By Richie the Rhino (29/10/02)
October 29 2002

There is a legendary tale, which circulates the rugby world, regarding the current Saracens coach Buck Shelford. It is said that Buck once played on in a game after receiving an injury to his nether regions which resulted in one of his testicles becoming partly detached from the rest of his body.... The fact that Buck played on, is testimony to his attitude to the game. In his pomp, Shelford was possibly the hardest man in the game, and he captained the legendary All Blacks side of the late 80s.

It is this quality of hardness that the Saracens management surely wanted to instill into their side when Buck was offered the job of coach, replacing Francois Pienaar. Pienaar was an inevitable casualty of last seasons poor form for Saracens, who at one stage fell into the relegation dogfight, only to raise themselves up the table over the final few weeks of the season.

Last year, Saracens seriously under achieved, and often exhibited a soft underbelly. A new attitude was needed, so in came Uncle Buck.

Those of us expecting Shelford to model the team after himself, as a hard and uncompromising unit, will have been surprised by the poor start Saracens have had again. It's not for a lack of talent, having players like Bracken, Hill, Quinnell, Califano and Castaginede in their ranks. But Saracens fans will be concerned that they are turning into another star studded team who under-perform in the league, Quins without the class so to speak. Shelford has instilled a brutal regime of physical and mental training on his players, and will be worried that this has yet to be reciprocated by results on the pitch.

Leeds did the double over Saracens last year. Daniel Parks shone for the Tykes in the home game, and Japie Mulder grabbed a brace in Tykes victory in Watford - the fact that neither player now remains in the Tykes set up shows how much has changed in a short space of time. Saracens strengthened their squad by bringing in Califano at Prop and Quinnell at Lock in an attempt to strengthen their pack. But with the Tykes flying high in the league, and Sarries languishing in mid-table anonimity, it would appear that Phil Davies has made wiser use of his cheque book than Buck Shelford.

One Saracen to watch out for is centre Johnston, highly regarded by Clive Woodward. BVS and Tris will need to keep their wits about them. The Tykes scrum will be under pressure, and the lineout will need to improve to enable us to control the game.

Even though we lie second in the league, the Tykes are still struggling to command respect in many parts of the rugby community, particularly the press. If Sarries fall into that trap, they will be in for a big surprise.

The Tykes will be favourtites for this game, and to some extent that doesn't suit us, as we tend to perform better when our backs are against the wall. There is no room for complacency. But, who knows, even Mr Hignell may tip us for a win?

The form book points to a Tykes victory, but its going to be no easy task. Buck Shelford will have his troops fired up, and a defeat for Sarries will push them into the relegation mire. It will be tight, but the Tykes have the firepower and collective spirit to win. We are a much improved team compared to last year, whereas Sarries still appear to have the same failings.

Result prediction - Tykes to win by 10.

COME ON TYKES!

LEEDS LEEDS LEEDS LEEDS LEEDS!