Glasgow Warriors v La Rochelle Euro Cup Double Header 7 and 14 December

La Rochelle v Glasgow Warriors
Euro Champions Cup
Stade Marcel Deflanfre
La Rochelle
7th December
KO 15.15

Glasgow Warriotrs v La Rochelle
Euro Champions Cup
Scotstoun Stadium
Glasgow
14th December
KO 17.15

Both live on BT Sport


It is hard to predict what to make of these games coming up.

La Rochelle are out, albeit not mathematically, but they are out nevertheless, having lost 2 games and still to play Exeter away. It is not clear how they will view these games, though my suspicion is that they will put out a reasonable side for the home game first up and then will be less concerned about the return in Glasgow, when their focus will have switched back to the Top 14 fixtures that are coming up. If Glasgow can make any headway against them early on, their interest in the first fixture may end up being short lived as well.

Glasgow are still alive but have made life difficult for themselves by not taking any BPs from either of the games that they have played, they are likely to need to win away here and in sale to qualify and on current form, you would not be betting the mortgage on that happening. We have actually done pretty well against French sides away in recent years but this has not been as recent seasons for Glasgow, we are struggling to win and even struggling to score tries. something which has always come easy to us, even when we have lost games. A big nasty French pack may well cause us problems as well if they show any interest in the game, which is hard to tell, but if we let them get away from us, we will struggle to bring them back.

After the resting of players last week, we are surely going to go into this game with our strongest team and hope we can kick start our season. Maybe something along these lines:

1. Keeble
2. Brown
3. Fagerson Z
4. Gray
5. Cummings
6. Wilson
7. Gibbins
8. Fagerson M
9. Horne G
10. Hastings
11. Steyn
12. Johnson
13. Jones (I can but hope)
14. DTH
15. Seymour

Subs:

Seuili
Turner
Rae
McDonald - one of the few who impressed off the bench last week
Harley
Price
Horne P
Niko

I pick Jones more in hope than expectation and fully expect to see Grigg running out in his place!

Given Jones' Mr invisible performance last weekend due you really want him playing?

Noting Dunbar's comments that players need a run of games to get back into things!

I don't think he was any better or worse than anyone else last week and in all honesty Pete Horne made a complete cobblers of any decent ball we had long before it came to him.

Huw Jones confidence must be shot to hell and the only way we will see what kind of a player he might be with Glasgow is to play him over the next run of big games. In truth he has never had a run of games for us and we don't really know what he can do.

We do know what Grigg can do, hard working, honest but limited. A very decent club player, who coaches no doubt love, but probably won't win you anything.

If Shuggy is still playing rubbish after the two derby games then I will happily join in the cries for him to be paid off but I still don't feel he has been given a proper chance.

What bothers me is none of Glasgows matches been decided by the 13s. There's never been a match this season where fans have gone "thank god for Grigg". So where is the risk in saying to Jones "you've got our backing for the next 3 matches to try and find some form, if you get form then you'll keep the shirt, if you don't then it goes back to Grigg".

As Cockerill has been keen to point out, the pro14 teams are in a run of 13 games in a row which is a shedload of work to get through. You could give 4 games to Grigg and 4 games to Jones to see who comes up with the best form and you'd still have matches leftover to back your best 13!

I actually think Steyn is Glasgow's best 13...

On last season's form anyway, but he hasn't been given a chance there this season.

RDW wrote:I actually think Steyn is Glasgow's best 13...

On last season's form anyway, but he hasn't been given a chance there this season.

He played well in a free flowing backline and took the most of his chances. I think he is a player with better potential than Grigg as well but is being pushed outwards as DR does not seem to rate many of our wingers either!

Well it seems Glasgow rate Kyle Steyn as well, he has just signed on for two more years till 2022.

He has been a good addition to the squad and hopefully we have not seen the best of him yet. I would have less issue with him starting at 13 this weekend than Nick Grigg!

Team's up

1. Jinksy (98)
2. Chuckles (93)
3. Ragnar (85)
4. Scott Cummings (62)
5. Jonny Gray (104)
6. Batman (158)
7. Callum Gibbins (C) (40)
8. Matt Fagerson (56)

9. George Horne (46)
10. Adam Hastings (36)
11. DTH van der Merwe (119)
12. Sam Johnson (56)
13. Nick Grigg (61)
14. MadMad Matawalu (118)
15. Tommy Seymour (136)

16. George Turner (38)
17. Sue Ellen (1)
18. Hector (14)
19. Giant Red Crayon (220)
20. Mullet (9)
21. Aldi Price (80)
22. Furra Linee (163)
23. Seaman (18)

Can that side win? Can they actually make it to the ground? Will the French be on strike?
A loss here and it's a long old season with very little to play for.
Five points and it's Luvvies beware.
I have a very bad feeling about this.

For those who can never remember the nicknames:

LA ROCHELLE

15. Kini Murimurivalu, 14. Vincent Rattez, 13. Jérémy Sinzelle, 12. Pierre Aguillon, 11. Pierre Boudehent, 10. Jules Plisson, 9. Alexi Bales, 1. Dany Priso, 2. Jean-Charles Orioli, 3. Ramiro Herrera, 4. Thomas Jolmes, 5. Mathieu Tanguy, 6. Zeno Kieft, 7. Kevin Gourdon, 8. Victor Vito (c).

Replacements: 16. Brendan Lebrun, 17. Reda Wardi, 18. Sila Puafisi, 19. Thomas Lavault, 20. Paul Boudehent, 21. Tawera Kerr Barlow, 22. Brock James, 23. Brieuc Plessis-Couillaud,


GLASGOW WARRIORS

15. Tommy Seymour, 14. Niko Matawalu, 13. Nick Grigg, 12. Samuel Johnson, 11. DTH van der Merwe, 10. Adam Hastings, 9. George Horne, 1. Alex Allan, 2. Fraser Brown, 3. Zander Fagerson, 4. Scott Cummings, 5. Jonny Gray, 6. Ryan Wilson, 7. Callum Gibbins (c), 8. Matt Fagerson.

