Leicester Tigers
Scarlets v Tigers Match Preview
By ChrisC
January 11 2011
A Study in Scarlet - By ChrisC This was the first Conan Doyle novel to feature Sherlock Holmes and is one of the many famous scarlet(t)s, there was Scarlett O’Hara, Agent Scarlett and there is Scarlett Johansson! Miss Scarlet of Cluedo fame, the Scarlet Pimpernel, Captain Scarlett and of course from the 1960s, Gerry & Sylvia Anderson’s, Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons.
This week’s study in scarlet though is focussed on Llanelli Scarlets who welcome their very own Mysterons, aka the Leicester Tigers, to Parc y Scarlets this Saturday evening.
Tigers, unlike the Mysterons, will not be declaring war on Earth but just on the Welsh Magners league side who stand in the way of their qualification for the European Cup quarter finals.
After two below par performances against USAP Tigers must prevail over the home side, who currently stand top of the pool with 15 points and three wins to their credit.
USAP will surely be securing five points from Treviso this weekend but then Scarlets have to visit France in the final round of pool matches, while Tigers welcome Treviso to Welford Road but failure by the Tigers in Llanelli will probably see the English Champions exit the senior European competition in the pool stages for the second year running.
I watched Scarlets play up at an empty looking Murrayfield when, under the watchful eye of Irish referee, Peter Fitzgibbon, they met Edinburgh last Saturday.
It took a long time to watch as I had to keep rewinding Sky+ to compensate for dozing off during this poor advert for the Magners and as I recorded it on S4C I also had to endure the somewhat surreal experience of everybody, aside from the commentary team, speaking English, widely recognised as an international language, while they resolutely continued in Welsh.
I think that if watched live there is an English commentary option but obviously when the proceedings were underway in Edinburgh I was otherwise engaged chewing through the arm of my sofa watching Tigers play Northampton, so the Welsh commentary it was.
The fixture was error strewn and subject to the whistle of Mr Fitzgibbon so a spectacle it was not but Morgan Stoddart and Jonathan Davies both managed to get over the line for the visitors while Chris Paterson, running a sumptuous angle, went over for the hosts late on but in spite of a late surge from Edinburgh the Scarlets held on for 16-21 victory which moved them up to second spot in the Magners League behind Munster.
While this was all going on in the frozen north Tigers were taking on Saints at Welford Road in a table top encounter which I can only describe as an epic encounter between two excellent sides. It was real nail biter, the players managing to overcome a somewhat esoteric refereeing display from Mr Pearson to produce a game full of excitement, skill and commitment which reminded me of the Tigers of old with their ability to vary the pace of the game and change the point and style of attack, while Saints countered with similarly high levels of expertise. I felt privileged to watch it and at the end breathed a sigh of relief into my pint of Tanglefoot and, somewhat tragically given that I was watching alone in my living room, stood and applauded! It was just that sort of match and reminded me why I so love the sport having played and watched it for more than half a century.
On a sour note though it came to me once again what a nonsense the Play Off system is when matches such as this are viewed by the administrators of my beloved sport as a mere qualifying heat for the end of season knock out competition, traditional rugby union supporters do, in my submission, still value topping the Premiership as a prize beyond compare, whether or not it attracts a bauble from the avaricious maw of the increasingly irrelevant PRL.
So Tigers will travel to Parc y Scarlets in good spirits for one of the defining matches of the season.
Scarlets will be a quite different proposition on home turf than they were at Welford Road even though the new edifice where they now play their home games is no Stradey Park, it’s home for all that.
The hosts have something of an injury crisis with tight head props Peter Edwards and Deacon Manu still absent with broken arms while Rhys Thomas is still recovering from the broken leg he picked up at Welford Road when Scarlets were mauled there back in October.
Scarlets have recently registered 20 year old Haverfordwest born academy tight head Simon Gardiner for the European campaign. The youngster has previously played five times for Scarlets, three times in the Magners and twice in the LV Cup. I expect him to join with the wonderfully mobile British Lion Matthew Rees, who was the pick of the front row against Edinburgh, and Phil John, who has replaced veteran Iestyn Thomas at loose head since the Scarlets were destroyed 60 – 13 by Ospreys on Christmas Bank Holiday Monday.
With Tigers likely to start with Marcos Ayerza, after his standout performance against Saints, George Chuter and Dan Cole I can’t really see the hosts getting much change here especially with Castrogiovanni, who, from the moment he ran on to the pitch, looked below par last time out, and Julian White likely to be amongst the replacements.
