Summer Tournament Semi Finals

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Cup Semi Finals

Newcastle Falcons vs. Sale Sharks

Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Sgt Pooly

01. Soane Tonga'uiha	09. Ben Youngs
02. Rory Best	10. Aaron Cruden
03. Paul Doran-Jones
04. Brad Thorn	11. Miles Benjamin
05. Geoff Parling	12. Sonny Bill Williams
06. Kieran Read	13. Adam Ashley-Cooper
07. Richie McCaw(c)	14. James O’Connor
08. Toby Faletau	15. Alex Goode

17. Lee Mears 17. Owen Franks 18. Fabien Barcella 19. Ed Slater 20. Chris Robshaw 21. Jimmy Cowan 22. Toby Flood 23. George Lowe

Tactics:

- HIGH INTENSITY
- STRONG SCRUM WITH THORN BACKING UP
- PARLING LEADING LINEOUT WITH NUMEROUS OPTIONS IN BACKROW (READ LEADS AB LINEOUT SO GREAT READER ALSO)
- FAST PACED, KEEP THE BALL ALIVE
- NUMEROUS CARRYING OPTIONS IN PACK TO DRAW IN DEFENCE

- CRUDEN 80%+ GOAL KICKER TO KEEP BOARD TICKING
- CRUDEN/SBW LINK WITH AAC RUNNING HARD & STRAIGHT OFF SBW
- JOC WILL COME INTO MIDFIELD LOOKING FOR BALL
- NUMEROUS FOOTBALLERS IN BACKLINE & HARD RUNNERS TO MIX THINGS UP

Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Marcos Ayerza	09. Danny Care
02. Guilleme Guirado	10. Johnny Sexton
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. Brodie Retalick	11. David Strettle
05. Andries Bekker	12. Francois Steyn
06. Adam Thomson	13. Robbie Freuen
07. Fulgence Quedragao	14. Lelia Masaga
08. Louis Picamoles	15. Nick Abendanon

16. Jerome Schuster 17. David Paice 18. Luc Ducalcon 19. Stephen Sykes 20. Peter O' Mahony 21. Ben Spencer 22. James Hook 23. Keith Earls

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Northampton Saints vs. London Irish

Northampton Saints
Manager – dammit chris

01. Sona Taumalolo	09. Mike Phillips
02. Dylan Hartley	10. Matt Giteau
03. Carl Hayman
04. Courtney Lawes	11. Leigh Halfpenny (k)
05. Alyn Wyn Jones	12. Weslie Fofana
06. Dan Lydiate	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Julian Salvi	14. Chris Ashton
08. Sergio Parisse (c)	15. Ben Foden

16. Rob Webber 17. Thomas Domingo 18. Henry Thomas 19. Bradley Davies 20. Joe Launchbury 21. Joe Simpson 22. George Ford 23. Siti Siviatu

Tactics:

- to play at a high tempo, work through the phases and then attack with pace through our backline.
- aggressive defence, with Lawes and Lydiate to stop Irish gainline breakers from getting on the front foot. Force mistakes, turnovers and attack.
- target breakdown with Salvi and aim to smash Armitage off the ball.
- get big ball carriers on the ball and get good attacking position
- look to control lineout and put Lindsay's throwing under pressure.

London Irish
Manager – stnick88

01. Jean Baptiste Poux	09. Julien Dupuy
02. Tom Lindsay	10. Nick Evans
03. Martin Castrogiovanni
04. Matt Garvey	11. Paul Sackey
05. Johann Muller	12. Luke McAllister
06. Keegan Daniel	13. Conrad Smith
07. Steffon Armitage	14. JP Pieterson
08. Netani Talei	15. Delon Armitage

16. Matt Stevens 17. James Buckland 18. WP Nel 19. Nick Kennedy 20. Hendrie Fourie 21. Neal De Kock 22. Shane Geraghty 23. Sireli Naqalevuki

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Shield Semi Finals

Leicester Tigers vs. Bath Rugby

Leicester Tigers
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

01. Andrew Sheridan	09. Dimitri Yachvili (k)
02. Tom Youngs	10. Kurtley Beale
03. Dan Cole
04. Nathan Hines	11. Rene Ranger
05. James Horwill (c)	12. Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu
06. Tom Croft	13. Casey Laulala
07. Francois Louw	14. Isa Nacewa
08. Ernst Joubert	15. Rob Miller

16. Gethin Jenkins 17. Stephen Moore 18. Brian Mujati 19. Simon Shaw 20. Thomas Waldrom 21. Micky Young 22. Billy Twelvetrees 23. Ugo Monye

Tactics

Play attacking, fast paced, offloading rugby.

Pack full of runners who will look to make ground and link with backs.
Backs asked to attack all game, running from deep and looking to make breaks.

