Gloucester 2014/15 Thread

[HongKongCherry]

First topic message reminder :

After an encouraging finish to the season finishing 5th in the 2012/13 we move into the 2014/15 full of confidence that we can build upon those results... Everything in between those dates remains a blur and will never be mentioned again!

This thread is welcome to all to discuss Glaws for the 2014/15 season.

Fixtures:
Sat 16 Aug Glaws 62 v  19 Yorkshire Carnegie
Sat 23 Aug Glaws 45 v 8 Munster
Sat 30 Aug Scarlets 29 v 24 Glaws


Fri 5 Sep Saints 53 v 6 Glaws
Sat 13 Sep Glaws 34 v 27 Sale
Fri 19 Sep Glaws 22 v  25 Exeter
Fri 26 Sep London Welsh 10 v 46 Glaws
Sat 4 Oct Glaws 33 v 16 Tigers
Thur 16 Oct Glaws 55 v 0 Brive ERCC
Sat 25 Oct Oyonnax 15 v 25 Glaws ERCC
Sat 1 Nov Exeter v Glaws LV
Sun 9 Nov London Welsh v Glaws LV
Sat 11 Oct Saracens 28 v 21 Glaws
Sat 15 Nov Glaws 15 v 22 Quins
Fri 21 Nov Newcastle 20 v 10 Glaws
Sat 29 Nov London Irish 9 v 21 Glaws
Thur 4 Dec Glaws 35 v 10 Zebre ERCC
Thur 11 Dec Zebre 16 v 32 Glaws ERCC
Sat 20 Dec Glaws 16 v 39 Bath
Sat 27 Dec Glaws 23 v 30 Wasps
Sat 3 Jan Exeter 25 v 26 Glaws
Sat 10 Jan Glaws 24 v 23 Saracens
Thur 15 Jan Glaws v Oyonnax ERCC
Thur 22 Jan Brive v Glaws ERCC
Sat 31 Jan Glaws v Ospreys LV
Sat 7 Feb Glaws v Quins LV
Sat 14 Feb Tigers v Glaws
Sat 21 Feb Glaws v London Welsh
Sun 1 Mar Wasps v Glaws
Sat 7 Mar Glaws v Saints
Sat 28 Mar Sale v Glaws
Sat 11 Apr Quins v Glaws
Sat 25 Apr Glaws v Newcastle
Sat 9 May Glaws v London Irish
Sat 16 May Bath Rugby v Glaws

Transfers In:
Halaifonua (Bergerac), Tom Marshall (Chiefs), Jeremy Thrush (Hurricanes)

Transfers Out:
Simpson-Daniel (retired), Isaacs (Cardiff), Robson (Wasps - 2015/16)

Contract Re-signings:
May, Kvesic, Moriarty, Evans, Morgan

Squad:
LH: Wood, Y.Thomas, Murphy
HK: Hibbard, Dawiduik, Charles (Academy), Lutui
TH: Afoa, Knight, Puafisi, Gibbons (Academy)
LK: Stooke, Hudson, Galarza, Palmer, Hicks (Academy), Hill (Academy), Voss (Academy)
BR: Kalamafoni, Savage, Moriarty, Kvesic, Rowan, Ludlow (Academy), Morgan, Evans, Thomas (Academy)
SH: Laidlaw, Robson, Braley (Academy)
FH: Hook, A.Thomas, Burns, Evans (Academy)
CN: Twelevtrees, Trinder, Atkinson, Meakes (Academy), Thorley (Academy)
WG: Sharples, May, Monahan, Reynolds (Academy), Purdy (Academy), Halaifonua
FB: Cook, McColl

[Geordie]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/club/11027043/Huw-Evans-quits-Gloucester-board-over-departures-of-Nigel-Davies-and-Mike-Tindall.html

Trouble at mill or nothing to worry about.

