Champions Cup - Round 2

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La Rochelle vs Harlequins
Principality Stadium
Sunny - 7 degrees, 13mph North Westerly Winds

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La Rochelle

01. Dany Priso	09. Alexi Bales
02. Pierre Bourgarit	10. Jérémy Sinzelle
03. Uini Atonio
04. Jason Eaton	11. Vincent Rattez
05. Mathieu Tanguy	12. Pierre Aguillon
06. Levani Botia	13. Geoffrey Doumayrou
07. Kevin Gourdon	14. Gabriel Lacroix
08. Victor Vito	15. Kini Murimurivalu

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Replacements: 16 Jean-Charles Orioli, 17 Vincent Pelo, 18 Mohamed Boughanmi, 19 Gregory Lamboley, 20 Afa Amosa, 21 Tawera Kerr-Barlow, 22 Benjamin Nobles, 23 Paul Jordaan

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Harlequins
Manager – CJ

01. Lewis Boyce	09. Will Chudley
02. Dave Ward  (c)	10. Demetri Catrakalis
03. Will Collier
04. Charlie Matthews	11.  Alex Lewington
05. Johhny Gray	12. Francis Saili'i
06. Mat Luamanu	13. Joe Marchant
07. Sam Cane	14. James Lowe
08. Renaldo Bothma	15. Ross Chisholm

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16.  Cameron Holenstein 17.  Elia Elia 18. Josh Ibuanokpe   19. George Merrick 20. Jack Lam  21. Danny Care 22. James Lang 23. Charlie Walker

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Wasps vs Ulster Rugby
Stade Jean-Bouin
Light Cloud, 7 degrees, 10mph Westerly Winds

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Wasps
Manager - Pullthestrings

01. Logovi'i Mulipola	09. Dan Robson
02. Ashley Johnson	10. Danny Cipriani
03. Jake Cooper-Wooley
04. Joe Launchbury	11. Elliot Daly
05. Scott Barrett	12. Jimmy Gopperth (k)
06. Sean O'Brien	13. Juan De Jongh
07. Brendon O'Conner	14. Steff Evans
08. Nathan Hughes	15. Willie Le Roux

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16. Tommy Taylor, 17. Alex Lundberg, 18. Paul Doran-Jones, 19. James Gaskell, 20. Thomas Young, 21. Joe Simpson, 22. Kyle Eastmond, 23. Christian Wade

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Tactics
Attack:
- Mix up our lines of attack, sometimes with two lines with forwards as options
- Loose forwards to offer extra pair of hands in the backline when required
- Mix up forward runners off 9 and 10 to give go forward and tie in defence. When space opens up, go wide and utilise pace of back three.
Defence:
- Quick line speed, getting up to the 10 and putting pressure on.
- Only step out of the line for big hit opportunities.
Breakdown:
- Be disciplined at the breakdown and do not give away penalties in our half
- Compete for the turnover if it's on, even if it's only too slow down the ball
- If ruck is lost, don't compete and fan out in defence
Territory:
- Use box kicks from 9 and nudges from 10 out of hand to pin them back.
- Play rugby in their half and make them attack from deep
- Full back to marshall the back 3 and make sure our positioning is spot on for kick returns

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Ulster Rugby

01. Callum Black	09. John Cooney
02. Rory Best (c)	10. Christian Lealiifano
03. Rodney Ah You
04. Alan O'Connor	11. Jacob Stockdale
05. Iain Henderson	12. Stuart McCloskey
06. Matty Rea	13. Louis Ludik
07. Sean Reidy	14. Craig Gilroy
08. Nick Timoney	15. Charles Piutau

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Replacements: 16 Rob Herring, 17 Kyle McCall, 18 Ross Kane, 19 Kieran Treadwell, 20 Chris Henry, 21 Dave Shanahan, 22 Johnny McPhillips, 23 Darren Cave

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Saracens vs Northampton Saints
Murrayfield Stadium
Sunny, 3 degrees, 10mph North Westerly Winds

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Saracens
Manager – Pooly

01. Richard Barrington	09. Ben Spencer
02. Schalk Brits	10. Alex Lozowski
03. Juan Figallo
04. Will Skelton	11. Chris Wyles
05. Nick Isiekwe	12. Brad Barritt
06. Michael Rhodes	13. Damian Penaud
07. Callum Clark	14. Nathan Earle
08. Jackson Wray	15. Harry Maillinder

