball out, if it isn't on then tactical kicking to corners,
*Defence led by JD2 and with a back rower on Mo'unga's shoulder to assist tackle and get over the ball,
*Look to slow them down with a well balanced back row,
*Use bench wisely with experience to come on and pace in the backs to target tired legs especially Vellacott who will be given a run out towards the end,
*Keep the scoreboard ticking over.

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Sale Sharks vs Harlequins
AJ Bell
Light showers - 6 degrees, 9mph North Easterly Winds

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Sale Sharks
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Ross Harrison	09. Faf Du Klerk
02. Malcolm Marx	10. Nicolas Sanchez (k)
03. Rabah Slimani
04. Josh Beaumont	11. Byron McGuigan
05. Pieter Steph Du Toit	12. Sam James
06. Judicael Cancoriet	13. Jack Goodhue
07. Ben Curry	14. Denny Solomona
08. Josh Strauss (c)	15. James O'Connor

16. Rob Webber 17. Greg Bateman 18. Halani Aulika  19. Bryn Evans 20. Jono Ross 21. Antoine |Dupont 22. Will Addison 23. Keelan Giles

Tactics

- Fast paced rugby when we have quick ball. Led by Du Klerk at 9. Look to get behind the defence then get the ball wide to McGuigan and Solomona.

- Use a quick line speed to put decision makers under pressure. Look to win collisions when they are on the back foot otherwise chop and get the first man over (Curry,Cancoriet, Strauss, Marx)

- Use the boots of Du Klerk, Sanchez , James and O'Connor to turn Quins when we are deep in our own territory or they have limited cover.

- Pressure on line out from Beaumont and Du Toit.

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Harlequins
Manager – CJ

01. Mark Lambert	09. Will Chudley
02. Dane Coles	10. Demetri Catrakalis
03. Will Collier
04. James Horwill (c)	11. Tim Visser
05. Johnny Gray	12. Jamie Roberts
06. Mat Luamanu	13. Francis Saili
07. Chris Robshaw	14. Charlie Walker
08. Renaldo Bothma	15. Mike Brown

:-
16.  Lewis Boyce 17. Rob Buchanan 18. Phil Swainston   19. Charlie Matthews 20. Sam Cane 21. Danny Care 22. Marcus Smith 23. Alex Lewington

TACTICS


Breakdown:


Today we have picked a physical outfit at the breakdown, looking to use power to bully the lighter Sale back row off the ball in wet conditions. If we need more speed and pure groundwork, the world’s best open side is on the bench.


Attack:


Controlled phase attack off 10, building together phases with trundles from our forwards in groups and big carries into defenders from Brown Andy roberts, patiently building until a gap appears.

With Catrakalis starting, we are very happy to switch to the territorial kicking game with a great chasing back 3- especially look to give Brown high balls against their wingers. In their red zone we will look to kick past the defence onto our pacy wings.

If we are struggling to break them down, we have Care and Smith on the bench to break the game apart.


Defence 


Blitz led by Roberts, in the wet aggressive fringe defence is key and Horwill and Robshaw lead this. Luamanu looking to physically bully Du Kerk


Set Piece:


Our line out should be safe as houses and with Gray we will look to really attack theirs at the front, force them to throw long. We will mostly use the maul. 


Others:


Discipline key today- no penalties to be given away in our half please
Keep it simple initially in the rain- no forcing plays
Lots of high and deep kicks to contest and test their handling 
Really attacking bench if we are chasing the game

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Wasps vs Saracens
Ricoh Arena
Rain - 6 degrees, 9mph North Easterly Winds

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Wasps
Manager - Pullthestrings

01. Logovi'i Mulipola	09. Dan Robson
02. Ashley Johnson	10. Danny Cipriani
03. Jake Cooper-Wooley
04. James Gaskell	11. Elliot Daly
05. Scott Barrett	12. Jimmy Gopperth (k)
06. Sean O'Brien	13. Juan De Jongh
07. Thomas Young	14. Christian Wade
08. Nathan Hughes	15. Willie Le Roux

_
16. Tommy Taylor, 17. Alex Lundberg, 18. Paul Doran-Jones, 19. Kearnan Myall, 20. James Haskell, 21. Joe Simpson, 22. Kyle Eastmond, 23. Josh Bassett

