Challenge Cup Round Four

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Bordeaux-Begles v Worcester Warriors
Stade André Moga
Light Cloud, 13 Degrees, 5mph SW Winds

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Bordeaux-Begles

15 Jean-Marcellin Buttin, 14 Jean-Baptiste Dubié, 13 Felix Le Bourhis, 12 Charles Brousse, 11 Nans Ducuing, 10 Pierre Bernard, 9 Heini Adams, 8 Marco Tauleigne, 7 Hugh Chalmers, 6 Matthew Clarkin, 5 Adam Jaulhac, 4 Berend Botha, 3 Sekope Kepu, 2 Clement Maynadier, 1 Jefferson Poirot.

Replacements: 16 Ronan Chambord, 17 Jean-Baptiste Poux, 18 Patrick Toetu, 19 Cyril Cazeaux, 20 Louis Madaule, 21 Baptiste Serin, 22 Romain Lonca, 23 Paulin Riva

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Worcester Warriors
Manager – prop_lyd

01. Val Ruskin	09. Sam Harrison
02. Codie Taylor	10. Jules Plisson(k)
03. Luc Dulcalcon
04. Tom Savage (c)	11. Horatio Agulla
05. Devin Toner	12. Johnny Murray
06. Mike Williams	13. Huw Jones
07. George Smith	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Jackson Wray	15. Brice Dulin

:-
16. Jack Walker 17. Tom Smallbone 18. Lucas Paz 19. Dean Mumm 20. Warren Whiteley 21. Rory Kockott 22. Jarrad Payne 23. Cory Allen

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Edinburgh Rugby v Exeter Chiefs
Murrayfield
Light Cloud, 10 Degrees, 14mph SW Winds

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Edinburgh Rugby

15 Dougie Fife, 14 Tom Brown, 13 Michael Allen, 12 Andries Strauss, 11 Otulea Katoa, 10 Greig Tonks, 9 Nathan Fowles, 8 Cornell Du Preez, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Jamie Ritchie, 5 Alex Toolis, 4 Anton Bresler, 3 John Andress, 2 Neil Cochrane, 1 Rory Sutherland.

Replacements: 16 George Turner, 17 Grant Shiells, 18 Simon Berghan, 19 Magnus Bradbury, 20 Chris Dean, 21 Sam Hidalgo-Clyne, 22 Blair Kinghorn, 23 Damien Hoyland

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Exeter Chiefs 
Manager – Fluxy

01. Nic Auterac	09. Nic White
02. Rob Webber	10. Toby Flood (k)
03. Jake Cooper-Woolley
04. Jake Ball	11. Teddy Thomas
05. James Horwill	12. Jan Serfontein
06. Yannick Nyanga	13. Sam James
07. Luke Wallace	14. JP Pietersen
08. Brad Shields	15. Maxime Medard

_
16. Jack Yeandle 17. Jefferson Poirot 18. Vincent Koch 19. Juandre Kruger 20. Joe Edwards 21. Connor Murray 22. Alex Losowski 23. Cory Jane

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Gloucester v Castres Olympique
Kingsholm
Light Cloud, 12 Degrees, 14mph SSW Winds

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Gloucester


1 Beast
2 LCD
3 Antonio
4 Gray
5 Robson
6 Croft
7 Savea
8 Dickinson
9 Genia
10 Cipriani
11 May
12 Toomua
13 Crotty
14 Talebula
15 Folau
16 Ousthuizen
17 Strauss
18 Figallo
19 stooke
20 Alberts
21 Robson
22 Carter
23 Naiyaralo

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Castres Olympique

15 Julien Caminati, 14 Romain Martial, 13 Florian Vialelle, 12 Romain Cabannes, 11 Louis Decrop, 10 Julien Dumora, 9 Antoine Dupont, 8 Johnnie Beattie, 7 Ibrahim Diarra, 6 Yannick Caballero, 5 Victor Moreaux, 4 Christophe Samson, 3 Yohan Montes, 2 Marc-Antoine Rallier, 1 Saimone Taumoepeau.