Replacements: 16. George Turner, 17. Aki Seiuli, 18. Adam Nicol, 19. Robert Harley, 20. Tom Gordon, 21. Ali Price, 22. Peter Horne, 23. Kyle Steyn,


Referee: Luke Pearce (England)
AR1: Adam Leal (England)
AR2: Phil Watters (England)
TMO: Graham Hughes (England)

Broadcasters: beIN SPORTS / FR2 / BT Sport

Other than Jones and Grigg I can't complain to much about that team, but will it be strong enough to stand up to a big nasty French pack at home? On what we have seen this seasons, that is not very clear.

I am not familiar enough with the las Rochelle players to know what kind of a team they have put out but I certainly do recognise a few names like Gourdon and Vito. At home you would imagine that they will be pretty strong!

Biggest absentees for La Rochelle probably Doumayrou & Alldritt.

[quote="BigGee"]Other than Jones and Grigg I can't complain to much about that team, quote]


I'm reaching the point where I feel someone needs to stand up for the Pocket Battleship.

Yes, we all agree that Not A Pony has an outside break that Barry John would have been proud of and a trying scoring ratio, for Scotland, that is out of the top drawer.

However, if you look at the statistics for Glasgow, Grigg makes more tackles than Jones, has a higher tackle completion rate and attempts more tackles.

I think we all need to agree that at professional level everyone can tackle; they wouldn't be anywhere near the 23 if they couldn't. I get the feeling that Jones is often, far too often, just ever so slightly out of position and can't make the tackle. He only needs to be half a yard away as he was for Leinster's first try where he fell of his man because his feet were too far away to make a successful tackle. Or he lines up in the wrong lace: Leinster's second try where Shug was lined up between 10 &12 and the started scrabbling along the line trying to track the ball. This may be a consequence of coming through the South African system where if you stand still in the defensive line someone will run straight at you (occasionally with the ball) and tackling is pretty straightforward, if painful.

The argument has been that while Jones may cost us a try or two he will score, or create, three or four. Except recently both at Glasgow and Scotland we have seen that falling behind early leads to "running around with your hair on fire" syndrome.

As long as the Pocket battleship keeps putting opponents on the deck we stay in the game: if he doesn't score as often as Not A Pony then hopefully someone else will cross the line. I think Not A Pony was at fault on both of the Ladyboys' tries last week. Grigg deserves to start tomorrow.

I don't underestimate Nick Grigg, he has been a very good player for us and will always give 110%, I can see why coaches love him.

My argument has always been that Jones a run of games to gain some form and confidence, if he was to get that, then he brings a lot more to the party than Grigg can. If he got a run and was still playing poorly at the end of it, then I am more than happy to eat the hat!

Other Glasgow players recently have also showed lack lustre form but they keep getting picked week in week out.

Huw Jones is not the only player who has not been playing very well, nor the only reason why we have been losing games.

Just got up from a night shift, so got an excuse!

Bad missed tackle from Brown

Some really sloppy play from Glasgow, not feeling we have turned a corner yet!

This could be a long 80 minutes for Glasgow

Terrible kick from Seymour

Fraser Brown redeems his earlier miss by making a try saving turnover

Penalty La Rochelle

10-3 La Rochelle

This is so ponderous from Glasgow, can't do anything with this kind of ball

Another penalty to La Rochelle

13-3 La Rochelle

A slightly better attacking set from Glasgow wins them a penalty

13-6 Glasgow

Glasgow's breakdown play keeping them in the game just

We are lucky to still be in the game to be honest, can't keep riding it though

VDM has been awful this game - he might as well not be in the pitch.

I am adding DTH to our lengthening list of players who are looking decidedly past it, he is having a shocker as well.

18-6 La Rochelle and we can't have any complaints about it, we have been shocking

We should have taken the points there

and that is why I am not a professional rugby coach!

BigGee wrote:We should have taken the points there

Sure about that??

Good try on the stroke of half time, a line out drive gives us a lifeline

18-13 La Rochelle at HT

Probably better than we deserve but we will take it, at least we stay in the game. Lets see if unlike recent weeks, we can turn our second half form around!

Has ROG finally clicked what this Heineken Cup stuff is all about?

More poor defending gets the second half off to a bad start

Penalty La Rochelle

21-13 La Rochelle

Is DTH concussed? He's not close to being at the races!

Niko goes all the way, still got the legs

What a great read!

21-20 La Rochelle

and we give away a penalty from the restart!

Bugger off Vito you can't run out to the ref when the conversion is being lined up.

Should have been Glasgow penalty from kick off!

RDW wrote:Is DTH concussed? He's not close to being at the races!

He just looks shot to me, nothing left in the tank, Seymour as well

Kick good

24-20 La Rochelle

DTH gets subbed, can't argue with that

BigGee wrote:DTH gets subbed, can't argue with that

Looking forward to the much better VDM running at him in 2 weeks!

Great line by Scott Cummings, showing what he can do

TMO check for try

He went the wrong way!

2 collapses for La Rochelle, on a warning now

That was a missed chance

You just knew Glasgow would find a way to mess that up!

The free kick was a nonsense though - should have been a 3rd pen and yellow.

Steyn goes in from a great cross kick from Hastings. He has made a deiiference on the wing

Hastings converts

27-24 Glasgow

Why was DTH starting over Steyn!

and we give away a high shot penalty