Leicester Tigers - 2013/14 Thread

[LondonTiger]

First topic message reminder :

Senior Squad

Props - Ayerza, Balmain, Bristow, Cole, Mulipola, Schuster, Stankovich
Hookers - Briggs, Chuter, Hawkins, Youngs
Locks - Cain, Deacon. De Chaves, Kitchener, Parling, Price, Slater
Back Row - Crane, Croft, Gibson, Mafi, Salvi, Waldrom

Scrum Halves - Harrison, Mele, Steele, Youngs
Outside Half - Flood, Lamb, Williams
Centres - Allen, Bowden, Smith, Tuilagi
Wings - Benjamin, Camacho, Goneva, Morris, Thompstone
Full Back - Hamilton, Tait

Coaches - Cockerill (DoR & Forwards), Blaze (Asst Forwards), Burke (Backs), Murphy (Asst Backs)


Aviva Premiership Fixtures

Sun 8 Sep 14:00 Leicester Tigers   32         Worcester Warriors 15
Sat 14 Sep 15:15 Bath Rugby  27   Leicester Tigers 20
Sat 21 Sep 15:00 Leicester Tigers  33   Newcastle Falcons 6
Sun 29 Sep 14:00 Exeter Chiefs   9   Leicester Tigers  22
Sat 5 Oct 15:15 Leicester Tigers 19   Northampton Saints  19
Sun 27 Oct 14:00 London Wasps 22   Leicester Tigers 12
Sat 2 Nov 17:30 Leicester Tigers  16   Harlequins 23
Sat 23 Nov 15:00 Leicester Tigers 20   London Irish 11
Sat 30 Nov 15:00 Gloucester Rugby 17   Leicester Tigers 22
Sat 21 Dec 15:00 Saracens  49 v   Leicester Tigers 10
Sat 28 Dec 15:00 Leicester Tigers   v   Sale Sharks
Sat 4 Jan 15:00 Leicester Tigers 27  v   Bath Rugby 27
Fri 7 Feb 19:45 Worcester Warriors  22 v   Leicester Tigers 23
Sat 15 Feb 15:00 Leicester Tigers 11  v   Gloucester Rugby  8
Sun 23 Feb 15:00 London Irish  15 v   Leicester Tigers 20
Sun 2 Mar 15:00 Newcastle Falcons  18 v   Leicester Tigers 41
Sat 22 Mar 15:00 Leicester Tigers   45 v   Exeter Chiefs 15
Sat 29 Mar 15:00 Northampton Saints 16  v   Leicester Tigers 22
Sat 12 Apr 15:00 Leicester Tigers   v   London Wasps Welford Road
Sat 19 Apr 15:00 Harlequins   v   Leicester Tigers Twickenham Stoop
Fri 2 May 20:00 Sale Sharks   v   Leicester Tigers Salford City Stadium
Sat 10 May 15:00 Leicester Tigers   v   Saracens Welford Road



Heineken Cup Fixtures

Friday, October 11 8pm Ulster Rugby 22  Leicester Tigers 16
Friday, October 18 8pm Leicester Tigers 34  Benetton Treviso 3
Sunday, December 8 3pm Leicester Tigers 41 Montpellier Herault Rugby 32
Sunday, December 15 4pm (local time) Montpellier Herault Rugby 14  Leicester Tigers 15
10/11/12 January 2014 Benetton Treviso 19 v Leicester Tigers 34
17/18/19 January 2014 Leicester Tigers 19 v Ulster Rugby 22
Saturday, 5th April ASM Clermont Auvergne v Leicester Tigers

[nathan]

Deflect away from what exactly? Every tigers fan on here has said cockerill was in the wrong and deserves the ban.

past actions of saints players was mentioned in the judgement hence why its being spoken about on here.

[Frankston]

It was brought up by Cockerill, and as Sam has already said the panel didn't take any notice of it. And again, why shouldn't they ignore it? They have already dealt with previous incidents and they have nothing to do with this hearing.

I didn't say anyone had denied Cockerill was in the wrong, what I did say was that bringing up actions of other clubs was used as an excuse for his behaviour towards Terheege.

11. Mr. Cockerill gave evidence. He explained the background and reasons for his concern over the protection of his players. He referred to previous incidents in previous games where violence had been perpetrated on his players by Northampton and social media traffic in the lead up to the game in which certain named players were said to be “targeted”. Such was his level of concern that he had spoken to Mr. Morrison during the week preceding the game. He had mentioned the issue of discipline, though not forcefully as he knew there was to be a TMO appointed.

That is the very first part of Cockerill's defense. It is clear that is being used as a reasoning for his behaviour towards Terheege

[nathan]

It was brought up by Cockerill, and as Sam has already said the panel didn't take any notice of it. And again, why shouldn't they ignore it? They have already dealt with previous incidents and they have nothing to do with this hearing.