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16. Jamie George 17. Hayden Thompson-Stringer 18. Titi Lamositele 19. Dominic Day  20. Joe Conlon 21. Henry Taylor 22. Duncan Taylor 23. Rotimi Segun

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Northampton Saints
Manager: StNick

01. Campese Ma'afu	09. Nic Groom
02. Mikey Haywood	10. Steven Myler (k)
03. Paul Hill
04. Api Ratuniyarawa	11. Ben Foden
05. Christian Day	12. Piers Francis
06. Jamie Gibson	13. Bundee Aki
07. Kwagga Smith	14. Ken Pisi
08. Teimana Harrison	15. Ahsee Tuala

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16 Alex Waller, 17 Reece Marshall, 18 Kieran Brookes, 19 David Ribbans, 20 Tom Wood, 21 Cobus Reinach, 22 Tom Stephenson, 23 Alex Goode

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Glasgow Warriors vs Exeter Chiefs
RDS Arena
Light Cloud, 7 degrees, 11mph Westerly Winds

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Glasgow Warriors

01. Jamie Bhatti	09. Ali Price
02. George Turner	10. Peter Horne
03. Siua Halanukonuk
04. Rob Harley (c)	11. Niko Matawalu
05. Greg Peterson	12. Nick Grigg
06. Matt Fagerson	13. Huw Jones
07. Matt Smith	14. Lee Jones
08. Adam Ashe	15. Ruaridh Jackson

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Replacements: 16 Grant Stewart, 17 Alex Allan, 18 D’Arcy Rae, 19 Kiran McDonald, 20 Chris Fusaro, 21 George Horne, 22 Brandon Thomson, 23 Henry Pyrgos

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Exeter Chiefs 
Manager – Fluxy

01. Alec Hepburn	09. Conor Murray
02. Luke Cowan-Dickie	10. Gareth Steenson (k)
03. Harry Williams
04. Jonny Hill	11. Olly Woodburn
05. Sam Whitelock	12. Ollie Devoto
06. Dave Ewers	13. Henry Slade
07. Don Armand (c)	14. Jacob Stockdale
08. Sam Simmonds	15. Jack Nowell

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16. Jack Yeandle, 17. Ben Moon, 18. Tomas Francis, 19. Mitch Lees 20. James Chisholm, 21. Nic White 22. Anthony Belleau, 23. James Short



Play in the standard Chiefs style of play, a high-intensity game in both defence and attack, with dynamic carrying and rucking at the fore. We want to control possession and go through the phases. 



- Use the set piece as a weapon to launch attacks, especially the maul, with the likes of Simoonds or Armand attached at the back. 

- Pick & goes - in twos and threes around the fringes, to starve Galsgow of possession and a great weapon of the Chiefs over the years. 

- Half-backs to dictate the game and play for territory. Steenson to also kick available points when on offer - to keep the scoreboard ticking over. 

- Slade to act as the second playmaker and look to spread the ball wide to back three when the space is available to attack or to take pressure off Steenson on clearances.

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Leicester Tigers vs Racing 92
Liberty Stadium
Light Cloud, 8 degrees, 15mph North Westerly Winds

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Leicester Tigers

01. Simon McIntyre	09. Ben Youngs
02. Tom Youngs	10. George Ford
03. Pat Cilliers
04. Matt Symons	11. Jonny May
05. Graham Kitchener	12. Matt Smith
06. Mike Williams	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Harry Thacker	14. Adam Thompstone
08. CJ Stander	15. Telusa Veainu

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Subs: 16. George McGuigan 17. Ellis Genge 18. Dan Cole 19. Harry Wells 20. Will Evans 21. Sam Harrison 22. Joe Ford 23. Jonah Holmes
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Tactics:
- Solid set piece to set tone and provide solid platform
- Look to play high intensity rugby with a drift defence, not allowing for space for the opp
- Attack the breakdown when it's on with numerous option
- Physical pack to win collision and numerous carrying options to get us over the gain line
- Keep the intensity up with a strong bench
- Get Telusa Veainu into the game whenever possible, he's a match winner in these conditions

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Racing 92

01. Eddy Ben Arous	09. Maxime Machenaud
02. Camille Chat	10. Rémi Tales
03. Ben Tameifuna
04. Donnacha Ryan	11. Marc Andreu
05. Edwin Maka	12. Henry Chavancy
06. Yannick Nyanga	13. Virimi Vakatawa
07. Wenceslas Lauret	14. Teddy Thomas
08. Leone Nakarawa	15. Louis Dupichot

