By Chris Chaplin
November 5 2003

As another home fixture approaches there is without doubt a crisis at Welford Road so with Wasps, last seasons’ Zurich Cup Winners, the visitors this week can Tigers get the show back on the road by at least securing a home win?


Whether or not you are amongst the Luddite tendency (which I unashamedly am) who disapprove of the money grubbing Playoff system there can be little doubt that Wasps were the team to beat in the second half of last season and while Gloucester supporters an others may moan about the outcome of last season, a position with which I have great sympathy, the fact of the matter is that only Tigers Directors voted against the Playoffs so there you go; Wasps were and indeed are the Champions!

Shorn of Josh Lewsey, Lawrence Dallaglio, Joe Worsley, Stuart Abbott, Kenny Logan and now Simon Shaw the Causeway Stadium based club have hardly been left unscathed by the demands of the World Cup.

Notwithstanding this Coach Gatland has been able to achieve a considerable measure of continuity in his starting line ups thus far with Voyce, Roiser, Waters, Rudd, VanGisbergen, Volley and to my mind at least the most key component, Craig Dowd, starting every match thus far. This continuity of selection for almost 50% of the side has brought it’s rewards with Wasps handily placed in 3rd position in the league following their narrow 30 – 26 win against Falcons at the weekend, for which they must be grateful to Dave Walder, who left his kicking boots at home in the north east.

I see no reason why the astute Warren Gatland should attempt to fix what’s not broken and so I expect to see the core of the team which beat Falcons retained for the trip to Welford Road.

In Craig Dowd Wasps have the all important corner stone that teams need. The 62 time All Black has started over 50 times in the premiership for the Wasps and has scored a remarkable 11 tries, the latest being against Falcons last weekend, to add to the 2 he scored in his country’s illustrious colour(s). From this it will be gathered that not only is Dowd a superb scrummager but pretty useful in the loose as well. If Dowd can be subdued then so can his team – but that’s a big ask!

The hooking options of course revolve around “Big Trev” Leota and erstwhile Gloucester Boy Phil Greening. Now I have to say that Leota is a player that always makes me smile such is his obvious enjoyment in playing the game and I wondered when watching his country play High-Tech England what difference the financially excluded Leota may have made to the outcome. Samoa’s loss is very much Wasps gain however and for me Leota is a better option than the looser Greening. While Greening is without doubt exciting in open play I often wonder whether he is fully committed to the hard grind of his trade, appearing as he does to be a frustrated flanker. If it comes off he’s a hero of course but if not – well!!

Will Green, who missed the cut for the World Cup squad, is currently nursing a shoulder injury which I understand could see him play in a dire circumstances but otherwise he’s not due back to the fray until 21 November at home against Glaws, his last appearance being against Leeds when he was replaced in the 47th minute by Tim Payne who has held on to the berth ever since. Signed from Bristol, where with just five appearances Payne was very much a fringe player, the 24 year old ex Coventry forward is certainly making the most of his chance. Green may well have a fight on his hands to get his place back.

Simon Shaw was arguably the outstanding lock in the premiership last season and was extraordinarily unlucky to be excluded from the England World Cup squad at the eleventh hour, when the more versatile attributes of our own Martin Corry were preferred to those of the East African born Wasps man. As already mentioned Shaw is now winging his way to Australia to cover for the broken footed Grewcock so I expect young Martin Purdy to step into the breach. This 22 year old lock joined Wasps from Rugby Lions and if selected it would be his third start for his new club.

Partnering Shaw is usually to be found Richard Birkett and I while think it fair to say that the 24 year old is clearly the junior partner it’s his own brand of steadfastness that allows Shaw to shine and indeed Birkett is in the top echelons of lineout ball winners in the premiership this term, often being the target while Shaw is the focus of the opposition, so the dynamics of Wasps lineout strategy will now presumably have changed.

In the back row the massive presence of Dallaglio is sure to be missed, how could it be otherwise? The more precocious talents of Joe Worsley perhaps less so than the club’s talismanic number 8.