Replacements: 16 Julien Beziat, 17 Antoine Tichit, 18 Lucas Martinez, 19 Benjamin Desroche, 20 Mathieu Babillot, 21 Francois Fontaine, 22 Julien Seron, 23 Thomas Combezou

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Newcastle Falcons v Rugby Calvisano
Kingston Park
Light Cloud, 11 Degrees, 13mph SSW Winds

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 Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Bambam

01. Alec Hepburn	09. Greig Laidlaw (k)
02. Jamie George (c)	10. Gareth Anscombe
03. Nepo Laulala
04. Jacques Potgeiter	11. Charlie Sharples
05. Dom Barrow	12. Stuart Mccloskey
06. Callum Clark	13. Luke Marshall
07. Jordi Murphy	14. Vince Tavae Aso
08. Jack O'Donaghue	15. Rob Miller

:-
16.George McGuigan 17.Vincent Debaty 18. Matt Stevens 19. Flip Van Der Merwe 20. Kieran Read 21. Nick Phipps 22. Owen Farrell 23. Charles Piutau

Could I have feedback on my centre combo please?

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Rugby Calvisano

15 Matteo Minozzi, 14 Ben De Jager, 13 Pablo Canavosio, 12 Alberto Chiesa, 11 Marco Susio, 10 Filippo Buscema, 9 Riccardo Raffaele, 8 Renato Giammarioli, 7 Maxime Mbanda, 6 Nicola Belardo, 5 Davide Zanetti, 4 Agustin Cavalieri, 3 Rudy Biancotti, 2 Lorenzo Giovanchelli, 1 Sami Panico.

Replacements: 16 Luhandre Luus, 17 Gabriele Morelli, 18 Salvatore Costanzo, 19 Michele Andreotti, 20 Jim Tuivaiti, 21 Matteo Archetti, 22 Daniele Di Giulio, 23 Giacomo De Santis

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London Wasps v Connacht
Ricoh Arena
Light Cloud, 11 Degrees, 13mph SSW Winds

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London Wasps
Manager: CJ

01. Nathan Catt	09. Ben Spencer
02. Cory Flynn	10. Charlie Hodgson (k)
03. James Johnston
04. Donnacha Ryan	11. Rob Horne
05. Sam Twomey	12. George Moala
06. Carl Fearns	13. Nick Tompkins
07. John Barclay (c)	14. Craig Gilroy
08.  Victor Vito	15. Jesse Mogg

:-
16. Eddy Ben Arous 17. Adrian Strauss, 18. Tom West 19. George Skivington  , 20 Tom Guest , 21. Rhodri Williams , 22. Kyle Godwin, 23.  George Lowe

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Connacht

15 Tiernan O'Halloran, 14 Niyi Adeolokun, 13 Rory Parata, 12 Peter Robb, 11 Matt Healy, 10 Jack Carty, 9 Caolin Blade, 8 George Naoupu, 7 James Connolly, 6 Sean O'Brien, 5 Aly Muldowney, 4 Ultan Dillane, 3 Nathan White, 2 Jason Harris Wright, 1 Finlay Bealham.

Replacements: 16 Shane Delahunt, 17 Conan O'Donnell, 18 Rodney Ah You, 19 Danny Qualter, 20 David Heffernan, 21 Ian Porter, 22 Shane O'Leary, 23 Danie Poolman

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Mark

Newcastle Falcons
Manager – Bambam

01. Alec Hepburn	09. Greig Laidlaw (k)
02. Jamie George (c)	10. Gareth Anscombe
03. Nepo Laulala
04. Jacques Potgeiter	11. Charlie Sharples
05. Dom Barrow	12. Stuart Mccloskey
06. Callum Clark	13. Luke Marshall
07. Jordi Murphy	14. Vince Tavae Aso
08. Jack O'Donaghue	15. Rob Miller

:-
16.George McGuigan 17.Vincent Debaty 18. Matt Stevens 19. Flip Van Der Merwe 20. Kieran Read 21. Nick Phipps 22. Owen Farrell 23. Charles Piutau

cah I pick same as last week if required to post a side today? Wanted to see results before changing my side. In north Devon with no internet or even 3 g so even posting this took ages

London Wasps
Manager: CJ

01. Nathan Catt	09. Ben Spencer
02. Cory Flynn	10. Charlie Hodgson (k)
03. James Johnston
04. Donnacha Ryan	11. Rob Horne
05. Sam Twomey	12. George Moala
06. Carl Fearns	13. Nick Tompkins
07. John Barclay (c)	14. Craig Gilroy
08.  Victor Vito	15. Jesse Mogg

:-
16. Eddy Ben Arous 17. Adrian Strauss, 18. Tom West 19. George Skivington  , 20 Tom Guest , 21. Rhodri Williams , 22. Kyle Godwin, 23.  George Lowe