Bath Rugby
Manager – inthefastlane

01. Charlie Faumuania	09. Richard Wigglesworth
02. Kevin Mealamu	10. Charlie Hodgson
03. Davit Kubrashvilli
04. Luke Romano	11. Aurelien Rougerie
05. Rob Simmons	12. Anthony Allen
06. Brad Shields	13Isiah Toeava
07. David Seymour	14. George North
08. James Haskell	15. Stuart Hogg

16. Cian Healy 17. Chris Brooker 18. Euan Murray 19. Sam Whitelock 20. David Pocock 21. Aaron Smith 22. Gareth Anscombe 23. Cory Jane

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London Wasps vs. Gloucester

London Wasps
Manager – ‘Arry

01. Benn Robinson (c)	09. Nick Phipps
02. Tatafu Polota-Nau	10. Rhys Preistland (k)
03. Carlos Nieto
04. Mouritz Botha	11. Matt Banahan
05. Marco Wentzel	12. Brad Barritt
06. Steve Mafi	13. George Pisi
07. Dewald Potgieter	14. Topsy Ojo
08. Roger Wilson	15. Mike Brown

16. Nathan Morris 17. Charlie Beech 18. Rhodri Jones 19. Dan Tuohy 20. Dave Dennis 21. Haydn Thomas 22. Steven Myler 23. Noah Cato

Tactics

Use our big ball carriers to get us over the gain line and set out a platform to attack from. Look to dominate contact area and get offload game going.

Put several phases of quick ball together, attack gaps and half gaps in Worcester defensive line, keep moving the ball when it's on.

Manager – Mat

01. Nick Wood (c)	09. Connor Murray
02. Adriaan Strauss	10. Dan CArter (k)
03. Rupert Harden
04. Palmer	11. Gear
05. Gray	12. Berrick Barnes
06. Steven Ferris	13. Elliot Daly
07. Lapandry	14. May
08. Heaslip	15. Israel Dagg

16. Tim Payne 17. Joe Gray 18. Jamie johnstone 19. George Robson 20. Harinordoqouy 21. Will Genia 22. JSD 23. Charlie Sharples

Tactics

Target lineout
Big ball carriers to put on front foot
use our super quick and skillfull backline

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Plate Semi Finals

Saracens vs. Worcester Warriors

Saracens
Manager – Ozzy3213

01. Alex Corbisiero	09. Morgan Parra
02. John Smit (c)	10. Francois Trinh-Duc
03. Adam Jones
04. George Skivington	11. Mark Cueto
05. Steve Borthwick	12. Jonathan Davies
06. Thierry Dusautoir	13. Nevin Spence
07. Ross Rennie	14. Andrew Trimble
08. Joe van Niekerk	15. Tom Homer

16. George Chuter 17. Matt Mullan 18. David Wilson 19. Rynhardt Elstadt 20. Tom Johnson 21. Dewaldt Duvenage 22. Owen Farrell 23. Luke Fitzgerald

01. Beast	09. Dwayne Peel ©
02. Gary Botha	10. Sam Vesty (k)
03. BJ Botha
04. Ollie Kohn	11. James Short
05. Luke Charteris	12. Pat McCabe
06. Scott Higginbotham	13. Ian Whitten
07. Justin Tipuric	14. Julien Malzieu
08. Ben Morgan	15. Ollie Morgan

16. Richardt Strauss 17. Nathan Catt 18. Chris Budgen 19. Tom Savage 20. Mamuka Gorgodze 21. Eion Reddan 22. Olly Barkley 23. Rob Cook



Tactics

We are aiming to hit the ground running with an exciting brand of confrontational forwards with pace and flair in the backs. Peel is an apt captain with the experience and go-forward drive in his game



Forwards

*Heavy front row who will look to dominate the set piece and we have experience on the bench to come on and do similar,

*2^nd rows are two characters who will look to get on top of the breakdown and battle hard when it comes to the lineout. We won’t go backwards with these two.

*Backrow are breakdown specialists with Higgs and Tips both terrorising here and Morgan providing brute strength off the back of the scrum and off the backs, again the bench provides more go forward with Gorgodze.



Backs

* Peel to marshall and Vesty to aim for corners when under pressure but to release McCabe when possible, he will go for goal when in range,

* McCabe to release Whitten who will have a winger on his shoulder at all times and also look for Morgan to break through the defence, Whitten is an exciting runner and will look to take it close off McCabe then drag the defence wide,

* A fast back 3 here who will always look for work and are strong in defence and under the high ball, on the bench we have Cook who is an excellent goal kicker and steady in defence.



Defence

*McCabe to lead this,

*Tips/Higgs to be on 10’s shoulder looking to wrap the ball up,

*Contest at the breakdown and all set piece,

*No silly penalties anymore!

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London Welsh vs. Harlequins

London Welsh

Manager – Driver

01.Brett Sturgess	09.Lloyd Williams
02.Ben Kayser	10.Butch James(k)
03.Ben Alexander
04.Dean Schofield	11.Tim Visser
05.Ali Williams	12.James Downey
06.Luke Narraway(c)	13.Darren Cave
07.Phil Dowson	14.Matt Smith
08.Rapheal Lakafia	15.Ben Smith

16.Chris Whitehead 17.Efion Lewis Roberts 18.Craig Mitchell 19.James Hudson 20.Will Welch 21.Charlie Davies 22.Tom Catterick 23.Harry Robinson

Harlequins
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Tony Woodcock	09. Lee Dickson
02. Matthew Rees	10. Freddie Burns
03. Ben Franks
04. Jerome Thion	11. Tom Biggs
05. James Gaskell	12. Felipe Contepomi
06. Carl Fearns	13. Anthony Faainga
07. Michael Hooper	14. Ross Chisholm
08. Nick Easter	15. Luke Morahan

16. Rob Hawkins 17. Joe Marler 18. Kieran Brookes 19. George Kruis 20. Jamie Gibson 21. Karl Dickson 22. Johann Sadie 23. Jonathan Joseph

Tactics

Put out a potential HC side and have put out most of my english in side or on bench so would appreciate the opinion of my strongest 7 english.

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Are we good conditions again Pete?