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Replacements: 16 Dimitri Szarzewski, 17 Vasil Kakovin, 18 Cedate Gomes Sa, 19 Baptiste Chouzenoux, 20 Boris Palu, 21 Xavier Chauveau, 22 Benjamin Dambielle, 23 Joe Rokocoko

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Benetton Treviso vs Bath Rugby
Stade Marcel Michelin
Rain and Snow, 4 degrees, 10mph Westerly Winds

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Benetton Treviso

01. Alberto de Marchi	09. Edoardo Gori
02. Hame Faiva	10. Ian McKinley
03. Marco Riccioni
04. Ira Herbst	11. Monty Ioane
05. Marco Fuser	12. Nacho Brex
06. Federico Ruzza	13. Luca Morisi
07. Seb Negri Da Oleggio	14. Tommaso Benvenuti
08. Robert Barbieri	15. Luca Sperandio

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Replacements: 16 Tomas Baravalle, 17 Cherif Traore, 18 Tiziano Pasquali, 19 Alessandro Zanni, 20 Marco Lazzaroni, 21 Marco Barbini, 22 Giorgio Bronzini, 23 Tommy Allan

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Bath Rugby
Manager – Driver

01. Beno Obano	09. Kahn Fotuali
02. Tom Dunn	10. Rhys Priestland (k)
03. Ramiro Herrera
04. Luke Charteris	11. Semesa Rokoduguni
05. Matt Garvey	12. Robbie Henshaw
06. Francois Louw (c)	13. Jonathan Joseph
07. Sam Underhill	14. Matt Banahan
08. Toby Faletau	15. Anthony Watson

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16. Jack Walker, 17. Nick Auterac, 18. Max Lahiff, 19. Dave Attwood, 20. Zac Mecer, 21. Chris Cook, 22. Freddie Burns, 23. Max Clark

Harlequins
Manager – CJ

01. Lewis Boyce	09. Will Chudley
02. Dave Ward  (c)	10. Demetri Catrakalis
03. Will Collier
04. Charlie Matthews	11.  Alex Lewington
05. Johhny Gray	12. Francis Saili'i
06. Mat Luamanu	13. Joe Marchant
07. Sam Cane	14. James Lowe
08. Renaldo Bothma	15. Ross Chisholm

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16.  Cameron Holenstein 17.  Elia Elia 18. Josh Ibuanokpe   19. George Merrick 20. Jack Lam  21. Danny Care 22. James Lang 23. Charlie Walker

TACTICS

Cane and Ward fetchers in tandem at the breakdown, supported by powerful clearouts by 6 and 8. With 2 great turnover artists, we will be looking to really target the turnover in defence.

We face a very physical La Rochelle pack, so we will look to double man choke tackle at the fringes, to cut their momentum and either look to double team for the turnover or hold them up, happy to give up ground on the maul as long as we kill the ball and win the turnover

Look to move about that defence to tire their big players with switching point of attack

Saracens
Manager – Pooly

01. Richard Barrington	09. Ben Spencer
02. Schalk Brits	10. Alex Lozowski
03. Juan Figallo
04. Will Skelton	11. Chris Wyles
05. Nick Isiekwe	12. Brad Barritt
06. Michael Rhodes	13. Damian Penaud
07. Callum Clark	14. Nathan Earle
08. Jackson Wray	15. Harry Maillinder

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16. Jamie George 17. Hayden Thompson-Stringer 18. Titi Lamositele 19. Dominic Day  20. Joe Conlon 21. Henry Taylor 22. Duncan Taylor 23. Rotimi Segun
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Tactics:

Northampton Saints
Manager: StNick

01. Campese Ma'afu	09. Nic Groom
02. Mikey Haywood	10. Steven Myler (k)
03. Paul Hill
04. Api Ratuniyarawa	11. Ben Foden
05. Christian Day	12. Piers Francis
06. Jamie Gibson	13. Bundee Aki
07. Kwagga Smith	14. Ken Pisi
08. Teimana Harrison	15. Ahsee Tuala

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16 Alex Waller, 17 Reece Marshall, 18 Kieran Brookes, 19 David Ribbans, 20 Tom Wood, 21 Cobus Reinach, 22 Tom Stephenson, 23 Alex Goode

Happy with no tactics Nick?