[HongKongCherry]

The honest answer is I don't know! In once sense it means our Board are all agreed with where we are going, on the other hand losing someone of Evans nous is a big loss and there was clearly some disagreement. There is a feeling that whilst last season's performances were awful, Davies sacking was still harsh based upon the strategic plan he put in place, which is largely being delivered now. Given Evans' links to Davies I can understand him falling on Davies' side of the argument. Having said that, despite the harshness of the decision it is difficult to argue against the fact we now have a stronger coaching set up.

I would have liked Tindall to stay, but that has to be the decision of Humphreys and Fisher and if they don't want him then he shouldn't be forced upon them. Based upon quotes from Ryan Walkinshaw it sounds like Tindall was offered a role in some capacity and for whatever reason he has decided against it.

Ultimately last season was truly the worst I've known in the 25 years of supporting Glaws and I am pleased everyone now seems to be going in a unified direction, which is hopefully up the league rather than down it!

[HongKongCherry]

Team for Yorkshire tomorrow:

1st half

Steve McColl, Henry Purdy, Tom Isaacs, Mark Atkinson, Shane Monahan, Billy Burns, Dan Robson; Sione Kalamafoni, Jacob Rowan, Ross Moriarty, James Hudson (c), Elliott Stooke, Sila Puafisi, Aleki Lutui, Yann Thomas.

2nd half

Rob Cook, Charlie Sharples, Bill Meakes, Mark Atkinson, Steve McColl, James Hook, Greig Laidlaw; Ross Moriarty, Dan Thomas, Tom Savage, Tom Palmer, James Voss, Shaun Knight, Darren Dawidiuk, Dan Murphy.

[kingelderfield]

I see 36 has been named captain, which I think is a mistake.....Personality wise he just dosn't appear to be captain material. Don't get me wrong I'm a big big 36 fan and believe he has every thing required to be a mainstay of the english back division for years to come, however I just don't think the role of captain is suited to him. Think Will Greenwood, great player but never the leader in the captains sense.

Gloucester need a nasty nuggerty forward to lead the pack and thus the team otherwise we may see shadows of last years holiday camp approach.

As for 36, is this really the responsibility he needs in the lead up season to a home world cup? Lets hope he dosn't fall between stools.

[HongKongCherry]

I disagree. He was captain for the bulk of last season whilst Savage was injured. His game did not suffer and arguably improved (at club level) although with the tripe around him this wasn't seen!

[HongKongCherry]

So our first friendly shows: our scrum still needs a lot of work; our defence has improved, but needs to improve further; we have serious strength in depth at 7 with Rowan and Thomas backing up Kvesic; Mark Atkinson can offload pretty much in any situation; Hook is in a class of his own, utterly magnificent player!

Therefore pretty much as expected. An improvement on last season, but we shouldn't be expecting to be a top team yet.

[Sin é]

I notice King Laurie is settling in well. He is a very good coach so you should do really well. Very well liked and held in high regard by present Munster coaches and players.

[HongKongCherry]

Last season our maul defence was shocking, so I'm rather hopeful Laurie can fix this problem. Likewise, our now apparent depth at 7 should all benefit from his breakdown coaching.

He certainly has a rather iconic look and it was good to see him prowling the field! It is also rather apt that our next match is against Munster; if Laurie can even get close to what he achieved there I'll be happy!

[George Carlin]

http://www.gloucesterrugby.co.uk/rugby/matchcentre/10244.php

Not too much competition then. Some encouraging things though by the look of it.

[HongKongCherry]

Teams are up for the Munster friendly. I still expect a challenge from Munster, but their side is far from 1st choice. Ours is pretty much the perceived 1st choice with the exception of lock, but I look forward to Stooke and Palmer playing together in the 2nd half. We also get to properly welcome Hibbard and Afoa

Glaws:
Rob Cook, Charlie Sharples, Henry Trinder, Billy Twelvetrees (capt), Jonny May, James Hook, Greig Laidlaw; Dan Murphy, Richard Hibbard, John Afoa; Tom Savage, James Hudson; Sione Kalamafoni, Matt Kvesic, Ben Morgan.

