Ulster vs Saracens - HC quarter final - Saturday, 5th April 6:30pm

Ulster vs Saracens.

Saturday 5th April at 6:30pm

First game at a newly renovated Ravenhill I believe with a new capacity of 18,000.

Ulster are currently 3rd in the Pro12 and won all their pool stages in the HC, including impressive away wins vs Leicester and Montpellier.

They have a few Irish players who were involved in the title winning 6 nations like Best and Trimble. Trimble in particular had a very good tournament.

Close to full strength in terms of their squad.

According to Ulster fans their current form hasn't been great but I take that firmly with a pinch of salt. Their latest result - a loss to Cardiff could shake any sense of complacency.


Saracens are currently the league leaders in the AP with a healthy 7 point gap off 2nd placed Saints. Just 2 losses in the AP in 18 matches which contrasts with their two losses in the pool stages of the HC. Saracens are currently the top try scorers in the AP and were top try scorers in the HC pool stages. Form wise Saracens have been comfortable without really putting in a notable performance.

Notable clashes

Best vs Brits - the Irish hooker vs the flamboyant South African who plays more like a centre - will be key in getting their teams into good positions.

Muller vs Borthwick - skipper vs skipper - both will be key in inspiring their sides.

Jackson vs Farrell - the 2nd choice Irish 10 vs the current England 10 - both will be expected to boss the game and take any opportunities and points on offer



Ulster team

15. J Payne
14. A Trimble
13. D Cave
12. L Marshall
11.T Bowe
10. P Jackson
9. R Pienaar

1. T Court
2.R Best
3. J Afoa
4.J Muller (C)
5.D Tuohy
6.R Wilson
7.N Williams
8.C Henry

16. R Herring
17.A Warwick
18.R Lutton
19.I Henderson
20.S Ferris
21.R Diack
22.P Marshall
23.C Gilroy






Saracens team



15. Alex Goode
14. Chris Ashton
13. Duncan Taylor
12. Brad Barritt
11. David Strettle
10. Owen Farrell
9. Richard Wigglesworth

1. Mako Vunipola
2. Schalk Brits
3. James Johnston
4. Steve Borthwick ©
5. Mouritz Botha
6. Billy Vunipola
7. Jacques Burger
8. Ernst Joubert

16. Jamie George
17. Richard Barrington
18. Matt Stevens
19. Eoin Sheriff
20. Kelly Brown
21. Neil de Kock
22. Charlie Hodgson
23. Chris Wyles


Thoughts?

Can't see past an Ulster home win. Saracens haven't really been pushed in the recent weeks and have had a couple of 'easy' games. Ulster coming off a lose (and to the Blues no less) to focus the mind.

Although form coming into the games doesn't really mean much as any of the decent sides can 'turn it on' when it's really needed.

One thing is that if Ulster win this then clearly they don't value the Pro12, explaining their poor form, vidicating everything the 'PRL' have been saying

Hope Ulster win but up front is where both Ulster and Sarries have lost out in europe I think whoever win's there will win.

with goal kicking machines i think it could be 20+ each. Always warry of Sarries but think Ulster are stronger than last year and got a timely kick up the backside from the blues

Quite a lot worries me about this game.

The frontrow battle - the likes of Mako and Brits must hold their own or we'll concede plenty of penalties in this area. This is where Ulster had success last time round and where the likes of Bath and Quins have in recent matches.

Mako and Brits are great around the park though - could create opportunities in attack.

Lineout battle - Ulster wilted in this area vs us last season and was instrumental in our success. Unfortunately I doubt Best will be as poor in this area, he was good for Ireland here.

Breakdown - generally an area of strength for Sarries but two notable absentees here - Fraser who was so good last season vs Ulster and of course ball carrying monster Billy.

Halfbacks - Wigglesworth needs to make sure he makes his tackles. Farrell needs to make sure he does nothing silly leading to YCs, a lot of responsibility will be on him.

Back three - Ashton must make his tackles.


Trimble is in good form, Best is throwing well - those two things alone worry me.

"One thing is that if Ulster win this then clearly they don't value the Pro12"

I find that ridiculous in the extreme. Of course any side worth their salt will value a HC quarter final win over a league win, this goes without saying but I can assure you that Ulster very much value the Pro12 competition.