Harlequins
Manager – Steven_Sharks

01. Tony Woodcock	09. Lee Dickson
02. Matthew Rees	10. Freddie Burns
03. Ben Franks
04. Jerome Thion	11. Tom Biggs
05. James Gaskell	12. Felipe Contepomi
06. Carl Fearns	13. Anthony Faainga
07. Michael Hooper	14. Ross Chisholm
08. Nick Easter	15. Luke Morahan

16. Rob Hawkins 17. Joe Marler 18. Kieran Brookes 19. George Kruis 20. Jamie Gibson 21. Karl Dickson 22. Johann Sadie 23. Jonathan Joseph

Tactics

Put out a potential HC side and have put out most of my english in side or on bench so would appreciate the opinion of my strongest 7 english.

London Welsh

Manager – Driver

01.Brett Sturgess	09.Lloyd Williams
02.Ben Kayser	10.Butch James(k)
03.Ben Alexander
04.Dean Schofield	11.Tim Visser
05.Ali Williams	12.James Downey
06.Luke Narraway(c)	13.Darren Cave
07.Phil Dowson	14.Matt Smith
08.Rapheal Lakafia	15.Ben Smith

16.Chris Whitehead 17.Efion Lewis Roberts 18.Craig Mitchell 19.James Hudson 20.Will Welch 21.Charlie Davies 22.Tom Catterick 23.Harry Robinson

Saracens
Manager – Ozzy3213

01. Alex Corbisiero	09. Morgan Parra
02. John Smit (c)	10. Francois Trinh-Duc
03. Adam Jones
04. George Skivington	11. Mark Cueto
05. Steve Borthwick	12. Jonathan Davies
06. Thierry Dusautoir	13. Nevin Spence
07. Ross Rennie	14. Andrew Trimble
08. Joe van Niekerk	15. Tom Homer

16. George Chuter 17. Matt Mullan 18. David Wilson 19. Rynhardt Elstadt 20. Tom Johnson 21. Dewaldt Duvenage 22. Owen Farrell 23. Luke Fitzgerald

Tactics to follow...

Sgt_Pooly wrote:Are we good conditions again Pete?

Any news?

I would imagine so.

Leicester Tigers have named their side to play Bath in the Summer Tournament Shield semi-finals this week.

Tigers have once more made sweeping changes, with 8 players coming into the side after last week's gruelling draw against Heineken Cup champions Gloucester.

The Tigers side looks set out to play a running game with an extremely pacey and powerful team named by manager LukeLovesLuka.


Leicester Tigers
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

01. Andrew Sheridan	09. Dimitri Yachvili (k)
02. Tom Youngs	10. Kurtley Beale
03. Dan Cole
04. Nathan Hines	11. Rene Ranger
05. James Horwill (c)	12. Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu
06. Tom Croft	13. Casey Laulala
07. Francois Louw	14. Isa Nacewa
08. Ernst Joubert	15. Rob Miller

16. Gethin Jenkins 17. Stephen Moore 18. Brian Mujati 19. Simon Shaw 20. Thomas Waldrom 21. Micky Young 22. Billy Twelvetrees 23. Ugo Monye

Tactics

Play attacking, fast paced, offloading rugby.

Pack full of runners who will look to make ground and link with backs.
Backs asked to attack all game, running from deep and looking to make breaks.

Alright lads, managed to get signal on holiday, poorly are you alright to name my line up for my game against Gloucester? Unchanged from previous game usual tactics, cheers

*pooly

No dramas mate, I'll try and remember

London Wasps
Manager – ‘Arry

01. Benn Robinson (c)	09. Nick Phipps
02. Tatafu Polota-Nau	10. Rhys Preistland (k)
03. Carlos Nieto
04. Mouritz Botha	11. Matt Banahan
05. Marco Wentzel	12. Brad Barritt
06. Steve Mafi	13. George Pisi
07. Dewald Potgieter	14. Topsy Ojo
08. Roger Wilson	15. Mike Brown

16. Nathan Morris 17. Charlie Beech 18. Rhodri Jones 19. Dan Tuohy 20. Dave Dennis 21. Haydn Thomas 22. Steven Myler 23. Noah Cato

Tactics

Use our big ball carriers to get us over the gain line and set out a platform to attack from. Look to dominate contact area and get offload game going.

Put several phases of quick ball together, attack gaps and half gaps in Worcester defensive line, keep moving the ball when it's on.

London Irish
Manager – stnick88

01. Jean Baptiste Poux	09. Julien Dupuy
02. Tom Lindsay	10. Nick Evans
03. Martin Castrogiovanni
04. Matt Garvey	11. Paul Sackey
05. Johann Muller	12. Luke McAllister
06. Keegan Daniel	13. Conrad Smith
07. Steffon Armitage	14. JP Pieterson
08. Netani Talei	15. Delon Armitage

16. Matt Stevens 17. James Buckland 18. WP Nel 19. Nick Kennedy 20. Hendrie Fourie 21. Neal De Kock 22. Shane Geraghty 23. Sireli Naqalevuki

Northampton Saints
Manager – dammit chris

01. Sona Taumalolo	09. Mike Phillips
02. Dylan Hartley	10. Matt Giteau
03. Carl Hayman
04. Courtney Lawes	11. Leigh Halfpenny (k)
05. Alyn Wyn Jones	12. Weslie Fofana
06. Dan Lydiate	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Julian Salvi	14. Chris Ashton
08. Sergio Parisse (c)	15. Ben Foden

16. Rob Webber 17. Thomas Domingo 18. Henry Thomas 19. Bradley Davies 20. Joe Launchbury 21. Joe Simpson 22. George Ford 23. Siti Siviatu

Tactics:

- to play at a high tempo, work through the phases and then attack with pace through our backline.
- aggressive defence, with Lawes and Lydiate to stop Irish gainline breakers from getting on the front foot. Force mistakes, turnovers and attack.
- target breakdown with Salvi and aim to smash Armitage off the ball.
- get big ball carriers on the ball and get good attacking position
- look to control lineout and put Lindsay's throwing under pressure.