Ever present this season has been the excellent Paul Volley. Very much in the mould of Neil Back with over 100 appearances for his club and a score or more of tries he also has the almost two handfuls of Yellow cards that are de rigueur for flankers plying their trade. Volley, like Back, is often seen popping up in unexpected places, making the links between the pack and the backs and of course invariably being the first to the breakdown. The competition between the speedy and experienced Wasp and Kronfeld should be a great one.

New signing from Connaght, Jonny O’Connor has managed to get over the whitewash already for his new masters but he’s thus far had to take part in a job share with England U21 John Hart, while on the blindside has been young Ian Clarke, who was a fringe player at Leeds prior to his deciding to see if the streets of London really are paved with Gold – must have been a bit of shock for him then to find he was in High Wycombe!

Much depends on O’Connor and Volley in these strange World Cup days and this could well be a key area against a similarly affected Tigers back row.

I really can’t add to all the plaudits that have already been bestowed on Rob Howley by pundits much more distinguished than me, perhaps now past his absolute best but still better than almost every other scrum half in the premiership. Ex Bristol, London Irish and Quins #9 Peter Richards is the current sorcerer’s apprentice following the departure of the miffed Martyn Wood for Bath. This journeyman will be pleased to at least get regular appearances after playing second fiddle to Pichot and is learning fast at the feet of the Welsh master but the frisson of fear is only really present, perhaps unwisely, in the opposition ranks when the 63 time capped Welshman with 10 international tries to his name is in the #9 shirt.

When Mark van Gisbergen first arrived at Wasps I rather shrugged and thought “so what”? Well now I know! Although, originally at full back the injury to Alex King has seen the ex Waikato Kiwi score over 100 points already in this premiership season from the fly-half spot and he’s no mean playmaker either.

The inside centre slot is shared between the workmanlike Mark Denney and the exciting Ayoola Erinle. Elevated from the reaches of the lower divisions this sevens specialist is one of those players that makes me sit forward to see what he’s going to do next which the more stolid Denney, I’m afraid, does not.

Partnering either of these two must be the most under rated player in the premiership, Fraser Waters. Quite how he’s only merited a single England cap I fail to understand. Strong, pacey, intelligent, what else does he need I wonder. A real match winner this lad and THE danger man.

On the wings firstly we find John Rudd. This young ex Bedford and Quins players has scored a couple of fistfuls of tries for the High Wycombe crew but yet somehow he is unconvincing to my mind. I’ve not seen that much of him of course and the Wasps faithful will know better than I, but he does seem to needlessly get himself into untenable situations so promising attacks fizzle out, ball is turned over or he gets penalised and he sometimes looks flat footed in defence whereas Shane Roiser on the other hand is another player who while sometimes looking vulnerable defensively on his inside can electrify in attack as his score or more tries for his club in the premiership pays ample testament.

Finally another new boy who is ever present is coach Gatland’s signing from Bath, Tom Voyce. Can be fantastic when entering the line from deep and his kicking out of hand can be top class. I’m not entirely sure he’s the ideal defensive full-back though but another exciting player in attack when he’s in the mood but sometimes he seems to just be drifting and hesitant in attack and somehow lacking any urgency or enthusiasm when it comes to defence and ever has it been with this potentially very fine player.

So with Wasps narrowly in third place in the premiership table after a gutsy performance against Falcons they now travel to Welford Road, where they just about lost out last year. At the end of their journey they face a crisis ridden Tigers who have now slumped to a fifth consecutive defeat (two of which were suffered at the previously impregnable Fortress Welford Road) and eleventh place in the premiership with just the pointless Rotherham between our fallen idols and the ignominy of National One.

I was at The Recreation Ground on a beautiful late Autumn day last weekend to see a first half display as poor as I can remember, only the indefatigable Josh Kronfeld and classy Daryl Gibson seemingly motivated to engage their brains and take on a frankly uninspiring opposition before the break, when I for one was grateful for a good kicking display by Ramiro Pez keeping Tigers from being totally blown away. Fortunately the second half saw fire rekindled in the eye of the Tigers but with Healey’s smart consolation try deep in injury time being far too little, far too late. Although for a desperately needed crumb of comfort Tigers did win the second half by a point – well I said it was a crumb didn’t I?