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Tactics
Attack:
- Play high tempo, high intensity, tire their relentless defence
- Expect good D from the opposition, so mix up our lines of attack, sometimes with two lines with forwards as options with offload options
- Keep the ball moving, don't get caught in an arm wrestle
- Mix up forward runners off 9 and 10 to give go forward and tie in defence. When space opens up, go wide and utilise pace of back three.
Defence:
- Quick line speed, getting up to the 10 and putting pressure on.
- Only step out of the line for big hit opportunities.
- Double hits on their big runners, isolate them
Breakdown:
- Ensure quick breakdowns, getting their latchers off the ball immediately
- Be disciplined at the breakdown and do not give away penalties in our half
- Compete for the turnover if it's on, even if it's only too slow down the ball
- If ruck is lost, don't compete and fan out in defence
Territory:
- Keep the ball in field where possible
- Use box kicks from 9 and nudges from 10 out of hand to pin them back, flood through on the kick chase
- Play rugby in their half and make them attack from deep
- Full back to marshall the back 3 and make sure our positioning is spot on for kick returns

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Saracens
Manager – Pooly

01. Mako Vunipola	09. Richard Wigglesworth
02. Jamie George	10. Owen Farrell
03. Vincent Koch
04. Eben Etzebeth	11. Chris Wyles
05. George Kruis	12. Alex Lozowski
06. Maro Itoje	13. Damian Penaud
07. Schalk Burger	14. Sean Maitland
08. Billy Vunipola	15. Liam Williams

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16. Schalk Brits  17. Hayden Thompson-Stringer 18. Juan Figallo 19. Will Skelton  20. Michael Rhodes 21. Ben Spencer 22. Harry Mallinder 23. Nathan Earle
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Tactics:

- Play the conditions, nothing too flashy and plenty of kicking options with all the backline comfortable here.  
- Strong, physical pack to set a tone in the collisions. High intensity rugby, with big carries from numerous options. Will look to dominate the opposition pack and lay a foundation for our backs.
- Target Set piece and go for the jugular if a weakness is seen. Kicking for corners and territory if able to exert pressure in this area.
- Strong impact from the bench to keep intensity up.
- Typical Sarries blitz defence, squeezing the life out opposition and forcing errors.
- Play the game in the right areas of the pitch. Low error rugby and go through the phases when required.
- Farrell and Lozowski to give playmaking options and alternate at first receiver. Look to put Lozowski through gaps or mismatches and exploit his gas.
-TARGET LINEOUT - Numerous world class jumpers and excellent defensive line out options. Look to mark Gaskell/Barrett and push pressure on the Wasps throw. Think we can get a lot of joy in this area with Etzebeth and Kruis either side of Gaskell. If weakness seen look to pin Wasps back in own half and force pressure.
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- TARGET WADE - Cross field kicks with Wyles excellent in the air. Look to get Williams exchanging on attack also with his added ability in the air.
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- GRIND DOWN THE WASPS FRONT 5 - throughout game with hugely physical front 5 and international class bench.

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Worcester Warriors vs Bath Rugby
Sixways
Light showers - 7 degrees, 9mph North Easterly Winds

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1. Ethan Waller
2. Jack Singleton
3. Nick Schonert
4. Will Spencer
5. Guido Petti
6. Peter O’Mahoney
7. Michael Hopper
8. David Denton
9. Francois Hougaard
10. Beauden Barrett
11. Dean Hammond
12. Ngani Laumape
13. Ben Teo
14. Josh Adams
15. Chris Pennell

16. Joe Tau’fete
17. Gareth Milanosivich
18. Biyi Alo
19. Donnacha O’Callaghan
20. Blake Gibson
21. Jonny Arr
22. Jamie Shillock
23. Ryan Mills


- Rotated team means everyone will be playing with fresh legs
- Barrett to play flat and control the game as he sees fit.
- Strong pack will look to hammer home an advantage and give the backs adequate ball to play with. Our aim is to out possession Bath and we believe we can win if we get that
- Scchonert especially to put the hurt on Obano and try to gain an edge in the scrum
- Look to be really disruptive at the line out, we have four top notch ball winners while even Hopper can provide some line out acumen.
- Hooper and POM really look attack the breakdown, we are looking to slow down their ball and dominate our own
- Target a weak defensive back three by looking to get the ball out wide and with Barrett kicks.
- Hougaard to inject life into the game with sniping attacks
- Look to get the ball in the hands of Teo and Laumape