Wasps
Manager - Pullthestrings

01. Logovi'i Mulipola	09. Dan Robson
02. Ashley Johnson	10. Danny Cipriani
03. Jake Cooper-Wooley
04. Joe Launchbury	11. Elliot Daly
05. Scott Barrett	12. Jimmy Gopperth (k)
06. Sean O'Brien	13. Juan De Jongh
07. Brendon O'Conner	14. Steff Evans
08. Nathan Hughes	15. Willie Le Roux

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16. Tommy Taylor, 17. Alex Lundberg, 18. Paul Doran-Jones, 19. James Gaskell, 20. Thomas Young, 21. Joe Simpson, 22. Kyle Eastmond, 23. Christian Wade

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Tactics
Attack:
- Mix up our lines of attack, sometimes with two lines with forwards as options
- Loose forwards to offer extra pair of hands in the backline when required
- Mix up forward runners off 9 and 10 to give go forward and tie in defence. When space opens up, go wide and utilise pace of back three.
Defence:
- Quick line speed, getting up to the 10 and putting pressure on.
- Only step out of the line for big hit opportunities.
Breakdown:
- Be disciplined at the breakdown and do not give away penalties in our half
- Compete for the turnover if it's on, even if it's only too slow down the ball
- If ruck is lost, don't compete and fan out in defence
Territory:
- Use box kicks from 9 and nudges from 10 out of hand to pin them back.
- Play rugby in their half and make them attack from deep
- Full back to marshall the back 3 and make sure our positioning is spot on for kick returns

Exeter Chiefs 
Manager – Fluxy

01. Alec Hepburn	09. Conor Murray
02. Luke Cowan-Dickie	10. Gareth Steenson (k)
03. Harry Williams
04. Jonny Hill	11. Olly Woodburn
05. Sam Whitelock	12. Ollie Devoto
06. Dave Ewers	13. Henry Slade
07. Don Armand (c)	14. Jacob Stockdale
08. Sam Simmonds	15. Jack Nowell

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16. Jack Yeandle, 17. Ben Moon, 18. Tomas Francis, 19. Mitch Lees 20. James Chisholm, 21. Nic White 22. Anthony Belleau, 23. James Short

I'll leave out tactics as Nick hasn't added any

Predictions Open - best of luck gents! 

I wrote tactics (albeit very brief ones)

La Rochelle 28 - 27 Harlequins
A great little tussle between these two sides. I just see that La Rochelle will get the upper hand with their carrying and offloading game, especially with that back row coming to the fore. The backs are both quite close for me. The French side getting a little more freedom with their back row making good yards, but you cannot write the Quins back three off from creating something out of nowhere! A close game, but La Rochelle will just edge it late on. 

La Rochelle 24 - 20 Harlequins
La Rochelle have been one of the best sides in Europe this season, and a real tough task on the road. Quins have a decent side out, but I think they lack a bit in the front 5 and at halfback here, and will struggle a bit in this one. The French side hold out at home

La Rochelle 25 - 26 Harlequins

La Rochelle 19 - 24 Harlequins
Although La Rochelle are in form in real life, I feel this Quins side would have enough to dispatch them. The Quins pack in particular is strong and a decent bench too to see the win through.

La Rochelle 23 - 22 Harlequins
Really tough place to travel but Quins make a real good fist of it. A lot of new combinations and players just stops them getting the win but it'll be tight. 

La Rochelle 27 - 26 Harlequins

Wasps 32 - 28 Ulster Rugby
This one is a mini-classic. Ulster raise their game in Europe and will fancy their chances. Wasps have some real game changers up front and with SOB and Hughes making holes in the Irish defence, there are opportunities to be had! The Wasps back lie looks dangerous and Evans slots in very nicely to that back three for me. Robson and Cips are the edge on their opponents, as Ulster are equally dangerous, but don;t quite get the same game changing ability from their halfbacks. 

Wasps 27 - 22 Ulster Rugby
Ulster are a decent outfit on paper, but have been struggling in real life. Wasps look well equipped in Europe, and with the additional stars they've brought in I think they have enough to win this comfortably at home

Wasps 27 - 26 Ulster Rugby

Wasps 30 - 21 Ulster Rugby
Ulster can match Wasps in the backs where both teams shine but a strengthened and impressive Wasps pack has more raw power and class, especially 4-8, and that gets them the front foot ball to cut Ulster apart 

Wasps 32 - 24 Ulster Rugby
Wasps pretty much full strength and will be too much for a poor Ulster from the off. Routine win for Wasps. 