Not sure if itfl'll get a squad in

Will get team in at 8am. Had a mare day

Someone do a team for Bath? I lose out on feedback otherwise.

01. Beast	09. Dwayne Peel ©
02. Gary Botha	10. Sam Vesty (k)
03. BJ Botha
04. Ollie Kohn	11. James Short
05. Luke Charteris	12. Pat McCabe
06. Scott Higginbotham	13. Ian Whitten
07. Justin Tipuric	14. Julien Malzieu
08. Ben Morgan	15. Ollie Morgan

16. Richardt Strauss 17. Nathan Catt 18. Chris Budgen 19. Tom Savage 20. Mamuka Gorgodze 21. Eion Reddan 22. Olly Barkley 23. Rob Cook



Tactics

We are aiming to hit the ground running with an exciting brand of confrontational forwards with pace and flair in the backs. Peel is an apt captain with the experience and go-forward drive in his game



Forwards

*Heavy front row who will look to dominate the set piece and we have experience on the bench to come on and do similar,

*2^nd rows are two characters who will look to get on top of the breakdown and battle hard when it comes to the lineout. We won’t go backwards with these two.

*Backrow are breakdown specialists with Higgs and Tips both terrorising here and Morgan providing brute strength off the back of the scrum and off the backs, again the bench provides more go forward with Gorgodze.



Backs

* Peel to marshall and Vesty to aim for corners when under pressure but to release McCabe when possible, he will go for goal when in range,

* McCabe to release Whitten who will have a winger on his shoulder at all times and also look for Morgan to break through the defence, Whitten is an exciting runner and will look to take it close off McCabe then drag the defence wide,

* A fast back 3 here who will always look for work and are strong in defence and under the high ball, on the bench we have Cook who is an excellent goal kicker and steady in defence.



Defence

*McCabe to lead this,

*Tips/Higgs to be on 10’s shoulder looking to wrap the ball up,

*Contest at the breakdown and all set piece,

*No silly penalties anymore!

Am back from camping folks, will sort out a team for ITFL and predos will open lunchtime tomorrow to give Mat time to get his team in .

Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Sgt Pooly

01. Soane Tonga'uiha	09. Ben Youngs
02. Rory Best	10. Aaron Cruden
03. Paul Doran-Jones
04. Brad Thorn	11. Miles Benjamin
05. Geoff Parling	12. Sonny Bill Williams
06. Kieran Read	13. Adam Ashley-Cooper
07. Richie McCaw(c)	14. James O’Connor
08. Toby Faletau	15. Alex Goode

17. Lee Mears 17. Owen Franks 18. Fabien Barcella 19. Ed Slater 20. Chris Robshaw 21. Jimmy Cowan 22. Toby Flood 23. George Lowe

Tactics:

- HIGH INTENSITY
- STRONG SCRUM WITH THORN BACKING UP
- PARLING LEADING LINEOUT WITH NUMEROUS OPTIONS IN BACKROW (READ LEADS AB LINEOUT SO GREAT READER ALSO)
- FAST PACED, KEEP THE BALL ALIVE
- NUMEROUS CARRYING OPTIONS IN PACK TO DRAW IN DEFENCE

- CRUDEN 80%+ GOAL KICKER TO KEEP BOARD TICKING
- CRUDEN/SBW LINK WITH AAC RUNNING HARD & STRAIGHT OFF SBW
- JOC WILL COME INTO MIDFIELD LOOKING FOR BALL
- NUMEROUS FOOTBALLERS IN BACKLINE & HARD RUNNERS TO MIX THINGS UP

Manager – Mat

01. Nick Wood (c)	09. Connor Murray
02. Adriaan Strauss	10. Dan CArter (k)
03. Rupert Harden
04. Palmer	11. Gear
05. Gray	12. Berrick Barnes
06. Steven Ferris	13. Elliot Daly
07. Lapandry	14. May
08. Heaslip	15. Israel Dagg

16. Tim Payne 17. Joe Gray 18. Jamie johnstone 19. George Robson 20. Harinordoqouy 21. Will Genia 22. JSD 23. Charlie Sharples

Tactics

Target lineout
Big ball carriers to put on front foot
use our super quick and skillfull backline

Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Marcos Ayerza	09. Danny Care
02. Guilleme Guirado	10. Johnny Sexton
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. Brodie Retalick	11. David Strettle
05. Andries Bekker	12. Francois Steyn
06. Adam Thomson	13. Robbie Freuen
07. Fulgence Quedragao	14. Lelia Masaga
08. Louis Picamoles	15. Nick Abendanon

16. Jerome Schuster 17. David Paice 18. Luc Ducalcon 19. Stephen Sykes 20. Peter O' Mahony 21. Ben Spencer 22. James Hook 23. Keith Earls

Sorry for the delay chaps, been a manic morning, thread now updated and predictionsOPEN

Newcastle v Sale
- Good Falcons pack although dont like Read as much at 6 and think Faletau needs to find some form back. Props are both good on paper but also need to pick up form. Great attacking halfbacks and backline, JOC needs fitness and form though. Not sure if wing is his best position. Goode and Benjamin both solid if not spectacular players but AP form could help.
- Good Sale pack, strong scrummaging unit and powerful loose players. Like the half back combo. Backline not quite as strong as poolys but will be a good battle.
34-31

Tigers v Bath
- Sheridan needs form but good front row with Cole anchoring scrum. Think the backrow slightly lacks carrying options. I quite like Beale at 10 in the dry, attacks well. Not sold on EFS/Lualua combo though. Good attacking back 3.
- No Bath side.