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Bath Rugby
Manager – Driver

01. Beno Obano	09. Kahn Fotuali
02. Tom Dunn	10. Rhys Priestland (k)
03. Ramiro Herrera
04. Luke Charteris	11. Semesa Rokoduguni
05. Matt Garvey	12. Robbie Henshaw
06. Francois Louw (c)	13. Jonathan Joseph
07. Zac Mercer	14. Matt Banahan
08. Toby Faletau	15. Anthony Watson

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16. Jack Walker, 17.Nick Auterac, 18. Scott Andrews 19. Dave Attwood, 20. James Phillips 21. Chris Cook, 22. Freddie Burns, 23. Max Clark

Tactics:

• Bath have picked a big physical pack to take on opp and disrupt game.
• Plenty of carriers and work rate in pack, backrow to target isolated runners for the turnover
• Kahn to look for the short runners following his snipe the generate quick ball to slow opp line speed down and isolate runners.
• Freddie Burn’s to chip the ball over the top and in behind wingers specifically to test his positioning out.
• Using a blitz defence when short on numbers to put pressure on opp 10
• Pick and Game will be effective for us today and Burns will look to put us in the corners but moving the ball when its on.
• Burns to punish opp indiscipline’s with shots at goal.
• Attwood/Ewels to go up on opp lineout and put pressure on

Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Ozzy

01. Sam Lockwood	09. Sonatane Takulua
02. Kyle Cooper	10. Toby Flood
03. Owen Franks
04. Dominic Bird	11. Sinoti Sinoti
05. Iain Henderson	12. Juan Pablo Socino
06. Mark Wilson	13. Maxine Mermoz
07. Nili Latu	14. Vereniki Goneva
08. Opeti Fonua	15. Alex Tait

:-
16. Ben Sowery 17. Sami Mavinga 18. David Wilson 19. Sean Robinson 20. Will Welch 21. Micky Young 22. Craig Willis 23. DTH Van Der Merwe

TACTICS
- Blitz defence with good line speed with 9 and 15 sweeping.
- Look to get the ball to the wingers and put them in space, can cause serious damage from anywhere on the park
- Big runners carrying close to the ruck but looking to keep the ball alive with offloads to runners on their shoulder.
- Fast paced game with high tempo offloading game. similar to Falcons in real life but with better players!
- Powerful front 5 to set tone and all good with ball in hand to keep the ball alive
- Some excellent real life form

Saracens
Manager – Pooly

01. Mako Vunipola	09. Richard Wigglesworth
02. Jamie George	10. Owen Farrell
03. Vincent Koch
04. Eben Etzebeth	11. Chris Wyles
05. George Kruis	12. Alex Lozowski
06. Maro Itoje	13. Damian Penaud
07. Schalk Burger	14. Sean Maitland
08. Billy Vunipola	15. Liam Williams

:-
16. Schalk Brits  17. Hayden Thompson-Stringer 18. Juan Figallo 19. Will Skelton  20. Michael Rhodes 21. Ben Spencer 22. Harry Mallinder 23. Nathan Earle
-
Tactics:

- Play the conditions, nothing too flashy and plenty of kicking options with all the backline comfortable here.  
- Strong, physical pack to set a tone in the collisions. High intensity rugby, with big carries from numerous options. Will look to dominate the opposition pack and lay a foundation for our backs.
- Target Set piece and go for the jugular if a weakness is seen. Kicking for corners and territory if able to exert pressure in this area.
- Strong impact from the bench to keep intensity up.
- Typical Sarries blitz defence, squeezing the life out opposition and forcing errors.
- Play the game in the right areas of the pitch. Low error rugby and go through the phases when required.
- Farrell and Lozowski to give playmaking options and alternate at first receiver. Look to put Lozowski through gaps or mismatches and exploit his gas.
-TARGET LINEOUT - Numerous world class jumpers and excellent defensive line out options. Look to mark Gaskell/Barrett and push pressure on the Wasps throw. Think we can get a lot of joy in this area with Etzebeth and Kruis either side of Gaskell. If weakness seen look to pin Wasps back in own half and force pressure.
-
- TARGET WADE - Cross field kicks with Wyles excellent in the air. Look to get Williams exchanging on attack also with his added ability in the air.
-
- GRIND DOWN THE WASPS FRONT 5 - throughout game with hugely physical front 5 and international class bench.