To be fair the Tigers’ pack did look more secure in the line out with the addition of Stewart Campbell and in the face of probably the best pairing in the premiership at the moment and the other on loan player Jim Richards gave a good account of himself too when he took over from a dispirited George Chuter early on.

Similarly when Dean Richards stubbornness finally bowed to the inevitable and Adam Balding belatedly replaced Will Johnson at last Josh was not alone, the insistence that a talented player such as is Will Skinner being played out of position and thereby all but neutralising the threat that his pace otherwise poses at open side is yet another bizarre piece of selection.

From my seat at The Rec., I was very close to the Tigers’ goal line in the first half and could see and hear the Tigers’ players and rarely have I seen them look so dejected with only Josh amongst the senior players trying to rally the troops during that dire first half.

It seems that each week I say the same thing about the front row, in that on paper two British Lions, albeit with a journeyman hooker, should be able to equal and best most current opposition line ups. Against Bath they did pretty well, it was hard going though and the ever preposterous Ashley Rowden blew his whistle endlessly, with even the surrounding Bath supporters at a loss at the penalties meted out against Tigers, but come the second half the pack stepped up the ante and looked the part for goodly periods, especially after the arrival of Balding.

Once again the service from Ellis was slow and largely predictable with Martyn Wood’s looking decidedly quicksilver like and innovative by comparison. It is to Ramiro Pez’s credit that he did as well as he did hampered by poor quality service and a game plan which involved kicking the ball back to the opposition at every opportunity but I do hope that like other players, who seemingly are favoured by Dean Richards, the young Italian international is given a chance to come to his game, as I think he will, especially if he is permitted to develop a partnership with Oz at #9.

Daryl Gibson again showed flashes of class when he got the opportunity and is forming a good partnership with Ollie Smith, let’s hope that they’re left to it now!

John Holtby had another solid if unexceptional game but really he saw so little ball he had no chance to show what he could do. The strategy seemed to be to try and get Oz away and Bath for their part concentrated on keeping one of our most dangerous attack players pegged back in the corner with a series of raking kicks. Oz clearly didn’t believe he should be on the wing instead of scrum half but then aside from Dean Richards who did?

While it’s right perhaps to persevere with young Holtby I hope that either Leon, Fred or the transparently unhappy Steve Booth go back to where they belong, on the wing, and to where he can do some damage. Safe though he is under testing high kicks Booth is badly exposed when having to tackle head on and big opposition attackers will play on this weakness. Booth is simply not possessed of Jason Robinson’s upper body strength in such situations and he must be placed back into the attack without delay where he strikes fear into opposition defences as could newbie Neil Baxter from what I’ve seen and heard so far.

As is the case elsewhere no real planning seems to have taken place to fill the gap left by the departing Stimmo which has been known of for many months as was the absence of Geordan (on World Cup duty) It may be that a big defensively strong player like Holtby is the answer or that Myring returns or even that Vesty, having all the necessary attributes, gets the spot, but whatever the answer is it’s not Steve Booth.

Will this be the match that stops the rot?

Well we’ll all be there cheering next Saturday and supporting the players as usual and I think that a properly motivated pack can at worst hold their own against the Wasps cabal in all areas of the game especially with Shaw now being engaged elsewhere. Skinner’s speed at open side, Balding’s aggression at 8 and Josh at 6 should be able to better the depleted Wasps back row. But that would involve players, save for Josh, being selected in position an Josh can play either side with good effect – you never know, stranger things have happened!

Healey at 9 would be a good contest with Howley as would Pez against Van Gisbergen. If Tigers’ service is slow and as indecisive as it has been so far this season and for much of last then the match will be lost right there in the half backs. But if Gibson can run at Denney and starve Waters of quality ball then we have a chance.

However if things don’t change and selection does not place the players where they’ll do best then it will be a sixth loss and then the game away at Millmoor in two weeks time could well be the one that really will be a relegation dogfight.

Whither a win – hmmm? 80 minutes as in the second half at Bath probably by a score but another 40 like the first at The Recreation Ground or as against Sale at home then prepare yourselves for the worst.

This is where the coaching staff earn their money and with a combination of motivation and sensible selection provide us with a win – at last!