Replacements
Yann Thomas, Darren Dawidiuk, Shaun Knight; Elliott Stooke, Tom Palmer, Jacob Rowan, Ross Moriarty; Callum Braley, Aled Thomas; Shane Monahan, Mark Atkinson, Tom Isaacs, Henry Purdy, Steve McColl

Munster:
Stephen Fitzgerald; Ronan O'Mahony, Cian Bohane, Ivan Dineen, Darren Sweetnam; Johnny Holland, Duncan Williams; Alan Cotter, Ger Slattery, BJ Botha; Donncha O'Callaghan Capt., Sean McCarthy; Shane Buckley, Barry O'Mahony, CJ Stander. 

Replacements
Niall Horan, Kevin O'Byrne, John Ryan, John Madigan, Ryan Murphy, Cathal Sheridan, David Johnston, Ned Hodson, Rory Scannell, Ryan Foley, Greg O'Shea.

[Scrumpy]

'Low lie the Fields of Athenry.....'   

[Geordie]

I hope Jakob Rowan shows his worth this season...he's a cracking signing.

[HongKongCherry]

Geordie, certainly so far so good with Rowan. You can't read too much into the 7s, but he was excellent in that. He played the 1st half last week against Leeds and whilst the pack didn't shine in that half, he stood out as tackling everything that moved! He should push Kvesic hard for a starting spot and I also expect to see on a number of occasions Rowan and Kvesic start given their respective ability to play across the backrow. I've been a huge fan of Rowan since his U20 days and used to regularly tease snowmonkey that we'd pinch him, so I am absolutely delighted we have him on board and I really hope he fulfils his undoubted potential.

[Geordie]

Whats your thoughts on Kvesics performances last season HK?

Do you think he was good but let down his supporting cast?

[HongKongCherry]

He started very slowly, but from January onwards he was notably better. Unfortunately when pretty much the entire pack underperforms it is difficult for anyone player to shine. Kvesic was being dragged into every breakdown and therefore not able to either be as decisive or offer the link play we needed. Towards the end he did show what he was capable of and he led our figures for tackles. Laurie Fisher specialises at the breakdown, so I am very hopeful he will really push on. Tomorrow's game will give a good indication of where he is at.

[Scrumpy]

At least it looks like Glaws might try and play rugby this year and not use the opposition as a punch bag!   

[HongKongCherry]

Don't worry Scrumpy we'll try not to intimidate you too much

[HongKongCherry]

Team's up for Scarlets v Glaws. Strong sides for both teams, although I don't think ours is indicative of the starting XV for Saints next week.

I've been really pleased with what I've seen of Savage and Moriarty this pre-season and Savage looks back to his best. I really doubt we'll see both K and Morgan starting against Saints, so this game will probably be the decider as to who starts at 6.

Scarlets:
Liam Williams; Kristian Phillips, Regan King, Scott Williams, Michael Tagicakibau; Rhys Priestland, Aled Davies; Phil John, Ken Owens (c), Rhodri Jones; Jake Ball, Johan Snyman; Rob McCusker, John Barclay, Rory Pitman

Replacements:
Kirby Myhill, Rob Evans, Peter Edwards, Richard Kelly, Aaron Shingler, James Davies, Gareth Davies, Steven Shingler, Harry Robinson, Gareth Owen, Jordan Williams

Glaws:
Rob Cook; Charlie Sharples, Henry Trinder, Billy Twelvetrees, Jonny May; James Hook, Dan Robson; Yann Thomas, Richard Hibbard, John Afoa; Tom Savage, Tom Palmer; Ross Moriarty, Matt Kvesic, Ben Morgan

Replacements:
Dan Murphy, Aleki Lutui, Shaun Knight, Elliott Stooke, James Hudson, Sione Kalamafoni, Jacob Rowan, Callum Braley, Aled Thomas, Shane Monahan, Mark Atkinson, Tom Isaacs, Henry Purdy, Steve McColl

[RDW]

How's Greig Laidlaw been getting on for you guys?

Is he injured this weekend?

[HongKongCherry]

I'm not sure why he's not involved, however, he has been very good so far. His speed and accuracy of his pass is better than we've had for a few years. Given he's not known for making breaks he's also made the odd one quite successfully. Whilst I've always rated him I did go into this pre-season with the view Robson would be our starter, but I have been pleasantly surprised with how well he's started. Nevertheless, it's next week that is the litmus test.