We (Ulster) have quality players and combinations throughout the squad, which ones are best employed against Saracens is debatable but the one thing that isn't is the mammoth task ahead. Does Ulster have an 80 minute intense performance in them? I think so. Will it occur this weekend? Who knows.

I am pessimistic after our last few outings in which we merely cantered. In fact in our last outing we went at a slow trot. Saracens fans have everything to be optimisitic about on recent form but on the day I think the two sides are very well matched. It's going to be an arm wrestle. Home advantage may be worth five to seven points but we might need a few more than that.

Heart says Ulster by a whisker.
Head says Saracens by two whiskers.........shut up head and get with the heart.....

Oh and no swallow dives please Chris

Pete330v2 wrote:"One thing is that if Ulster win this then clearly they don't value the Pro12"

I find that ridiculous in the extreme. Of course any side worth their salt will value a HC quarter final win over a league win, this goes without saying but I can assure you that Ulster very much value the Pro12 competition.

Of course it's ridiculous. It was meant to be.

beshocked wrote:Quite a lot worries me about this game.

The frontrow battle - the likes of Mako and Brits must hold their own or we'll concede plenty of penalties in this area. This is where Ulster had success last time round and where the likes of Bath and Quins have in recent matches.

Mako and Brits are great around the park though - could create opportunities in attack.

Lineout battle - Ulster wilted in this area vs us last season and was instrumental in our success. Unfortunately I doubt Best will be as poor in this area, he was good for Ireland here.

Breakdown - generally an area of strength for Sarries but two notable absentees here - Fraser who was so good last season vs Ulster and of course ball carrying monster Billy.

Halfbacks - Wigglesworth needs to make sure he makes his tackles. Farrell needs to make sure he does nothing silly leading to YCs, a lot of responsibility will be on him.

Back three - Ashton must make his tackles.


Trimble is in good form, Best is throwing well - those two things alone worry me.

Front row - Ulster do not look as strong here as last year although Best coming in will help that and I think Afoa/Court were minding themselves a little against Cardiff. Would feel more confident if Black were available.

Lineout- Sarries big adv here for me. Rory needs to bring his A game as Herring has looked atrocious recently. Muller stays in for his lineout work and I would go Henderson with him. If Diack starts we have more options.

Backrow - Feeling a lot more confident about this battle as I think we will have learned we need to outwork Sarries here. Wilson and Henry starting together will help massively and I would go Diack aswell although I suspect it will be Williams. Kelly Brown is a massively underrated player though.

halfbacks - Pienaar has to play 80 and I would give us the edge. Simple as that.

Centres - Much of a muchness. No real pace but not much change out of either defensively. Hopefully Luke can be as much of a handful as he was for Cardiff but Barritt is a step up defensively.

Back Three - Both talented but if we get our guys firing I would back us. Kick chase is going to be massive. If Bowe can take the right options and Trimble continues his form we will be very clinical. Payne needs a big game though

Saracens start as favourites, but I think we'll win because we have to. Losing to any English side at Ravenhill was never acceptable when we were a mid-table side, now? If we lose heads will roll.

As said already on the other thread I am very worried about this. The form we've been showing since February is pretty poor, we needed a big performance against Blues to stop the rot and it was the worst Ulster performance in a few seasons.

By contrast Saracens look really strong and are top of the AP.

Sarries strengths also match up very well to out vulnerabilities. Pienaar likes to run across the field before passing which invites the blitz to line up targets.

Tactically we need to come up with something different and I'm not sure Anscombe can.

If we play like we did against Montpellier or the Tigers we can win for sure but right now I am very concerned about the current state of the team and think Saracens may just have us at the right time again.

HammerofThunor wrote:One thing is that if Ulster win this then clearly they don't value the Pro12, explaining their poor form, vidicating everything the 'PRL' have been saying

Don't worry Ulster won't win against the mighty AP leaders - they're in a different league.

The standard in the PRO12 is so poor, that Barings bank may be invited as the next sponsor. The result (big win for Saracens) will vindicate the PRL anyway as they're so professional and have the interests of the wider game at heart. It's a financial jungle out there and it is only but right that the biggest investors should be the only species to survive. McCafferty et al knows that proper rugby should be played exclusively in England and France to maximise the Return on Investment. True supporters will go to a gourmet feast at Wembley, but obviously can't be bothered with the rustic fare served up in hicksville Belfast, so the competition should get rid of these outposts and concentrate of where the real money is.