I didn't say anyone had denied Cockerill was in the wrong, what I did say was that bringing up actions of other clubs was used as an excuse for his behaviour towards Terheege.

11. Mr. Cockerill gave evidence. He explained the background and reasons for his concern over the protection of his players. He referred to previous incidents in previous games where violence had been perpetrated on his players by Northampton and social media traffic in the lead up to the game in which certain named players were said to be “targeted”. Such was his level of concern that he had spoken to Mr. Morrison during the week preceding the game. He had mentioned the issue of discipline, though not forcefully as he knew there was to be a TMO appointed.

That is the very first part of Cockerill's defense. It is clear that is being used as a reasoning for his behaviour towards Terheege

I presume he was trying to use it as a mitigating factor like we see on the pitch (player being held down, other player lashes out etc). But i see your point.

It just annoys me that in Cockerills case they used the fact it was the final to add weight to his punishment, yet they didn't to Hartley. They were both in the final and they both used some naughty language towards the match official.

[formerly known as Sam]

Frankston I wasn't trying to deflect by the way, I clearly stated that he deserved a ban for the language he used. You swear at a match official you get a ban.

What I found was interesting is that he stated he had discussed his concerns with the head of referees. Certainly explains why he flew off the handle if he was concerned over another incident. Doesn't excuse what he said but motivation and intent is generally considered to be a factor in most legal cases and he had just seen a spinal board being taken on for a player he has worked with for five years. At that point he didn't know it was only concussion. The lack of a TMO decision clearly made him feel that his players were not being offered sufficient protection.

[formerly known as Sam]

http://www.burtonmail.co.uk/Sport/Joe-Cain-targets-first-team-push-after-signing-new-Leicester-Tigers-deal-20130702174458.htm

Young Joe Cain has recovered from that nasty injury, has got himself a new one year deal and is back working hard. Nice interview and good to hear he's back, when I've seen him he's looked a decent prospect and more game time at Notts will help.

[Portnoy's Complaint]

Can anyone recall a season when the Tigers ended a season with fewer injuries to key players?

[formerly known as Sam]

Deacon (shoulder), Slater (tricep), Stanko (shoulder), Flood (concussion) and Benjamin (neck). I believe that was all the first team injuries and I think only Benjamin is still suffering and he might be ready for the start of the season It's a week by week style recovery. Things looking good, clearly those experiments with the medical school of Leicester Uni about reducing injury both in training and severity are paying dividends.

[LondonTiger]

Well, the six Lions will now start their well deserved summer hols, reporting back to Oval park in mid August. I guess we are unlikely to see them in green until Round 3 when we host Falcons. I do think though that 5 of the 6 (Tom Croft the exception) will come back more rounded and more confident players.

[Ozzy3213]

Tom Youngs will have learnt masses on this Lions tour.  His learning curve has been steep but he has shown he can mix it with the very best.

[LondonTiger]

Tom Youngs will have learnt masses on this Lions tour.  His learning curve has been steep but he has shown he can mix it with the very best.

I still feel he is probably too short, but he did have an excellent tour.

I know we do sometimes whinge about the effect call-ups have on our preparations, but I do feel that Leicester will be stronger next season - in large part due to the Lions experiences.

[formerly known as Sam]

Tom Youngs has been playing at that level for the several months. The only noticeable improvement has been his throwing which now looks rock solid in the most high pressure of environments.

The Lions test win will boost the players morale, give them valuable experience and give the club very good media exposure.

[yappysnap]

With the whole Cockerill farce and ban and then West's comments as well, can we look forward to a bit more spicy encounters between Saints and Tigers this season? Fingers crossed...

[LondonTiger]

With the whole Cockerill farce and ban and then West's comments as well, can we look forward to a bit more spicy encounters between Saints and Tigers this season? Fingers crossed...

The biggest issue is more likely to be when Marler and JJ some face to dace

[yappysnap]

Yea that's if Marler and PDJ can keep away from each other for a minute, they had a few heated moments last season too... I would love to see some of the Quins training sessions now with Easter, Marler, PDJ etc all bickering

[formerly known as Sam]

Not sure how much more spicy the midlands derbies cab get without brass knuckles being brought onto the pitch. Cockerill's comments about Saints being a bunch of thugs targeting his players and West's accusations over the Tigers staff intimidating match officials is just the text chapter in the saga. If Saints can afford a thrashing in their next AP game that'll help the rivalry as Tigers really demolished them at FG in the last two meetings there.

Bit of fire in the Quins training sessions will be good for their forwards.

[Metal Tiger]

Not sure how much more spicy the midlands derbies cab get without brass knuckles being brought onto the pitch. Cockerill's comments about Saints being a bunch of thugs targeting his players and West's accusations over the Tigers staff intimidating match officials is just the text chapter in the saga. If Saints can afford a thrashing in their next AP game that'll help the rivalry as Tigers really demolished them at FG in the last two meetings there.