Northampton Saints
Manager: StNick

01. Alex Waller	09. Cobus Reinach
02. Dylan Hartley	10. Johnny Sexton (k)
03. Paul Hill
04. Courtney Lawes	11. Tom Collins
05. Michael Paterson	12. Luther Burrell
06. Tom Wood	13. Rob Horne
07. Kwagga Smith	14. George North
08. Facundo Isa	15. Alex Goode

.
16 Campese Ma'afu, 17 Mikey Haywood, 18 Kieran Brookes, 19 Christian Day, 20 Jamie Gibson, 21 Nic Groom, 22 Steven Myler, 23 Bundee Aki

Tactics
- Use Isa as the main carrier, supported by Lawes, Hartley, Wood
- Sexton to kick all pens for goal in range, otherwise go for corner
- Bring North off his wing to look for work
- Use Norths height with cross field kicks
- Goode to act as second playmaker on occasion

1. Ethan Waller
2. Jack Singleton
3. Nick Schonert
4. Will Spencer
5. Guido Petti
6. Peter O’Mahoney
7. Michael Hopper
8. David Denton
9. Francois Hougaard
10. Beauden Barrett
11. Dean Hammond
12. Ngani Laumape
13. Ben Teo
14. Josh Adams
15. Chris Pennell

16. Joe Tau’fete
17. Gareth Milanosivich
18. Biyi Alo
19. Donnacha O’Callaghan
20. Blake Gibson
21. Jonny Arr
22. Jamie Shillock
23. Ryan Mills


- Rotated team means everyone will be playing with fresh legs
- Barrett to play flat and control the game as he sees fit.
- Strong pack will look to hammer home an advantage and give the backs adequate ball to play with. Our aim is to out possession Bath and we believe we can win if we get that
- Scchonert especially to put the hurt on Obano and try to gain an edge in the scrum
- Look to be really disruptive at the line out, we have four top notch ball winners while even Hopper can provide some line out acumen.
- Hooper and POM really look attack the breakdown, we are looking to slow down their ball and dominate our own
- Target a weak defensive back three by looking to get the ball out wide and with Barrett kicks.
- Hougaard to inject life into the game with sniping attacks
- Look to get the ball in the hands of Teo and Laumape

Harlequins
Manager – CJ

01. Mark Lambert	09. Will Chudley
02. Dane Coles	10. Demetri Catrakalis
03. Will Collier
04. James Horwill (c)	11. Tim Visser
05. Johnny Gray	12. Jamie Roberts
06. Mat Luamanu	13. Francis Saili
07. Chris Robshaw	14. Charlie Walker
08. Renaldo Bothma	15. Mike Brown

:-
16.  Lewis Boyce 17. Rob Buchanan 18. Phil Swainston   19. Charlie Matthews 20. Sam Cane 21. Danny Care 22. Marcus Smith 23. Alex Lewington

TACTICS


Breakdown:


Today we have picked a physical outfit at the breakdown, looking to use power to bully the lighter Sale back row off the ball in wet conditions. If we need more speed and pure groundwork, the world’s best open side is on the bench.


Attack:


Controlled phase attack off 10, building together phases with trundles from our forwards in groups and big carries into defenders from Brown Andy roberts, patiently building until a gap appears.

With Catrakalis starting, we are very happy to switch to the territorial kicking game with a great chasing back 3- especially look to give Brown high balls against their wingers. In their red zone we will look to kick past the defence onto our pacy wings.

If we are struggling to break them down, we have Care and Smith on the bench to break the game apart.


Defence 


Blitz led by Roberts, in the wet aggressive fringe defence is key and Horwill and Robshaw lead this. Luamanu looking to physically bully Du Kerk


Set Piece:


Our line out should be safe as houses and with Gray we will look to really attack theirs at the front, force them to throw long. We will mostly use the maul. 