Wasps v Glos
- Decent enough Wasps front row. Nieto needs to pick up form at start of AP to really give a good scrum. Workman like backrow, Mafi superb. Priestland will control well but think backline needs a little spark. Would like to see Bowden at 12 in the dry, Barritt too one dimensional for me.
- Good Glos pack, wouldnt dominate Wasps though think evenly matched. An on form Ferris could make a huge differnce. Gray standout. More exciting Glos backline with Carter pulling strings.
22-26

Saracens v Worcester
- Impressive pack, good scrum, good lineout, good breakdown, decent enough carriers. Solid halfback combo, tried and tested. Not sold on Spence yet, and the back 3 lacks some spark. Cueto is past it these days and Homer is a good player but against top players could struggle.
- Best Warriors pack I've seen in a while, like the backrow blend. Could even start Gorgodze at 4 in dry. Vesty at 10 worries me, lacks top form for a while now. Despite Steyn struggling in real life, still can control games well and generalyl kick goals well. James Short looks class, horrible moustache though!
26-24

Welsh v Quins
- Solid, hard working Welsh pack, almost typical of a side that gets promoted like Chiefs have been. Backline lacks a bit of subtlety, in the wet the hard running would be good though.
- Would like to see JJ at 13 and Contepomi at 10. Burns not there yet for me, Good Quins pack though. Great pace out wide also.
20-22

Newcastle 28 - 30 Sale

Scrum pretty even. Better carriers in Newcastle front row. Sale engine room stronger. Not a huge fan of Read at 6 but he gets a way with it against Thompson. McCaw the stronger 7 and Picamoles the stronger 8. Overall its tight in the packs.

Half backs close, marginally to Sale with Care edging Youngs. Centres very tough to call, Steyns ability to move to first receiver puts the Sale combo ahead. Newcastle just edge the back 3, Benjamin and Abendanon the weakest on show there.

Good game, and a good win for SJE.

Northampton 25 - 24 London Irish

Very strong Saints pack, I think it has a great balance and only really misses a lineout man if being very critical. Against most packs they have enough options but Muller a expert at lineout. Not much wrong with Irish pack just a little behind Saints in this one. Half backs pretty even. Phillips ahead of Dupuy and Evans ahead of Gits (just!). Brilliant battle in the centres. So tough to call. More guile in the Irish unit with more bosh in the Saints pair. Can't call it. Back 3 to Saints. Sackey a weakness for Nick.

Leicester 27 - 23 Bath

Up front to Leicester. Perhaps a little short of dynamic carriers upfront though. Bath are okay up front but not sure this is there strongest line up. Lineout very strong for Leicester here and will pick Bath apart I would think.

Half backs to Leicester. A decent Chalk and Cheese combo which allows Leicester to expand there game. Outside backs to Bath by a decent margin. (Play Rougerie at 13 as usual from ITFL).

Wasps 20 - 26 Gloucester

Front row to Wasps. Should get a decent nudge on at the scrum. Locks just to Gloucester. Back row to Gloucester. Seen stronger Gloucester packs but they marginally ahead here.

Half backs to Gloucsester as usual. Outside backs are pretty tight. The extra bit of quality offered by Dagg and Barnes swing it to Gloucester.

Saracens 23 - 23 Worcester

Two excellent packs. Kohn and Borthwick stand out in either pack as weaknesses. back rows both excellent and two of the best in the league.

One a piece at half back but Sarries duo stronger. Vesty needs a brilliant AP season to be a asset to you Prop. I think I prefer the Worcester outside backs though. More dangerous with ball in hand certainly.

One of the toughest games to call.

Falcons 28-27 Sale
Falcons do have the better pack who will get on top of Sharks however the backrow battle will be fairly tight with Sale edging this. 9-10's are even with all of them in good form and playing very well. Centres are edged to Falcons along with the back 3 but Sharks defence will keep this match quite tight. I'm going to give it to Falcons just, due to their set piece players on show.

Saints 16-14 Irish
A great Saints pack but Irish backrow'll push them hard here. 9-10's are even here, can' split them. Think Saint's have just enough in the outside backs with more 'go-to' men and a stronger impact bench.

Leicester 20-17 Bath
Front row is fairly even with Bath having strong scrummagers however I can see the rest of the Tigers pack getting on top of this and at the breakdown. 9-10 is stronger for Tigers and will control this game well, centres I see as even but Bath could get a bit of joy out of their back three. Only Brooker and Young are weakensses on the bench for the teams. For their pack control Tigers take this.

Glos 25-19 Wasps
Overall control to Glos in the pack with TPN and the Wasps 2nd rows putting up a little bit of a fight here. Looking at the backs again Glos will take the victory here with an exciting mix of youngsters and Wasps, although strong in defence will struggle in attack. A much stronger bench for Glos too.