Bit of fire in the Quins training sessions will be good for their forwards.

I sometimes wonder how much off the Spice is just good marketing?

Don't get me wrong, I love the whole derby/rivalry thing with Saints but I don't believe there is the level of animosity that there is made out to be. But a certain amount of frisson will put bums on seats.

[formerly known as Sam]

There's no animosity between the supporters but there certainly seems to be some friction on the pitch recently. That's probably added to significantly by both West and Cockers coaching the teams.

[LondonTiger]

Signed another young prop, from LW this time.

With Marcos missing till December, and and Logo on AI duty - and with Bobo's injury issues we needed someone.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-union/23313959

[Portnoy's Complaint]

Interesting times now that the days of the 'hit' are supposedly behind us.

We can only hope that our hookers can hook.

[LondonTiger]

Interesting times now that the days of the 'hit' are supposedly behind us.

We can only hope that our hookers can hook.

Recall for Peter Wheeler?

[Dim]

If these new changes to reduce the significance of the hit and bring back a need to actually hook I think a hooker like Youngs could benefit once he learnt to strike the ball. The reduced hit would mean his lack of size wouldn't be as much of an issue and would also make it easier for him to rest on his taller props to get a quick strike which the taller hookers may struggle with. Despite being a converted centre he is more of the traditional hookers build than many modern hookers.

[formerly known as Sam]

I think with Ayerza and Cole, two very technical props who weren't great on the big hit bit were great after it then Youngs should get a good platform.

Chuter has pointed out the dangers of todays massive backs driving through when a hooker has all his weight on one leg and is desperately trying to hook. Presumably this was managed in ye olden days.

[Portnoy's Complaint]

The eight-man shove may be a potent weapon for the side without the feed if scrum feeds are straight.

A hooker worth his salt should be able to hook the ball quickly enough to recover though.

Maybe both hookers will be forced to attempt a strike if the 8-m-s appears to become dangerous once the coaches have sussed out the return of the old law.

[formerly known as Sam]

I'd imagine the scrum feeds will have to be straight is this is to work. A hooker who doesn't hook might find himself a touch red faced if the ball is nicked back and out before the 8 man bulldoze can take effect. Defensively, teams without the ball will be looking to disrupt but that's nothing new. It will certainly be interesting to see which scrummagers come out on top of these new laws.

[LondonTiger]

Hooking was "interesting" in the old days. I had to cover there quite a few times when the starter was injured (at the start of one season that happened a lot - that particular hooker did not last). My god you got twisted in some weird positions that just lifting your leg was hard enough.

[Portnoy's Complaint]

It was certainly interesting when the scum went down with the crown of your head in the mud and the back fives didn't stop shoving.

I still remember squealing like a pig thinking my spinal cord would snap.

[Portnoy's Complaint]

Leicester Tigers have lodged an appeal with the Rugby Football Union following the imposition of a nine-game ban on the club's director of rugby Richard Cockerill.
After receiving the written judgement of the Rugby Football Union disciplinary panel's verdict on the charges relating to the Aviva Premiership Final in May, the club has confirmed that it will appeal solely against elements of the sentence rather than the guilty verdict.

The club will make no further comment until the outcome of the appeal is known.

http://www.leicestertigers.com/news/17047.php#.UebWjG1b12Y

Bad move imo for the Club.

Good news for those like me that want to see justice and legal niceties to be observed so that what is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.

[formerly known as Sam]

Correct way to go about it. Cockers is clearly guilty and to try and get him off be unethical. However, the way the RFU conducted it's prosecution was not very professional and as such they should be called into account.

Whilst I don't think the ban should be shortened much I do think preseason games should count towards it like they do on other cases.

[Geordie]

What do you guys think about the Kitchener v Parling Battle for that Tigers second row shirt.

Whilst im not the biggest Parling fan, he has played very well...but Kitchener was very impressive for you last season...and i feel has much more about him.

This could even push on to the England shirt aswell...Whats your thoughts?

[formerly known as Sam]

Parling has a massive work rate and runs the normally excellent Tigers lineout. Kitchener offers a more explosive impact and has been working on his all round game. With Parling set to miss the first couple of games as he rests post Lions it will be a great chance for Kitchener to stake a claim. We should see big Ed Slater pass Louis Deacon early doors this season too. Slater was the lock that caught the eye last season though Kitchener seems more like a Lancaster style lock.

It's an area of strength next season so I expect quite a battle for the starting shirts.

[Geordie]

Yeah you have a lot of depth & quality in thsat area...even you're youngsters are all England players i believe. Is it Price whos the giant beanpole, whos filled out?