Of course if Ulster win it will have been a conspiracy of some sort. Let's face it they've rested Stephen Ferris for 15 months in preparation for this game. Add to that the fact that Belfast is in Ireland, the same country where the pernicious ERC was located and therefore the playing field is tipped against them from the off. (It is actually tipped against them in both halves due to some clever engineering by Queen's University and redundant winches from the shipyard.)

It's just great that with the ground capacity increasing so many more Ulsterfolk will get to see how real rugby should be played. They will no doubt respond with a really warm welcome.

HammerofThunor wrote:

Pete330v2 wrote:"One thing is that if Ulster win this then clearly they don't value the Pro12"

I find that ridiculous in the extreme. Of course any side worth their salt will value a HC quarter final win over a league win, this goes without saying but I can assure you that Ulster very much value the Pro12 competition.

Of course it's ridiculous. It was meant to be.

Oops, sorry Hammer, I didn't see the little smiley man. I would say 'my bad' if I was 20 years younger but in this case I'll just claim my own stupidity

Notch why will heads roll if you lose?

Standulstermen not sure I necessarily agree about you having the edge in the halfbacks. I would say Ulster have the clear superiority at 9 whilst Sarries have the clear superiority at 10 going on current form.

I wouldn't really say Saracens have been looking that strong in the AP. Mainly the others up the top have faded a bit. Saints, Quins and Bath have all taken a bit of dip in form. Tigers are the only ones getting better (mainly due to missing players coming back). Saracens have just trudged on. Doing enough.

Although form doesn't define future performances, which is why we watch these games. It's like the IRB ranking, it tells how you've been playing not how you're going to.

I think Ulster should grind out a win. Look forward to seeing Bowe, Trimble and Payne let loose.

beshocked wrote:Notch why will heads roll if you lose?

It's a big home game at Ravenhill. You wouldn't understand that.

Hammerofthunor I agree the form of Saracens hasn't been great but they haven't needed to play near their best though - they've been comfortably leading in the last 3 games. It's hardly their fault that their last 3 opposition haven't really put up a decent resistance.

Don't forget in between the Quins and Wasps game, the Saracens team went for a relaxing holiday in New York. Would hardly say that's ideal preparation for a game.

We'll see how Ulster react to that Cardiff loss and how Saracens react to not really being given a challenge in their last few games.

Notch wrote:

beshocked wrote:Notch why will heads roll if you lose?

It's a big home game at Ravenhill. You wouldn't understand that.

No I don't understand. I have seen my side lose big games. Big games they should have won but doesn't mean I would want to see heads roll.

Loss to Toulouse at Wembley was a massive man sausage up, should have won that one.

Saracens need this win as much as Ulster if not more so.

Garces is the ref.

French ref always have a strange interpretation of the breakdown, it could have a huge bearing on the game.
That said i prefer him than Poite.

It's difficult when you have to play a certain way to please a referee which is why I always prefer Owens as the official. Even on an off day he's better than most at allowing the players to decide the outcome of the game. Our only hope with Garces is that being French he will have more of a gripe against an English side than an Irish side
Has anyone got any knowledge of Garces' preferred style of officiating? Is he whistle happy or does he allow a game to flow? I can't place him at all, my brain fails me yet again.

beshocked wrote:Hammerofthunor I agree the form of Saracens hasn't been great but they haven't needed to play near their best though - they've been comfortably leading  in the last 3 games. It's hardly their fault that their last 3 opposition haven't really put up a decent resistance.

Don't forget in between the Quins and Wasps game, the Saracens team went for a relaxing holiday in New York. Would hardly say that's ideal preparation for a game.

We'll see how Ulster react to that Cardiff loss and how Saracens react to not really being given a challenge in their last few games.

I didn't mean they had been bad, just that their climb back to the top isn't a sign of them being in sparkling form. They carried on and done enough. Whether they can step up to the Irish onslaught all this negativity is trying to mask is something we'll have to watch to find out.

HammerofThunor wrote:

beshocked wrote:Hammerofthunor I agree the form of Saracens hasn't been great but they haven't needed to play near their best though - they've been comfortably leading  in the last 3 games. It's hardly their fault that their last 3 opposition haven't really put up a decent resistance.

Don't forget in between the Quins and Wasps game, the Saracens team went for a relaxing holiday in New York. Would hardly say that's ideal preparation for a game.