Surprisingly his kicking hasn't been great. We're giving all our different kickers opportunities and he took the kicks against Leeds. Many of these were on the touchline, but what was a bit disappointing was that he not only missed them he didn't have the distance. I know his range is limited, but the touchline on the 22 should be achievable. However, with Hook, 36 and Cook all likely to be in the starting line up with him, we're not exactly lacking in this department!

[RDW]

I'm a huge fan of Laidlaw's but one of the frustrations with him has been that he takes too long at ruck time pointing at players and telling them all what to do instead of just getting to the ruck quickly and passing the ball.

Maybe being in a new environment in less of a leadership role has helped him just be a normal scrum half again.

The kicking is a bit of a worry but I wouldn't be concerned - he has a proven track record at Edinburgh and Scotland of a high % accuracy, including from the touchline, so it is maybe just early season rustiness.

Certainly a difficult decision to make on who the kicker is!

[funnyExiledScot]

Aleki Lutui

Has incontinence not set in by now??

[HongKongCherry]

Flatulence makes him faster. Not much has changed with him since I saw him in his Wuss days, the usual wrecking ball in the loose, a good scrummager and can't hit a barn door in a lineout! He's a decent 3rd choice hooker though.

[RDW]

Lutui did a decent job for Edinburgh at the start of the season, but he was barely picked after Christmas. He was definitely the most physical player on the pitch when he played!

Will still never fathom why he was offered a 2 year deal at Edinburgh when he was 36!

[Scrumpy]

Looks like JSD has retired?

It's a shame we never got to see the best of him in an England shirt, even as a Bath fan I rated him.

All the best fella.


http://www.gloucesterrugby.co.uk/news/10382.php

[Scrumpy]

[formerly known as Sam]

I thought no the Glaws fans are hoping to wake up and find that last night was just a bad dream and it's Friday morning.

[Scrumpy]

A Team of mercenaries rarely gets you results

[kingelderfield]

I see 36 has been named captain, which I think is a mistake.....Personality wise he just dosn't appear to be captain material. Don't get me wrong I'm a big big 36 fan and believe he has every thing required to be a mainstay of the english back division for years to come, however I just don't think the role of captain is suited to him. Think Will Greenwood, great player but never the leader in the captains sense.

Gloucester need a nasty nuggerty forward to lead the pack and thus the team otherwise we may see shadows of last years holiday camp approach.

As for 36, is this really the responsibility he needs in the lead up season to a home world cup? Lets hope he dosn't fall between stools.

I actually feel sorry for 36......though it appears bomber seems determined to play Farrell and therefore 36 has to be selected regardless of his club(s) form.

Ofcourse only the first game of the season but, here and now I would select;

9 care/youngs 10 Cipriani 11 wade/watson/eastmond 12 Burrell 13 Tuilagi 14 yarde 15 brown/watson/foden

as to Gloucester, well thankfully you've hired Humphrey's who i believe knows his onions. how long the ozzy chap hangs around....well i doubt it will be much after christmas.....there is an awful lot of work to do and to begin with you must replace 36 as captain. not only is he the wrong choice for all the reasons i've given before, but the fact is players are hiding behind his obvious limited leadership ability are not being managed out.

9th is the best this side will achieve this year unless some body starts putting a barrell to various heads pdq

[doctor_grey]

A Team of mercenaries rarely gets you results

Scrumps,
How do you define a merc in this context? Teams like Saints, Sarries, Leicester have all signed a number of players over the years who were originally with other teams. At the other end of the spectrum, London/Oxford Welsh just signed 20+ players just to be able to stay up and potentially compete. My point is that I think most teams in the Premiership have doe this over the years. Probably not to the extent of Toulon in the Top 14 who did indeed sign what appears a larger number of their players from other teams. So, really just wondering, mate.