Exeter Chiefs 

Manager – Fluxy

01. Nic Auterac	09. Nic White
02. Rob Webber	10. Toby Flood (k)
03. Jake Cooper-Woolley
04. Jake Ball	11. Teddy Thomas
05. James Horwill	12. Jan Serfontein
06. Yannick Nyanga	13. Sam James
07. Luke Wallace	14. JP Pietersen
08. Brad Shields	15. Maxime Medard

_
16. Jack Yeandle 17. Jefferson Poirot 18. Vincent Koch 19. Juandre Kruger 20. Joe Edwards 21. Connor Murray 22. Alex Losowski 23. Cory Jane

Worcester Warriors
Manager – prop_lyd

01. Val Ruskin	09. Sam Harrison
02. Codie Taylor	10. Jules Plisson(k)
03. Luc Dulcalcon
04. Tom Savage (c)	11. Horatio Agulla
05. Devin Toner	12. Johnny Murray
06. Mike Williams	13. Huw Jones
07. George Smith	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Jackson Wray	15. Brice Dulin

:-
16. Jack Walker 17. Tom Smallbone 18. Lucas Paz 19. Dean Mumm 20. Warren Whiteley 21. Rory Kockott 22. Jarrad Payne 23. Cory Allen

Could I have feedback on my centre combo please?

SJE if you get a chance, can you just stick that at the end of my tactics? Cheers

by anonmattyt on Wed Dec 09, 2015 9:03 am
1 Beast
2 LCD
3 Antonio
4 Gray
5 Robson
6 Croft
7 Savea
8 Dickinson
9 Genia
10 Cipriani
11 May
12 Toomua
13 Crotty
14 Talebula
15 Folau
16 Ousthuizen
17 Strauss
18 Figallo
19 stooke
20 Alberts
21 Robson
22 Carter
23 Naiyaralo

RESULTS:

Bordeaux 19 (T:1 C:1 P:4)
Worcester Warriors 26 (T:2 C:2 P:4)

Edinburgh 21 (T:2 C:1 P:3)
Exeter Chiefs 33 (T:4 C:2 P:3)

Gloucester 38 (T:5 C:5 P:1)
Castres 18 (P:6)

Newcastle Falcons 58 (T:7 C:7 P:3)
Calvisano 13 (T:1 C:1 P:2)

Wasps 35 (T:4 C:3 P:3)
Connacht 23 (T:2 C:2 P:3)

Bordeaux 18 - 20 Worcester

French side not at their strongest which helps Worcester here as they aren't either. They have enough to get a good away win.

Bordeaux 20 - 28 Worcester

Bordeaux will hold out for a while, but eventually the quality in the Wuss side will tell, and I'd expect them to win relatively comfortably on the road.

Worcester 16 - 15 Bordeaux
Closer than last week with Bordeuax at home but can still see the English team winner again - just

Bordeaux 23-21 Worcester

The home side have the pack and set piece advantage and can get a good foothold in the game early on. Not much in the backlines but I just can't see Worcester having enough to turn the French over.

Bordeaux 17  - 24 Worcester

Bordeaux pretty good at the scrum, and can take on Worcester here, but Worcester are better elsewhere in the pack esp back row and also have the edge in most places in the backs, even with a backup pairing in the Centres and some fringe players. 

Warriors 34-15 Bordeaux 

Bordeaux-Begles 15-16Worcester Warriors

Bordeaux Begles 22 - 22 Worcester Warriors

Bordeaux are a tough prospect at home, as a unit and would present a very stiff opposition for the Warriors, who have a very young and much rotated XV out on the field. Bordeaux will be in control for most of the game, but the Wuss bench just has enough to help swing the momentum and snatch a draw away from home. 

Bordeaux 20-22 Worcester

Worc will struggle a bit at the scrum but have more about them at the breakdown and great impact late on for the away win.

Edinburgh 20-30 Chiefs
Edinburgh will struggle upfront and Chiefs will get a hold here and look to add pressure to their back row going backwards. Steady back row for Chiefs will do the job. Again more experience out wide for Chiefs with James having alot of quality around him and will thrive. Too much today from Chiefs.

Edinburgh 25 - 28 Exeter

Exeter face a tough game but do enough to win but they don't get a TBP.

Edinburgh 17 - 30 Exeter

Last week's Edinburgh side was a lot stronger, and even on the road posed much more of a threat. This week, a depleted Scots side looks there for the taking, and I'd expect the quality of Exeter's backs to show, easy win

Chiefs 18 - 15 Edinburgh
Bit closer than last week but haven't been overly impressed with the Scottish side so far.

Edinburgh 18-23 Exeter

Exeter have enough in the pack just to get an edge but it won't be all their own way. They step it up a bit in the backline though and have enough to come away with the win.