We'll see how Ulster react to that Cardiff loss and how Saracens react to not really being given a challenge in their last few games.

I didn't mean they had been bad, just that their climb back to the top isn't a sign of them being in sparkling form.  They carried on and done enough. Whether they can step up to the Irish onslaught all this negativity is trying to mask :)is something we'll have to watch to find out.

Hammerofthunor I never said Saracens are in sparkling form. They've beaten what's been in front of them - relatively easily too. I wouldn't say they were the stiffest opposition but then again they are from being the weakest sides in the AP. Bath were 3rd in the AP when we beat them and hadn't lost at home this season.

I just feel like you are dismissing Saracens as a threat to Ulster - certainly when you say you can't see past an Ulster win - that's as dismissive as one can get.

Ulster will start as favourites but I wouldn't judge the result on "form". It will count for nothing. I would say neither side has shown close to their top form in the build up to the match yet.

You talk about Irish onslaught - we'll see if there is indeed one.

beshocked wrote:Notch why will heads roll if you lose?

The crowd will be so incensed they will undoubtedly lose their heads.

Seems to be plenty of Ulster bias on the BBC website.

They've obviously been told that Saracens will get their share of coverage for the semi-final

Ulster all the way here, even though I think that Saracens are the more balanced and better team, Ulster at home is a tough away match.

beshocked wrote:Seems to be plenty of Ulster bias on the BBC website.

You should get together with the other Saracens fan and put in a complaint.

This will be a tough challenge for Ulster. As has already been mentioned, Ulster have been in poor form since the Tigers game. We haven't come close to that level since, and with Best just returning from 6Ns, Pienaar just coming back from injury, and Tuohy only returned from injury last week, we haven't had the best preparation for what will likely be the toughest game of our season so far.
I expected a scrappy game last week as players have an eye on the QF, but the game was an utter shambles. Ulster will play better. They will be fired up, but it's difficult to see how they can right so many wrongs in such a short space of time.
Sarries are a good team. A winning team at the top of the AP, and I think have to start as favourites.

Notch not necessary. You might find it hard to believe but more than two people do support Saracens.

Fascinating game this one two really good teams. Will the loss at the weekend effect ulster or was it just one of those games? On the plus they are playing at the new ravenhill with huge home support I just think ulster will edge it

I "finish" work at 6pm on Saturday, as in my shift is meant to finish then but invariably I end up working past that point... Which means I will likely miss the start of the game. But no matter what, I still think this is our best chance this year. We have players coming off the back of a fantastic national campaign, some of our talismanic players coming back from injury and youth who are hungry for success. Sarries are the PRL leaders, but not unbeatable. Ravenhill will be bouncing and I for one will be most jealous of those lucky enough to get tickets.

We have a chance to step up and make up for our mistakes last year and I'd be very tempted to make personnel changes if we have unfit/undercooked players.

My team

Court, Best, Afoa (Fitz)
Muller(Diack), Henderson
Diack (Ferris) Wilson, Henry

Pienaar, Jackson
Marshall, Cave
Bowe, Payne, Trimble

Herring, Warwick, Lutton (Afoa) Tuohy (Muller), Doyle, Ferris (Williams), Marshall, Gilroy (McCloskey)

Teams as I expect it and brackets with who I'd have in instead due to injury/form

Pete330v2 wrote:It's difficult when you have to play a certain way to please a referee which is why I always prefer Owens as the official. Even on an off day he's better than most at allowing the players to decide the outcome of the game. Our only hope with Garces is that being French he will have more of a gripe against an English side than an Irish side
Has anyone got any knowledge of Garces' preferred style of officiating? Is he whistle happy or does he allow a game to flow? I can't place him at all, my brain fails me yet again.

I think you'll be out of luck. Garces like all French refs is very whistle happy, he had (might still have) the record for giving the most penalties in a single game a season or two back. Don't expect it to flow.

Telegraph reporting Billy V may be available for the game. Big bonus for Sarries if that's the case. Possibly just as much as Pienaar for Ulster.
Ulster at home against English opponents might just shade this.

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2014/apr/01/billy-vunipola-saracens-ulster-heineken-cup

Interesting report from the guardian. Mark Mccall knows Ulster, knows what to expect.