Others:


Discipline key today- no penalties to be given away in our half please
Keep it simple initially in the rain- no forcing plays
Lots of high and deep kicks to contest and test their handling 
Really attacking bench if we are chasing the game

Gloucester Rugby
Manager - Prop_Lyd

01. Val Ruskin	09. Aaron Smith
02. Richard Hibbard	10. Richie Mo'unga (k)
03. John Afoa
04. Tom Savage (c)	11. Charlie Sharples
05. Franco Mostert	12. Billy Twelvetrees
06. Lewis Ludlow	13. Jon Davies
07. Ruan Ackerman	14. Ollie Thorley
08. Ben Morgan	15. Jason Woodward

_
16. James Hanson 17. Josh Honeck 18. Gareth Denman 19. Ed Slater 20. Jake Polledri 21. Ben Vellacott 22. Billy Burns 23. Tom Marshall

---

Tactics
*Look to grind them down in the front 5 with a hefty pack not afraid to do dirty work,
*Forwards to work in pods round the corner 2 phases then wide and hit gaps,
*JD2 and 12T to play what's in front of them and look to put runners through,
*Mo'unga to look to get quick ball out, if it isn't on then tactical kicking to corners,
*Defence led by JD2 and with a back rower on Mo'unga's shoulder to assist tackle and get over the ball,
*Look to slow them down with a well balanced back row,
*Use bench wisely with experience to come on and pace in the backs to target tired legs especially Vellacott who will be given a run out towards the end,
*Keep the scoreboard ticking over.

Wasps
Manager - Pullthestrings

01. Logovi'i Mulipola	09. Dan Robson
02. Ashley Johnson	10. Danny Cipriani
03. Jake Cooper-Wooley
04. James Gaskell	11. Elliot Daly
05. Scott Barrett	12. Jimmy Gopperth (k)
06. Sean O'Brien	13. Juan De Jongh
07. Thomas Young	14. Christian Wade
08. Nathan Hughes	15. Willie Le Roux

_
16. Tommy Taylor, 17. Alex Lundberg, 18. Paul Doran-Jones, 19. Kearnan Myall, 20. James Haskell, 21. Joe Simpson, 22. Kyle Eastmond, 23. Josh Bassett

---

Tactics
Attack:
- Play high tempo, high intensity, tire their relentless defence
- Expect good D from the opposition, so mix up our lines of attack, sometimes with two lines with forwards as options with offload options
- Keep the ball moving, don't get caught in an arm wrestle
- Mix up forward runners off 9 and 10 to give go forward and tie in defence. When space opens up, go wide and utilise pace of back three.
Defence:
- Quick line speed, getting up to the 10 and putting pressure on.
- Only step out of the line for big hit opportunities.
- Double hits on their big runners, isolate them
Breakdown:
- Ensure quick breakdowns, getting their latchers off the ball immediately
- Be disciplined at the breakdown and do not give away penalties in our half
- Compete for the turnover if it's on, even if it's only too slow down the ball
- If ruck is lost, don't compete and fan out in defence
Territory:
- Keep the ball in field where possible
- Use box kicks from 9 and nudges from 10 out of hand to pin them back, flood through on the kick chase
- Play rugby in their half and make them attack from deep
- Full back to marshall the back 3 and make sure our positioning is spot on for kick returns

London Irish
Manager – Bambam

01. Gordon Reid	09. TJ Perenara
02. Asafo Aumua	10. Aaron Cruden (k)
03. Ben Franks
04. Sebastien De Chaves	11. Joe Cokanasiga
05. Brodie Retallick (c)	12. Jordie Barrett
06. Jack Clifford	13. Johnny Williams
07. Luke Wallace	14. Marland Yarde
08. Jack Conan	15. Jordan Larmour

:-
16. David Paice 17. Danny Hobbs-Ayowemi 18. Ollie Hoskins 19. Josh McNally 20. Max Northcote-Green 21. Scott Steele 22. James Grayson 23. Fergus Mulchrone

Big carriers to open up the field for us - Aumua out wide, Conan and Retallick tight to the ruck
Wallace play as true 7, look for turnovers, Clifford play it as you see it, either support for turnovers or add to the defensive line - we want dominant tackles
Perenara snipe whenever its on, keep them honest.
Cruden and Jordie the dual playmakers, split the field when its an option and stretch the defence
Jordie is our movable chess piece - look for mis matches, Williams can play 12 to give you a go at slower defenders
Larmour to run everything back when its on, Jordie step back when they are obviously going to kick to offer a kicking option