Edinburgh 19 - 28 Exeter

Exeter are better at the scrum and lineout and with a well selected backrow with ability across it at the breakdown, should be winning the breakdown by a bit. Exeter have a good HB combo and a well balanced backline and should easily win

Exeter 35-23 Edinburgh 

Edinburgh Rugby 30-31Exeter Chiefs

Edinburgh 20-30 Exeter

2nd string Edinburgh side mostly and can see Chiefs pushing on for the bonus point against them.

Glos 30-22 Castres
Castres again not really at full strength whereas Glos appear to be. Glos will get the most joy out wide to their speedsters and their back row should put Castres under pressure.

Gloucester 31 - 25 Castres

At home Gloucester have far to much for a poor Castres. Get an important TBP.

Gloucester 44 - 19 Castres

Easy win on the road last week, even easier this week at home with a close to full strength side for Glos. Ridiculous firepower from 9-15 to score tries at will, but may let a couple in too!

Castre 12 - 42 Gloucester
Another BP win for an AP side. Too much in the pack. 

Gloucester 35-15 Castres 

Gloucester look much stronger in the pack and they'll get a grip of the game early on. If I was going to criticise it would be the flank combo is a little short on graft but this isn't something that would hurt them in this game. Off front foot ball, Cips will have a field day and Gloucester will run home comfortable winners. 

Gloucester 31 - 19 Castres

Gloucester should edge the scrum, and with Croft the lineout too. In fact they have an advantage across the pack. A lot of attacking ability in the backline and with the pack advantage they can cut loose.

Casters 18-25 Gloucester

Gloucester 31 - 15 Castres

It is quite a strong Castres side, but not their best. Whereas, on the other hand, Glaws have a very strong line up and will secure a good home victory in this tie. 

Gloucester 35-20 Castres

Castres have never taken these games too seriously especially away from home and Glaws gone strong.

Falcons 52-15 Calvisano
Simple win here to be honest, Bam, I reckon your centre combo is steady and, when they work well together for Ulster they are strong, could be a very good future pairing here.

Newcastle 56 - 5 Calvisano

Not much to say. Easy.

Calvisana 10 - 68 Newcastle.
Absolute humping .

Newcastle 45-10 Rugby

Routine win for the Falcons against a pretty lacklustre Rugby C team. Plenty of options in the Newcastle 2nd string and they'll get the routine win.

Newcastle 49 - 6 Calvisiano

Newcastle are much better in the pack and have halfbacks who will keep the whole game in the Calvisiano red zone. I like Mccloskey and Marshall together. Although I think Marshall is more of a 12.

Rugby 6-53 Newcastle

Newcastle Falcons 64-63 Rugby Calvisano

Newcastle Falcons 51 - 7 Rugby Calvisano

Falcons possess too much quality for the italian outfit up front, and this allows their back line the time to make the best use of the space outwide. Bam, I like McCloskey, and the Marshall link is a good one, as we have seen with Ulster recently. I think he is one for the future and with JD2 could be a great partnership in the future. 

Falcons 42-0 Calvisano

Walk over here. McCloskey a top talent and may be involved in 6 nations. Marshal not a 13 really though and hasn't kicked on.

Wasps 30-22 Connacht
Easier for Wasps at home against a weaker Connacht side. Wasps front row and back 3 have enough to do the damage and Connacht will go home empty handed here.

Wasps 26 - 20 Connacht

Connacht weakened and Wasps put out a decent outfit. Good win aganst a tough side at home.

Wasps 33 - 14 Connacht

Connacht have played much stronger line ups than this during the season, as it is the Wasps side has far too much physicality up front, and I'd expect them to smash through and pick up a bonus point

Connacht 18 - 25 Wasps
Another tough game for Wasps but can see them getting some joy in Europe this season.

Wasps 32-20 Connacht

Connacht going really well of late but this is a good Wasps side with a good pack and sound set piece. Hodgson will pull the strings off a good platform and they'll get an easy win in the end.

Connacht 21-27 Wasps

London Wasps 42-41 Connacht

Wasps 26 - 24 Connacht

This is the best game of the round in the challenge cup. Connacht a very strong side up front and can see them getting the better of Wasps in the scrum. Wasps will fair better at the line out and at the breakdown with Barclay leading the way. Connacht will play some exciting stuff, but the game is suited to Hodgson with his control and attack ability to start a move will see Wasps home in a tight game. 

Wasps 30-24 Connacht

Weakened Connacht side and can see Wasps just sneaking a bonus point