Welsh 22-23 Quins
Quins will get on top of the Welsh pack but the grit and determination of the Welsh forwards on show means that they will claw things back here. 2nd rows will go to Welsh helping in the lineouts. In the backs I feel hat Quins just have that extra flair but Welsh will be able to grind out victories with this set of half backs. I feel the Quins centres will give a little bit more but Welsh have a good impact bench. Sorry but will just call it to Quins as they have that little bit extra quality overall.

Northampton 20–21 Irish

Irish will get at both set pieces, especially lineout with no lineout op for Saints. Think Saints have some good options around the park though, I’d start Albacete/Davies over AWJ Chris. Parisse standout in backrows but Irish stronger on the flanks.

Not much in the 9’s but Evans a step up at 10. Conrad the class act on show in midfield but two very strong midfields, Smith would have to be tasty in defence tohandle Manu. Good back 3 battles with JP the standout on the wings and will give Halfpenny a torid time. Foden & Ashton stronger players to give Saints edge in back 3.

Close game, think Irish stronger and a bit more balanced overall. Saints look strong but will struggle in set piece a bit and don't see enough in backs to fully get back at Irish. Good game.

Saints
+ Mobile front 5, great in loose
+ Midfield has a nice balance and will cause issues for most
+ Foden/Ashton strong strike runners
- Lineout a real issue
- Halfpenny stronger at FB, Giteau better at 12

Irish
+ Strong set piece will give good front foot ball
+ Evans/Mc/Smith a great 10-13, prob best in game
- Lindsay throwing could be issue
- Sackay a glaring weakness in backline


Leicester 22–22 Bath

Two pretty equal teams in the set piece and around the park in the front 5. Think Tigers will edge the lineout though. Little edge in Tigers backrow too.

Yach the standout at 9 but Bath have more in centres and back 3. Good game and really hard to separate.

Tigers
+ Strong scrummaging front 5
+ Strong balance backrow
+ Great summer back 3
- Youngs throwing suspect
- Midfield could be an issue form wise

Bath
+ Fantastic back 3
+ Very powerful pack
- Lineout could be got at by better units


Wasps 23–20 Gloucester

All 3 Wasps front row stronger and will dominate scrum and loose. See Wasps bossing lineout with Wentzal/Mafi best ops on show although good combo around park for Gloucester.
Can’t see Gloucester midfield working at all and lacks physicality with two small players, Daly would get beasted at this level. Glocester stronger back 3 but Wasps to take win home by winning set piece ball and going through middle of Gloucester. Gloucesters big name players keep it a good affair but don’t see some combo’s working too well and backs too lightweight across board.

Wasps
+ Strong front 5, esp scrummaging
+ Nice half back & centre combo with great balance
- Banahan needs form to start
- Backrow a little lightweight in winter

Gloucester
+ Great engine room around the park
+ Ferris form at end of last season great, standout in backrow
+ Back 3 has everything, mouthwatering...love it!!
- Not a strong scrummaging unit would be got at by most units
- Form issues, esp Murray, Heaslip
- Midfield all wrong, would not work with Daly not up to level and poor partner for Barnes would be revolving door against big midfields (Roberts, SBW, Nonu, Manu etc)


Saracens 24-24 Worcester

Sarries
+ Great flank combo
+ Very stong front row in set piece & winter
+ Davies great lately and standout in backs
- Front row not great in summer (more Smit & Jones)
- Engine room lacks quality
- Some form issues, esp in halfbacks, Spence & Cueto

Worcester
+ Great pack overall, esp backrow. Chateris & Kohn nice combo and will boss here
+ Nice balance back 3, McCabe lynchpin in midfield
- Vesty not great at this level at 10
- Not seen Whitten


Welsh 20-17 Harlequins

Welsh
+ Strong pack, esp front 5 and will do well in set piece
+ Strong back 3 & centres with good balance
- Narraway loses a bit at 6
- Could lose tight games with Butch’s kicking

Quins
+ Balanced back 5
+ Morahan impressive e at FB
+ Biggs good form and good EQ option
- Franks weak at TH, much stronger at LH where I rate him possibly above Woodcock
- Burns not good enough at this level
- Midfield could struggle, both players not great

Falcons 27-28 Sale

Toughest game to call. Pack very even. Can't see a clear winner although prefer engine room of sale. Backrow even. Read at 6 a no for me. Falcons hooker streets ahead but rest front row even.

Sale win this game due to having better half backs. Need to see cruden at the top level to compare him against sexton. Care form much better than youngs.

Centres is one physical battle. Both big and aggressive and SBw in form of his life. Unconvinced by freaun but AAC much better at back 3.

Back 3 to falcons with JOC standout despite not having form. He is world class.

2 really good even teams but half backs of sale win It

Saints 16-14 Irish

Good match up like both sides and it's the spark in chris's outside backs that win it.

See Irish taking lineout and the backrow of both sides has great balance. Running out of time so have to make these predos short sorry


Leicester 22/19 bath

Even front row but see Leicester pack getting on top elsewhere in pack. Think Leicester half backs control This more and get them the win. Bath outside backs to trouble them on attack and keep it close.

Welsh 21-22 quins

Think quins extra quality takes this. Welsh well set out and great controlling half backs.