McCall has many friends in Ulster who have forewarned him about the levels of local expectation Saracens will encounter at a packed Ravenhill. "They would say it's the biggest home game in their history," he said. "They've had three away quarter-finals but this is their first home quarter-final and I gather they could have sold out many times over. People are talking of nothing else. They're going to be favourites but we'll go with a good plan and will be well prepared."

Mark McCall, the director of rugby, indicated the player had more than a 50-50 chance of featuring if he suffers no adverse reaction to training

So he's only got just over a 50/50 chance of playing IF he's fit!

It's great for Ulster that this uncertainty is churning around in McCall's mind. BV is such an influential player that the gameplan has to be tailored to his presence - so do the team train as if he's playing or if he's not?


I wonder how much McCall wants the Ulster gig? Win this game and he'll have opened up a door to getting back to Ravenhill in 2015. Humph is a great friend and the IRFU would probably want more Irish coaches plying their trade in Ireland. By winning this game MMcC would have exorcised the ghosts of his ignominious departure and firmly thrown his hat in the ring to be Anscombe's successor. OTOH if he loses, Anscombe's stock is given a boost and it could be a long time before his chance might come again.

I dont think Anscombe will be here beyond 2015

... not even if he has delivered two HECs and a P12 title!

The Great Aukster Mark Mccall is an intelligent guy. He'll pretty much know if Billy will be ready or not. He's just trying to keep Ulster guessing.

As for Mark Mccall coming back to Ulster - why would he?  You said he had an ignominious departure. I agree though - doing the double over Ulster would raise his stock.

The only job I could see him wanting would be the Ireland one. To get on that radar he'll probably need another AP title and perhaps a HC to his name.

So far his CV isn't too bad - a Celtic League title with Ulster in 2006 and an AP title in 2010-11 with Saracens.

http://www.london24.com/sport/rugby/mark_mccall_signs_new_saracens_contract_1_3258238

Signed up with Sarries till June 2017 according to the contract. Probably go for the Ireland job then if he can pick up such major silverware for Sarries.

Obviously it depends how long Schmidt is Ireland coach too.

beshocked wrote:Notch not necessary.  You might find it hard to believe but more than two people do support Saracens.  

Two?....I thought it was just yourself ......

 Yup Rodders just me.

Is Mark Mccall currently the best Irish coach plying his trade in European rugby? Probably with O Shea 2nd?

I ask because the Munster coach is from NZ, your coach is from NZ, the Ireland coach is from NZ. The Connacht coach is NZ/Samoan.

Not meant as a pop at Ireland by the way. It's just most of the top coaches happen to be from NZ.

Scotland have an Aussie coach and will soon a NZ one. Wales have a Kiwi head honcho too.

The Great Aukster wrote:... not even if he has delivered two HECs and a P12 title!

That would make it difficult    but baring something like that no he will not be here after 2015.

beshocked wrote: Yup Rodders just me.

Is Mark Mccall currently the best Irish coach plying his trade in European rugby? Probably with O Shea 2nd?

Yes he is - O'Shea isn't actually a coach is he? Don't think either think much of the IRFU though so would be surprised to see them back here.

Penney is leaving Munster and Foley is taking over their next season though and is likely being groomed for bigger roles down the line.

I think McCalls beef is more with the old guard at Ulster rather than the IRFU

They have gone - well at least Mike Reid has.
McCall has no beef with Logan or Humphreys who took over after he left.
McCall is one of the nicest guys you could meet by the way - really felt sorry for him in terms of how he was disgracefully treated - a real gent.

Don’t often get to post these days, but it’s a bit quiet in work. And I can’t not post in the run-up to this game.

I can understand the calls for 6/2, but I think I’d go for the usual 5/3 split. I’d go -

Court – Best – Afoa
Muller – Henderson
Diack – Henry – Wilson
Pienaar – Jackson
Trimble – Marshall – Cave – Bowe
Payne

Herring – Warwick - Lutton – Tuohy –Williams – Marshall – Allen - Gilroy


Williams can nullify our dominance in the scrum, because he is simply poor at controlling the ball at the back. Scrumhalves can get the edge on him just before he picks up. So Roger to start until we feel our way into the game, and for his work-rate.