Exeter Chiefs 
Manager – Fluxy

01. Ben Moon	09. Conor Murray
02. Luke Cowan-Dickie	10. Henry Slade (k)
03. Harry Williams
04. Jonny Hill	11. Jack Nowell
05. Sam Skinner	12. Ollie Devoto
06. James Chisholm	13. Sam Hill
07. Don Armand (c)	14. Jacob Stockdale
08. Thomas Waldrom	15. Lachlan Turner

. 
16. Jack Yeandle, 17. Alec Hepburn, 18. Greg Holmes, 19. Sam Whitelock 20. Sam Simmonds, 21. Jack Maunder 22. Anthony Belleau, 23. James Short

Look to play the real life Chiefs style of play, a high-intensity game in both defence and attack. Dynamic carrying and rucking at the fore, keeping it narrow until we create quick enough possession to feed our back line.  

- Use the set piece as a weapon to launch attacks, especially the maul, with the likes of Waldrom or Armand to launch themselves off the back of mauls. 
- Pick & goes - in twos and threes around the fringes, to starve Newcastle of possession and is a great weapon of the Chiefs over the years. 
- It will be phases of carrying, running at least in pairs to help maintain a leg drive. This is the standard Chiefs style, and causes the opposition defence to be drawn into the defend through the middle, creating space out wide for our back line to exploit. 
- Half-backs to dictate the game and play for territory. Slade to also kick available points when on offer - to keep the scoreboard ticking over. 
- Devoto to act as the second playmaker and look to spread the ball wide to back three when the space is available to attack, or to take pressure off Slade on clearances.
- Wingers to come in off their wings and look for work, and get them 1v1 on a forward to make the most of their footwork and speed to beat the slow Falcons forwards. 
- Not worried about how Falcons will play, we will chop them low and early to allow our back row to compete and slow their ball down. The game is based around us having possession for long periods and forcing Newcastle to panic when they have the ball, as they will want to do something immediately with it, if they get it, and this should yield mistakes and forced opportunities for us to capatilise on.

Sale Sharks
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Ross Harrison	09. Faf Du Klerk
02. Malcolm Marx	10. Nicolas Sanchez (k)
03. Rabah Slimani
04. Josh Beaumont	11. Byron McGuigan
05. Pieter Steph Du Toit	12. Sam James
06. Judicael Cancoriet	13. Jack Goodhue
07. Ben Curry	14. Denny Solomona
08. Josh Strauss (c)	15. James O'Connor

16. Rob Webber 17. Greg Bateman 18. Halani Aulika  19. Bryn Evans 20. Jono Ross 21. Antoine |Dupont 22. Will Addison 23. Keelan Giles

Tactics

- Fast paced rugby when we have quick ball. Led by Du Klerk at 9. Look to get behind the defence then get the ball wide to McGuigan and Solomona.

- Use a quick line speed to put decision makers under pressure. Look to win collisions when they are on the back foot otherwise chop and get the first man over (Curry,Cancoriet, Strauss, Marx)

- Use the boots of Du Klerk, Sanchez , James and O'Connor to turn Quins when we are deep in our own territory or they have limited cover.

- Pressure on line out from Beaumont and Du Toit.

I’ll get some brief tactics in tomorrow morning if it’s ok

I'll update early morning

Added my tactics if you can update Pooly pleasee

All updated, predictions open.......scores to Flux

Cheers mate

Please keep the predictions coming gents!

Will close and do these around 4pm ish.

predos closed?

Can do them now if not.

Doing mine now, get them in mate

No, not yet, get them in!

BamBam wrote:Doing mine now, get them in mate

Still putting some in mate?

Sorry, left the tab open and didn't press send! Should be with you now

Cheers mate

Leicester Tigers 20 - 21 London Irish

Leicester Tigers 27 - 26 London Irish

Leicester Tigers 25 - 23 London Irish
Irish will get some joy around the fringes and push Tigers the distance here. But the impact that the Tigers front row and that Stander, Shields and Fifita provide is something Leicester are missing in reality. And can seem them just keeping the visitors at bay long enough.