Think quins will have more ball and will utilise their more dynamic backs. Think welsh need a little bit of subtlety in the backs but will be very tough in the winter

Sarries 21-21 warriors

Both have good packs. Think Worcester edge it. Sarries engine room a tad underpowered. Great backrows on show and Worcester have some great carrying options

Both sides have some issues in backs. Pete particularly in back 3 and prop with Morgan and vesty in particular. I know very little of written sorry prop. Need to see him play

Newcastle 23 - 23 Sale
Really tough to call, would never play Read at no6 but instead would shift Falateau there, as he's done ok for Wales. Strong backline for Newcastle, but love the balance of Sale 9-10. Very even and can't split it.

Tigers 29 - 27 Bath
Pack goes to Tigers for me, they have a cracking backrow too and will get them more ball to attack with. Bath have a great backline but feel they need to dominate breakdown and win the pack battle with their halfback pairing. If they do that then they could run up cricket scores in games.

Wasps 25 - 26 Glos
think this will be a really close game, would like to see Gloucester have a centre who can get over the gainline - but pack goes to Gloucester, though Mafi makes a huge difference for me. Backline led by Carter is hard to stop and see Gloucester having a bit more class to win, but Wasps v hard to break down.

Saracens 21 - 19 Worcester
Great balance to whole of Sarries pack and backline, can see them really gelling and causing Warriors problems. Do Like the Warriors lineup and great backrow, but see Sarries having a bit more to them and able to win this game.

Welsh 24 - 27 Quins
Bit more quality with Quins team, think that makes the difference. Driver has done a great job with Welsh and improved from his Exeter team ten fold. Really good balance to Welsh pack too, they are going to be tough to beat in the wet all season and over the RC too!

Newcastle Falcons 26 - 25 Sale Sharks
Beast of a front row for Sale and a nice unit for the Falcons, think the Sale flankers are lightweight and could get outmuscled at the breakdown although Picamoles helps them. Good backlines on show, think Pooly's is a lot stronger with some good combos, can see Newcastle just getting the upper hand in the forward battle which will give their backs good quality ball to make use of.

Northampton Saints 25 - 28 London Irish
Irish will have the edge in the scrum and will get good front foot ball, two excellent scrummaging props. The Saints pack has plenty of dynamism but I think Irish have the power to win the breakdown battle. Really like the Saints backline, however I think with the likes of Armitage, Irish will disrupt the quality of ball Phillips gets. Plenty of good attacking options for the Saints but I think Irish will push them onto the back foot by winning the pack battle and take victory from there.

Leicester Tigers 24 - 20 Bath Rugby
Can see the Tigers really turning the screw up front, with Croft, Joubert etc they will control the lineout and I can't see Bath competing too well up front. Prefer the Bath back line, but I think the service they get wont be too good. Some good line runners in the Tigers back line who will make plenty of outside breaks. Forward and set piece dominance sees the Tigers to victory.

Saracens 22 - 21 Worcester Warriors
Really like both packs some great combinations on show. Maybe a slight lack of dynamism within the Sarries pack but they have the grit to carry over the gain line. Massive fan of the Warriors back row, good balance plenty of power. Think it'll be a close fought battle up front with both sides getting good quality ball. Sarries have that extra quality in the back line, big fan of Davies and I think the extra quality Pete has will just see his side to victory.

London Welsh 20 - 23 Harlequins
Strong packs on show, think Quins will control the break down and will make good use of the ball they get. Not a fan of Butch James, but I think he will do a job, like the big carriers in the Welsh back line plenty of power to get over the gain line. The Quins pack for me is superior and will control the set piece.

Will do predos tomorrow morning if they are still open, been a busy weekend.

Only half of us have predicted, will leave predos open until 1400 hours luke

Won't be in from work till 7 my apologies

Ozzy3213 wrote:Only half of us have predicted, will leave predos open until 1400 hours luke

And someone give me a big win for an upset

Newcastle Falcons 25 Sale Sharks 27

Not much give either way in the front row, and form will be a big factor when the season starts. I really like the pairing of Retallick and Bekker and think that would work very well. Overall excellent players in both packs, I like the balance of the Sale one a little more though. Two good half back pairings. Need to see how Benjamin goes at Tigers before he can really be rated, but both backlines have tries in them. Close one, but I prefer the balance in the Sale pack which gives them a marginal win.


Northampton Saints 25 London Irish 23

I have the Irish pack as winning the set piece battle here, with Saints better in the loose. I don’t rate Evans as highly as some at 10. Still quality, but not been on the international scene for a while now so hard to rate against other top internationals. I don’t see much between the two backlines, both 12’s have one or two ???’s over certain facets of their play, and it’s one winger each with Pietersen’s form giving him an edge over Halfpenny, and Ashton simply better than Sackey. Another close call, but given the summer conditions and the fact that I don’t see their being huge amounts of scrums and lineouts I think Saints will shade it courtesy of their pack doing more in the loose.


Leicester Tigers 34 Bath Rugby 29

I think this would be a high scorer. I really like the Tigers pack, can’t really pick many weaknesses although Youngs needs to nail a starting jersey in real life and sort out his set piece work. It’s an exciting backline that will score tries, but I can see it leaking a few as well, as Rangerr, EFS and Lualala are all prone to jumping out of the defensive line looking for the big hit. Overall though they bring more positives in attack than negatives in defence and for that reason I think Tigers win a high scorer here.