[maverickmak]

The bottom line is Gloucester have thrown a lot of money at their problems this year and really they have to deliver. Other teams have thrown money at their teams but by and large they have shown results so its shrugged off. Its early days, but it was worryingly poor from Gloucester yesterday.

[HongKongCherry]

Whilst the performance was wholly unacceptable you do need to take into account that 26 new players were signed all required to play under a new system that has been coached to them for the last 4 weeks. I've always said it will take us up to Christmas to be fully up to speed. This will be a transitional year for us, but I still expect us to mount a very strong challenge to the top 6.

In some ways this result and performance takes the weight of expectation of the team, so perversely may actually improve us more quickly!

It is worth pointing out I am blindly optimistic and suffer from bouts of severe delusion

[HongKongCherry]

Oh and 36 is by far the best candidate for captain this season.

[formerly known as Sam]

Only one game has been played. Hard to draw bigger conclusions from that. How the squad react from that game will tell us more about them than that game will.

[kingelderfield]

Oh and 36 is by far the best candidate for captain this season.

because i like you

i really hope you're right, unfortunately I cannot tell a fib and my instinct says otherwise.

here's hoping i'm wrong - which i believe has happened before.

[LondonTiger]

Would just liek to say how pleased i was with Freddie Burns today. Decent kicking, good signs in attack and possibly try saving tackles on Josh Furno and Alessana Tuilagi - both head on efforts.

[Exiledinborders]

Whilst the performance was wholly unacceptable you do need to take into account that 26 new players were signed all required to play under a new system that has been coached to them for the last 4 weeks. I've always said it will take us up to Christmas to be fully up to speed. This will be a transitional year for us, but I still expect us to mount a very strong challenge to the top 6.

In some ways this result and performance takes the weight of expectation of the team, so perversely may actually improve us more quickly!

It is worth pointing out I am blindly optimistic and suffer from bouts of severe delusion  

The question is why are there 26 new players. Yes improvement was required but is change on this scale the best way to acheive it? In particular I am doubtful about bringing in a coaching team with little experience of the competiveness of AP rugby. With the best will in the world the Pro12 which has has no relegation and up till this season no qualification is not remotely similar to AP or Top14.

[HongKongCherry]

Oh and 36 is by far the best candidate for captain this season.

because i like you

i really hope you're right, unfortunately I cannot tell a fib and my instinct says otherwise.

here's hoping i'm wrong - which i believe has happened before.

King, you may be occasionally wrong, however I am rarely right

[HongKongCherry]

Whilst the performance was wholly unacceptable you do need to take into account that 26 new players were signed all required to play under a new system that has been coached to them for the last 4 weeks. I've always said it will take us up to Christmas to be fully up to speed. This will be a transitional year for us, but I still expect us to mount a very strong challenge to the top 6.

In some ways this result and performance takes the weight of expectation of the team, so perversely may actually improve us more quickly!

It is worth pointing out I am blindly optimistic and suffer from bouts of severe delusion  

The question is why are there 26 new players. Yes improvement was required but is change on this scale the best way to acheive it? In particular I am doubtful about bringing in a coaching team with little experience of the competiveness of AP rugby. With the best will in the world the Pro12 which has has no relegation and up till this season no qualification is not remotely similar to AP or Top14.  

I do believe such change was required. Since the last season of Dean Ryan there have been numerous problems ranging from a drinking culture to a lack of commitment. Its time to completely start afresh; it may be painful in the short term, but it will have the desired effect.

[HongKongCherry]

Would just liek to say how pleased i was with Freddie Burns today. Decent kicking, good signs in attack and possibly try saving tackles on Josh Furno and Alessana Tuilagi - both head on efforts.

Glad to hear it LT. He truly is an immensely talented player and hopefully last season is behind him and he can push on for more international recognition. Needless to say I hope he plays poorly against us though!

[Scrumpy]

I hope you guys will be competitive for our December fixture otherwise should our players wear boxing head guards just in case you try and punch you way to victory again?

[gregortree]

Would just liek to say how pleased i was with Freddie Burns today. Decent kicking, good signs in attack and possibly try saving tackles on Josh Furno and Alessana Tuilagi - both head on efforts.