Leicester Tigers 23 - 20 London Irish 
I think Irish could gain parity in the pack but see Tigers back line and bench to be enough to get the win at Welford Road

Leicester Tigers 24 - 25 London Irish

Leicester Tigers 23 - 20 London Irish
Real dong dong of a front 5 battle with Tigers more carrying and scrum but Irish having a bit more in the lineout. Tigers take the backrow with a bit more of a settled unit and a bit more class on the flanks. Not too much in the halfbacks but Tigers centres starting to get some good form, good back 3 contest with Bam recruiting well. Good game but Tigers a little too much at home in the poor conditions. 

Leicester Tigers 26 - 22 London Irish
Leicester have a strong front row but Retallick is a game changer and keeps the front fives to a relatively similar level. Prefer the Leicester back row especially with new players not settled on Irish. I do prefer the Irish half backs. Not much in the outside backs. A better bench and home advantage seal it for Leicester.

Newcastle Falcons 22 - 23 Exeter Chiefs

Newcastle Falcons 24 - 25 Exeter Chiefs

Newcastle Falcons 23 - 22 Exeter Chiefs
Really close fought game. Big runners from Newcastle could make dents in the Chiefs whilst the wingers can finish off any sniff of a chance. Not sure about Slade at 10.

Newcastle Falcons 17 - 18 Exeter Chiefs

Newcastle Falcons 25 - 25 Exeter Chiefs
Very little in this one across the board with the Falcons grizzly front 5 getting a foothold but Exeter having some quality backs on show to get them back into it. I do just prefer the away side, but I'm not sure they have enough to steal the win.

Newcastle Falcons 22 - 23 Exeter Chiefs 
Prefer the Newcastle front five, think they can get an edge. The Exeter back row has a similar advantage though. Love Connor Murray at nine for Exeter and they have an edge in the half backs. Both teams are dangerous in the outside backs. Exeter can just edge it with their bench, but only just. 

Newcastle Falcons 20 - 24 Exeter Chiefs 
Newcastle have a strong pack with plenty of carrying ability, but I think Exeter have a bit more subtlety and skill at the breakdown. Behind the scrum think Exeter just have more class and with a stronger set of tactics they'll take this in a good road win

Northampton Saints 27 - 28 Gloucester Rugby
Saints have been struggling as of late, but the addition of Kwagga Smith helps provide a spark to this pack. Gloucteser are set up very well from home and the energy provided from the back five of the scrum really get them into the Saints pack. The 8/9/10 spines of both sides are very strong, and I like the impact that Smith provides here for the Cherry and Whites. I can see the Gloucester back line being a constant threat until the death and for this, they will nick this one late on. 

Northampton Saints 19 - 16 Gloucester Rugby
Some obvious form issues with some Saints players but if they are on point, they'll have enough to see off Gloucester here. Impressive 8/9/10 for Gloucester but I think Sexton will steel the home side to victory.

Northampton Saints 18 - 18 Gloucester Rugby

Northampton Saints 18 - 18 Gloucester Rugby
Epic pack battle with both sides not giving an inch, I can just see the quality of Lawes and Isa dragging Saints through a little and getting a small edge. Not much in the backs with each side offering a some good options and interesting bench options. A very close game which is really hard to separate. 

Northampton Saints 29 - 21 Gloucester Rugby
Northampton have a stronger front five and I give them an advantage here. They are also a better back row unit. One each in the half backs but as a unit I prefer the Gloucester pair. Overall the Saints have a slightly better set of outside backs. The bench is also strong and they have home advantage. 

Northampton Saints 27 - 24 Gloucester Rugby
Really competitive game this one. Both sides have solid front rows, and a couple of stars in the back 5 of the pack, all offering different skills. Isa and Lawes will set a good platform for Saints for me, and have the edge up front. Think Gloucester are stronger in the backs overall, but Saints have enough up front to sneak it at home

Sale Sharks 24 - 23 Harlequins

Sale Sharks 24 - 23 Harlequins

Sale Sharks 24 - 23 Harlequins
A great little tactical battle between the two packs. Quins looking to unsettle the Sharks at the breakdown to slow up their possession, yet the strength of the Sharks front row makes the task a little harder as they can really get into the Quins scrum. Both packs have some good carrying options and it is relatviely even up front. Rate Chudley highly and he will provide a spark at the base for Quins, but the Sale combo will inject pace at any opporutnity. The control of James at 12 will helps Sharks play the territory game, and in turn help them grind out a narrow victory. 