London Wasps 21 Gloucester 19

I wouldn’t expect to have been saying this but I really don’t like the make up of the Gloucester pack and I think that Wasps could have some joy here. With Nieto anchoring the scrum at tighthead I could see the two Aussies having some joy. I’m not sold on the balance of either second row really. Wentzel needs a lump who carries well next to him, which Botha is not, and Mat has two 4.5’s in the side and I am not convinced that they would work together. The jury is out for me on Conor Murray, and how he starts the season for Munster will have a big impact on how I rate him, but Carter is a big step up from Priestland. Barnes and Daly could be a revolving door in midfield and Wasps have to good defenders their to snuff out their attacking threat. Close call as all games are now, but I think Wasps shade this one in a fairly low scorer.


London Welsh 27 Harlequins 30

I think Welsh could get some joy at scrum time with a decent front row and Franks not the best scrummaging tighthead for me. No much in the engine rooms and would come down to form in the season. Narraway not a 6 and Dowson not a 7 for me so not keen on the Welsh back row and I think Quins have a decent edge here with a pretty well balanced unit. I quite like both half back pairings although both 10’s can be hit or miss, and in the backs I don’t see much between them other than a contrast of styles. I think this would be a high-ish scorer with the backlines on show, as both have defensive frailties, but ultimately I think Welsh are let down by their back row and Quins will get on top their and take the win.

Driver - RIP 606 wrote:Won't be in from work till 7 my apologies

If I leave it open until 8 will you be able to get them in?

Saints 20-23 Irish

Irish with an edge at the set piece. Bit more dynamism to the Saints front row but more carrying options in the Irish back 5 of the pack. Halfbacks edge to Irish with Evans over Giteau who is more a 12 these days. 2 cracking midfield units and hard to separate but back 3 as a unit shades to Saints. Not a lot in it ball in hand but the better base for Irish to attack from sees them win.

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Tigers 20-17 Bath

Can’t see any shift coming at scrum time but Tigers will do well at the lineout. Little bit more quality for Tigers in the back row. Halfbacks a step up to Tigers. But through the rest of the backline can’t see any real advantage. Two good benches but past the front row Bath have a bit more quality and will do well in the last quarter.

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Wasps 18-15 Gloucester

Can see Gloucester struggling a bit here at the set piece. No real lineout leader and up against Nieto and co the scrum will struggle a little. Back row battle is interesting. Glaws with more quality but only Ferris carries top form. Edging towards the Gloucester 3 but not as big an advantage it could be when all on top form. In the backs Glaws with more in the back 3 and at FH. The midfield combo though will struggle on defence. Think Arry’s men have enough to take a big scalp here.

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Sarries 22-17 Worcester

Very tight front 5 battle. Neither side will get on top here. Cracking back row battle as well but a bit more form for the Sarries line up sees them get a slight edge. In the backs see the back 3s very even but Sarries have more quality in the halfbacks and midfield areas which is the telling point in this game.

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Welsh 15-22 Quins

Another tight front 5 battle but man for man in the backrow Quins are stronger and they can really get on top here for me. The directness of the Welsh backline will cause the Quins defence a few issues but the damage is done in the back row and Quins have the runners to get in behind

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Newcastle 24 - 21 Sale

Advantage Newcastle up front with a stronger unit on show, whereas the second row is much more even with one apiece. Prefer the balance in Sale's back row, but Newcastle have the better players. Defo swap Read and Faletau. Two good HB units, prob edge to Sale on overall quality. Two great centre units, edge to Newcastle but not a lot in it. Newcastle take back three. Just a bit more quality in Newcastle's side.


Saints 22 - 20 Irish

Good front row battle with two strong units. Just edge to Saints in the second row but lineout to Sale. Two really good back row units, edge to Saints with a really well balanced top unit. Good form for Irish though. Better HB unit from Irish in my eyes, and two strong centre pairings that will be a great battle. Slight edge to Saints in the back three. A strong Saints side has jyust enough to take this.


Wasps 18 - 24 Gloucester

Wasps take the front row but not a lot in it, but Gloucester take the second row with more quality on show. Gloucester take the back row with a nice unit on show, but I like Wasps back 5 and don't see them laying down without a fight. Gloucester take the HB's but it's one apiece in the centres. Muchmore quality in Gloiucester's back three. Think Gloucester have too much for Wasps today.


Saracens 22 - 21 Worcester

Tough to seperate front rows, two nice units. Similar story in the second row with not a great deal between the two. Two really strong back rows that will be a great battle. Slightly better HB unit from Sarries, and similar story in the centres. Slight edge to Worcester in the back three. Really tough game to call, but I think Sarries have that bit more in key areas.


Welsh 23 - 23 Harlequins

I don't see much in the front fives at all. See Welsh doing well up front, and in the lineout. Bit more about Quins' back row, don't see much balance in Welsh's back row, flankers out of position. One apiece in the HB's, but slight edge to Welsh in the centres. More dangerous back three for Welsh too. Really struggling to split these two, really good tight game.

Pretty happy with that result with a team that isn't full strength!!

New scoring system definitely gives fairer results.

Will be such a close league this year! Lots of losing BP's - be interesting to see how the RC impacts on it this year, I had such a crap start during the WC and always struggle 6Nations!

Yeah I'd say so..........revenge will be sweet Ozzy!!

Another loss , wonderful.....

Will be the closest league so far I reckon. I will be putting massive emphasis on tactics and real life form in my predictions when the season starts.

No idea who is going to finish where. Should be seriously tight all season. Competition for playoff places as tight as last season.

Chris has got a good chance of a top 4 finish. teams looking good.