Wasps 28 - 27 Ulster Rugby

Saracens 28 - 29 Northampton Saints 
A big tie this one, and it doesn't disappoint. Sarries will get more joy from the scrum for me, but Saints will rule the skies and nick some Sarries ball. The selection of Day is key here for me and with Sarries lacking an out and out caller (Isiekwe can do it, but on this stage would be a question for me), they can get some real joy in disrupting the Saracens possession. Out wide Saracens will look to get it wide with their back line, which will play into the hands of the Saints a little. Myler will play the kicking game more, and with Aki giving them a presence in midfield, helps them get over the gainline. A close one this, but I just feel that Saints nick it. 

Saracens 26 - 23 Northampton Saints
Both sides strong on paper, but a close to first team Sarries have too much up front and take this at home

Saracens 26 - 25 Northampton Saints 

Saracens 25 – 22 Northampton Saints
Sarries possibly in danger of underestimating Saints but there is enough quality still and form issues for Saints mean Sarries get the win

Saracens 27 - 20 Northampton Saints
Looking at the packs, Sarries will out wrestle Saints and make it very hard for them to have a stable platform. The backs are closer with Saints especially strong in the centres but Sarries have playmaking and control and the better bench

Glasgow Warriors 23 - 27 Exeter Chiefs
Glasgow are a very good European side, but are missing a few of their stars. Exeter have gone in with a very strong side and game planned to target the Scots weaknesses. Even on the road, I think they take this

Glasgow Warriors 25 - 26 Exeter Chiefs

Glasgow Warriors 19 – 22 Exeter Chiefs
Chiefs to starve Glasgow of attacking opportunities and grind out a result

Glasgow Warriors 25 - 28 Exeter Chiefs
This is a tough one with Glasgow in imperious form however so are the Chiefs who have such an effective team working pack with a great carrying and support structure. I particularly the balance of their back 3 brought into play by Slade at 13. It’s enough

Glasgow Warriors 24 - 28 Exeter Chiefs
Huge game against one of the best sides in Europe when they click. I just feel Glasgow are missing a few of their key players and Exeter are very strong. 

Glasgow Warriors 25 - 26 Exeter Chiefs

Leicester Tigers 32 - 34 Racing 92
Tigers have rotated a bit for this and still are a strong side. However, the Racing line up his beastly and can hurt the Tigers at the set piece and cut off their momentum. Ford will help keep the Tigers in the game and you May and Veainu will cause issues and score tries. But Racing will sneak it. 

Leicester Tigers 20 - 24 Racing 92
I don't rate this Leicester side much, and against one of the best sides in Europe I think they do well to take a losing bonus point even at home

Leicester Tigers 31 - 30 Racing 92

Leicester Tigers 25 – 19 Racing 92
Even with form issues, Leicester have enough to get the home win against an under-strength Racing side.

Leicester Tigers 23 - 26 Racing 92
Tigers resting a few here. None the less they have an excellent line out and solid scrum and a mix of different carrying options in the back row. Racing have a lot more power though, and need more on how they would stop that power, especially with the Racing pack having very good hands to link and offload as well. Outside I’m not sure of the balance of Racing, whereas we know Tigers work in this set up. If Tigers can dominate the lineouts they have a chance but Racing are favourites 

Leicester Tigers 25 - 25 Racing 92
Racing very strong and will get some joy in the pack...can see a really tough fought out draw on the cards.

Leicester Tigers 26 - 27 Racing 92

Benetton Treviso 20 - 42 Bath Rugby 
The italian contingent Europe usually make up the numbers, however as of late Treviso have been causing some sticky patches for clubs. There will be some spirit from the Italians, and some nice play. Yet, Bath just have too much quality and will notch up the victory here. 

Benetton Treviso 17 - 35 Bath Rugby
Bath will tank the Italian side, far too much quality from 6-13 and they'll cut them to pieces

Benetton Treviso 35 - 36 Bath Rugby

Benetton Treviso 14 – 27 Bath Rugby
Pretty routine win for Bath

Benetton Treviso 9 - 21 Bath Rugby
Away in the cold and wet is never easy, and makes a forward dominated game that Treviso will feel less outclassed in, but Bath are ahead in sheer class in every area and will win comfortably 

Benetton Treviso 13 - 34 Bath Rugby
Bath way too strong, routine win. 

Benetton Treviso 32 - 33 Bath Rugby