[LondonTiger]

Kitchener (perhaps due to injuries and EPS enforced rest for others) made the most starts in Leicester's second row last season.

The Parling/Kitchener combination was the most common pairing.

Parling is our number one lock forward and for me Kitchener is number two now - Deacon is too injury prone and while I love Slater, I feel he has been overhyped and is not as good as the press he gets.

Kitch is filling out quite nicely, is strong in the set-piece and good around the park. He was I feel unlucky that the AP final clashed with the England Barbarians game which saw Kearnan Myall called up to the England squad and subsequently tour. I really do feel he will be there or ther abouts when next summers tour squad is named.

[LondonTiger]

Tom Price is about 6ft 10 and 18st, started the JWC final and scored the "try" at the end of the first half.

Harry Wells is about 6ft 5 and 17.5st, can cover second row but more often used at 6 - was on the bench for JWC final.

Joe Cain is still only 20 and a big lad (injury prone sadly) probably about 6ft 10 and 20 stone. Played for England at U16s (when he was 6ft5) and U18s but missed out on U20s due to injuries.

[formerly known as Sam]

Saw an article with Cain saying he was fit and on loan at Notts next season. Didn't realise he was that tall but is a real beast with a skillset (his uncle Phil Brown tried to convince him to go pro football), scored on his debut vs Sarries last season.

I think Wells has bulked past 18 stone now, last article I saw him mentioned in had him at 6 foot 5 and 18 stone. I would like to see him play on the blindside as he would be a different option to Croft and Mafi as he is a more traditional hit em hard and get stuck in blindside but is still tall and mobile. Doesn't have Croft and Mafi's explosive ability out in the loose but would be an asset in the mid winter particularly during the international periods this season.

We've got this de Chaves as well who is EQ through his mother. He joined this summer.

[Geordie]

These kids are just getting bigger and bigger...making me feel old and small!!!

[formerly known as Sam]

Tell me about it GF. At one point last season I was playing for my rugby team (amateur social level) I was at 10 and had two centres and wingers all 18 all 6 foot or over and probably all of my weight or more. I'm 6 foot and 13 and a half stone at 26. Frig knows what those guys have been fed on as I was not in that shape at 18 I was a good stone lighter to start with.

If that's amateur players coming through then pro level players are going to be more extreme. There's a finite amount of squad space with the cap and players need to make an impression. Thankfully there's still some normal sized players at the top level.

[tigerleghorn]

To lighten things during this warm spell, I'd be interested to hear from you guys if you know of any celebs, sporting or otherwise who are also Tigers fans?

[Big Cliff74]

I’ve heard, on very good authority, that Dorian West is a closet Tigers fan….He's always talking about us to the press.  

[LondonTiger]

I have added in the HEC fixtures to the OP.

Interesting we start in Ravenhill, as always on a Friday night to make it as intimidating as possible. Hopefully we react better than last time.


Really Peed off about the two home fixtures with Treviso and Montpelier being on a Friday and a Sunday. So far we have no Saturday matches at all.

[formerly known as Sam]

As someone who plays on a Saturday the tv coverage forcing games away from a Saturday is beneficial. It means I get to watch them all live. For the club it must be a frustration though, much of our financial strength is based on 12 to 13 thousand season ticket holders paying up each season. These fixture issues do nothing to protect that, in fact quite the opposite.

[yappysnap]

Did Tigers not have loads of Sunday fixtures last season as well? I seem to remember lots of games on Sundays...

[LondonTiger]

Did Tigers not have loads of Sunday fixtures last season as well? I seem to remember lots of games on Sundays...

A few. Though the Saturday 8pm kick off against Sarries was a pain to get home from.

[formerly known as Sam]

The tv schedule does not take into account fans travel plans. Certainly an annoyance.

[LondonTiger]

The tv schedule does not take into account fans travel plans. Certainly an annoyance.

Well, I guess they pay so much money they think "**** the non-tv fans"

[yappysnap]

Try getting to The Stoop on a Friday night.

[formerly known as Sam]

He who pays the piper calls the tune. There's only coverage of three games a week and it's understandable the broadcaster wants to spread these over the weekend to maximise the viewing figures. At least there's no midweek nonsense at the minute.

[LondonTiger]

Try getting to The Stoop on a Friday night.

Easier for me than getting to Welford Road. One short(ish) train ride from work.

[yappysnap]

You work in London LT? I have to come through Richmond and its hellish after 5.

[LondonTiger]

You work in London LT? I have to come through Richmond and its hellish after 5.

Work near Heathrow atm - hence why I tend to arrive at 6 in the morning. Could catch a train going in, so against the flow if I wanted to visit the Stoop on a Friday. As it is, WR will mean M25 and M1 on a Friday night.

[yappysnap]

Leaving the day before then to make it there...

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