Sale Sharks 27 - 24 Harlequins
I think Sale have more power up front which sets the tone for the game. Strong set piece giving De Klerk and Sanchez good ball to work with. 

Sale Sharks 24 - 22 Harlequins
Good front 5 match ups with Sale edging the front row and scrum but Quins getting a bit back in the engine room, although seeing no real gain in the lineout. Little in an enthralling backrow contest although Sale step it up in the halfbacks with a very good pairing. The backline are both effective, perhaps a bit more for Quins but Sale having a bit of a better platform can get the win. 

Sale Sharks 28 - 23 Harlequins
These are two of the best front fives in the league. The edge is to the Sale side though. It is a young back row for Sale and Quins have the edge. The Sale half back pairing has the big edge in both positions. Again the outside backs are fairly level with a small gain to Quins. 

Sale Sharks 24 - 23 Harlequins
Great contest in the front 5s, with some terrific options for both sides. Can't really pick between the packs as both offer so much. Sale look slightly more dangerous in the backs to me, with the half back pairing key to getting the likes of Solomona and Goodhue the ball. I really like the Quins team, and with Cane coming in they're going to be very difficult to beat, but Sale just hold on at home

Wasps 22 - 23 Sarries

Wasps 25 - 26 Saracens

Wasps 32 - 31 Saracens
Tie of the round this week, and what a doozy! Wasps for me can stand toe to toe with this Sarries pack, as they can absorb some of the power of the visiting pack and then punch some holes of their own. I also believe that the Wasps will get in at the breakdown slightly quicker, because of their speed and height (yes height!). SOB and Young will be a touch quicker and lower to ground meaning they will slow down Sarries ball when possible. Both back lines are dynamite, I would slightly wonder about the pairing of Lozo/Penuad, seeing as it is their first time together. A narrow game, and in the end, I just see Wasps nicking it. 

Wasps 26 - 25 Saracens

Wasps 21 - 26 Saracens 
Saracens have the advantage in the front five and just about edge the back row. One each in the half backs but Saracens edge it as Farrell is the star. The Wasps outside backs are better for me.

Wasps 22 - 20 Saracens
Really difficult to call so breaking down by unit. Saracens are stronger in the front 5, back row is more interesting with Billy lacking form and some very strong players in Wasps side I have to go with Wasps there. One a piece at half back, while both sets of outside backs are strong in different areas, with Wasps possessing more outright attacking threat. Tough one to call with good tactics for both, but Wasps at home just have enough

Worcester Warriors 20 - 19 Bath Rugby

Worcester Warriors 26 - 25 Bath Rugby

Worcester Warriors 30 - 31 Bath Rugby
Warriors have a good amount of girt against this strong Bath pack, but I do see them getting outclassed a bit. The halfback combo helps Warriors clib back into the game, with Barrett always creating something. Henshaw JJ and Watson all will be dangerous themsevles, and this will be a high scoring affair. By time the benches spill into the game, I just have Bath edging out a thriller.

Worcester Warriors 27 - 30 Bath Rugby
Strong side from Bath, stars all over the pitch. Henshaw should be able to deal with Barrett/Laumape and Priestland will keep the board ticking over

Worcester Warriors 20 - 19 Bath Rugby

Worcester Warriors 27 - 24 Bath Rugby
Another match with the pack contest not settling with a side for the whole game. Can see Bath edging the scrum but Worcester have a strong lineout and breakdown back 5 which will cause any side issues. The magic of Barrett and some good form out wide give Worcester a valuable win.

Worcester Warriors 21 - 19 Bath Rugby
Worcester look to be targeting games this season, and it may pay off with a well rested set of stars brought in against Bath. Bath are strong, but at home I think Worcester have enough from 4-13 to take the win.

Fluxy wrote:Real dong dong of a front 5 battle... 

I did have to wonder what a 'dong dong' battle was... 

Good game Pooly

Cracker mate, unlucky....such a tight one to call.