Henderson is in ahead of Tuohy because he’s a beast of a carrier. That pack should give us control and some street smarts. But there’s little raw power. That can come from Hendo. However, if Garces is indeed as whistle-happy as feared, Hendo can be a liability.  He’s had a couple of yellows this season, I think, and would usually give away a penalty or two. On balance, I’d say his power makes it worth it (and given what he did to the Sarries last time round, his presence should give them a bit to think about). Then Tuohy and Williams to come on within ten minutes of each other in the second half.

As much as I love Muller, and having met him, I can attest to his Christ-like personal qualities, there is a reason this is his last season. His playing career is spluttering out. There’s a part of me would start Tuohy and Henderson. But this will be such a tense, emotionally taxing game, we might need Johann keeping things focussed and calm.

Ferris isn’t ready. With everyone else fit, he’s not, on current form, standing out. He looks like he’ll be back in the saddle at some stage. If he was to play, his presence coming off the bench with twenty to go would be extraordinary, so for me he’d bench.

The backline is fairly straightforward.

Last week was humiliating and frustrating. I just hope it’s fuel to the fire. At the moment, I’m not too hopeful. If we can play like we did away to Leicester or Montpellier, with the home crowd roaring us on, we’ll do it. I’ve seen no indications it’s on the cards, though.

For those like me who couldn’t get tickets, where are youse going to watch it?

SUFTUM

Schmidt will have the Irish gig for as long as he wants I reckon. He is the best coach around.

I don't really get Tuohy rustiness, his injury was to his arm, surely he has been told to work on his cardio and lower body? Same for Pienaar, he should be 100% for this one.

Standulstermen wrote:Schmidt will have the Irish gig for as long as he wants I reckon. He is the best coach around.

We need to eek as much rugby knowledge and tactics out of him as we can. Come RWC and a decent run in that competition we could find that he has his sights on a main job in NZ. Think that is for another thread though.

I reckon this will be a very close game but I'm hoping it is a high scoring game. It has the talent on the field to be high scoring. Ulster always start strong at home, the crowd will cheer them home as well. Saracens need to quiten the crowd and control the pace of the game. They have the ability to do that. This game could produce the most entertaining rugby of the weekend.

VinceWLB wrote:I don't really get Tuohy rustiness, his injury was to his arm, surely he has been told to work on his cardio and lower body? Same for Pienaar, he should be 100% for this one.

Pienaar will be fine as his unspecified injury hasn't been a serious setback, it appears, and he hasn't been long out. Tuohy's injury has meant that he has been out of action over a prolonged period of time, and it might take a few games for him to get up to speed fitness wise, and battle hardened. Any player, even if 100% fit will be a bit rusty coming back after having missed a few games.

thebandwagonsociety not sure it will be that high scoring. Looking at Ulster's tries conceded in the Pro12.

More likely to be 3 pointers. Pienaar vs Farrell in that area one would expect.

In the last 3 games - Saracens have got early points on the scoreboard to build up a healthy lead early on - I agree bandwagonsociety they will need to do that again.

The more I think about it the less confident I am that Saracens will win. I just feel that someone is going to something stupid like Ashton,Farrell or Burger. Give away a needless YC or make a foolish error. Hope I am wrong.

beshocked wrote:thebandwagonsociety not sure it will be that high scoring. Looking at Ulster's tries conceded in the Pro12.

More likely to be 3 pointers. Pienaar vs Farrell in that area one would expect.

In the last 3 games - Saracens have got early points on the scoreboard to build up a healthy lead early on - I agree bandwagonsociety they will need to do that again.

The more I think about it the less confident I am that Saracens will win. I just feel that someone is going to something stupid like Ashton,Farrell or Burger. Give away a needless YC or make a foolish error. Hope I am wrong.

It might be no bad thing for Ulster if you do get early points. When we do, we then go for a nice nap (c.f. Blues, Treviso, more others than I can count...)

If there was ever a place that could wind up a player it is Ravenhill, Saracens do have some chippy characters. McCall I'd hope would be all over that.

The HC is a step up from the Pro12. Ulster's chief opponents are Munster and Leinster where players are very used to each others games from all the Ireland camps and coming up through the ranks so they tend to cancel each other out. That can drop the tries conceded stats a bit. Saracens have a cutting backline.

I also think on the other side having Trimble/Pienaar/Bowe/Payne there are tries to be scored in that side as well.

Maybe I'm just hoping, as a neutral, for a nice entertaining high scoring game. I reckon the other 3 quarters will be '3' point fests.