Glad to hear it LT. He truly is an immensely talented player and hopefully last season is behind him and he can push on for more international recognition. Needless to say I hope he plays poorly against us though!

Yes Freddie is a great talent and it was very sad last season to see him go so far off the boil with Glaws.
Especially after I befriended him, Billy & some of the squad  in the staff canteen aka Costa Coffee. Got the photos as well to prove it.
After that Freddie was never the same, but don't blame me, blame the pack, I think Freddie does. I also heard scuttle of a personal nature. Whatever, his mind was off it for most of last season, and I really wish him well at Tigers, and hopefully with England. Sad loss to Glaws.

[HongKongCherry]

gregor, good to see you back. At last we have an air of optimism at Kingsholm

[gregortree]

HKC you too
No_hampton was bit of a shock, but I hope it was just a sympton of the new coaches and new stars bedding in.
If the new lot find some cohesion and somebody introduces them to each other we should have a better season.
(not that last season set a very high bar). Whaddya think HK ? top 6 ?

[gregortree]

Atkinson at no 10... looked good coming on for Hook.
Mind you it was at a time when Welsh were looking shagged out, and this maybe contributed to Atkinson looking good, but I do like the cut of his Jib. Hooky is struggling to find form with Glaws after a fairly fallow and unhappy period in France.

[gregortree]

PS: and we should never have lost to Exeter...ref blew the penalty count agin us, plus Hook / Laidlaw off target on their opportunities.

[HongKongCherry]

Hi gregor, having seen how Chiefs blew away Quins I'll take a losing bonus point! Nevertheless, I am encouraged that there is a general air of disappointment of not winning that match.

Atkinson moved to 12 against Welsh with 36 at 10. Nevertheless, he is continuing to show the good form he did in pre-season. did you see the friendly against Yorkshire? His off loads were sensational. You may have seen an interview with DH, but he has said that Hook needs to be given time at 10 as he has limited game time there in recent years. he was poor against Welsh, but I felt he has been alright for the other games, so I'd certainly want to see him given an extended run.

Hopefully Freddie starts for Tigers this weekend and we'll see what a better player we have now... or rue that we let a great player go (or be poached! )

[gregortree]

It will be good to see Freddie back at Kingsholm whatever else might happen. Sorry we lost such a talent, but his heart wasn't in it for a while, so best he went in the end. No hard feelings and I hope he gets some applause on his 'comeback'.

[HongKongCherry]

Humphreys has always stated that we cannot judge the side until the first block of 6 games have been played and I have to say, so far so good.  There is still a fair amount of work to do however we're seeing tangible improvement every week and to be disappointed 2 weeks running from not getting a TBP against Tigers and only a LBP against Sarries shows how far we've come.  If you look at the corresponding fixtures from last season, it is rather telling how much better we're doing:

                  2013/14                          2014/15
Saints (A)     lost 39-13                       lost 53-6
Sale (H)       lost 22-16                       won 34-27
Chiefs (H)    lost 29-12                       lost 25-22
Welsh (A)     lost 28-27 (v Wuss)         won 46-10
Tigers          lost 22-17                       won 33-16
Sarries        lost 44-12                        lost 28-21

Points         3                                     15

I appreciate it is slightly creative to swap Wuss for Welsh, as it does better serve the argument, but it is clear we're improving.  I said at the time the manner of the Saints defeat may help us improve more quickly and I genuinely feel this is the case.  I do know it is slightly ironic to praise our defence in the Sarries game when we shipped 3 tries, but it was excellent.  The last 5 minutes of steadfastly holding the line and then running the length of the pitch to get the LBP was great to see.  We know this will only get better, so I am very pleased with where we're at

[gregortree]

HK - I'm happy enough too with how far we have come and the direction of travel.
Interesting first 6 comparison, and I'm happy to cut you the slack on Wuss vs Welsh.
Another stat ( I do not have ) cards. I recall we had a quite few last season, led the premiership card table I was told on BT sport Rugby. Had fewer cards this term, but more than I would like to see... any stats on cards ?

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