In the second row three time capped and Llanelli RFC forwards coach, Vernon Cooper looks likely to continue alongside Lou Reed to oppose Louis Deacon and George Skivington, the line out duo who made mincemeat of Saints and as the Scarlets line out was under pressure at Welford Road when Deacon was still injured it looks likely that the hosts will have to work hard and with the extra grunt of Deacon at scrum time the set piece looks a potential area of advantage for the Tigers as I don’t see that Scarlets will be able to reverse the earlier events at Welford Road.
The Scarlets’ coaching team will have watched with interest the one area of Tigers’ game that went awry against Saints which was at the breakdown, where too few players were committed on attacking ball permitting the more dynamic Saints to ruck over the tackled player for turnovers.
It’s therefore important that Tigers remember the old adage that you must first catch the rabbit before you can skin it and so ensure they secure their own ball.
The Scarlets’ breakaway forwards were good against Edinburgh with Jonny Fa’amatuainu, who has been capped on eleven occasions for Samoa, being a thorough nuisance at the line out and often first to the ball at the break down, he partnered Richie Pugh on the open side, who’s opportunistic hack through almost led to the opening try, in place of the usual starter Josh Turnbull who didn’t make the match day 23, so I guess he was injured and of course the excellent Dafyyd Jones has now retired through injury. The final component up at Murrayfield was Aussie powerhouse David Lyons who showed all his 44 cap experience carrying the ball strongly from the base and if the hosts’ front five can get some go forward Lyons will be an ever present danger.
It’s difficult to see any good reason to change the Tigers’ back row of Thomas Waldrom, Craig Newby and Jordan Crane who were mightily impressive against the talented Saints, although they will need to concentrate better on securing their own ball at the break down.
What I found interesting was that on several occasions Edinburgh were able to make successful sorties around the fringes of the break down and put fly-half David Blair into acres of space and if the Tigers’ trio can power through in the same way there could be some real opportunity to similarly get the Tigers’ half backs away.
Given the injury problems at Scarlets and from what I’ve seen of the Treviso pack giving them a hard time down in Italy I think that Tigers should, and indeed must, dominate here in both the loose and tight phases.
Tavis Knoyle started in the #9 shirt against Edinburgh for Scarlets although I expect the more experienced Welsh international Martin Roberts to get the nod against Tigers and partner the now recovered Stephen Jones, who made a cameo appearance at Murrayfield when he took over from Rhys Priestland, who’d given a good account of himself, although the returning Scarlets’ stalwart looked to need the game time. Jones can be guaranteed to keep the scoreboard moving should Tigers lose their discipline, and with Alain Rolland in charge of the whistle and, from what I’ve seen of him before, notably when he was in charge of Tigers’ HEC Semi Final with Toulouse at the Walkers’ back in 2005, his having a dislike of Tigers’ scrum, problems could occur, if unforeseeably so, given the random nature of scrum penalties in these benighted times.
Jones, as the Welsh team’s own Captain Scarlet, has such a clever rugby brain that Tigers will have to keep him on the back foot otherwise he’ll be flat on the advantage line and be able to get his backs away and form his very own Spectrum to reverse the fortunes of the visitors.
Ben Youngs was reunited with Toby Flood last weekend and had a much better game although I’d like to see him eradicate his habitual movement before passing which prejudices Flood’s ability to get on the front foot, hence on Saturday he was a second or two late in ghosting through gaps which, with a slicker service from his half back partner, he’d have been through as of old.
Flood didn’t yet look comfortable with his kicking and was uncharacteristically tentative at times albeit on an admittedly treacherous surface which would have focussed his mind on his recently healed groin. Why he tinkered with the kicking technique that had taken him to the top of his profession and which change has seemingly led to his latest injury problem, is a mystery. I hope it’s not another example of the England coaching team pretending they know what’s best when time after time it’s been demonstrated that they manifestly don’t. However Flood’s distribution was excellent and it will be interesting to compare the two fly-halves, who are both returning from injury and both marginally below their imperious best.
In a dreary game at Murrayfield Jonathan Davies was a player who raised me from my torpor. Capped seven times for his country he has an almost telepathic understanding with his centre partner, Kiwi Regan King, the duo running decoy lines off each other and producing the rugby equivalent of the three card trick. King is such an elegant runner and floats through opposition defences while Davies picks his line to take advantage of a trademark pass against the grain, great to watch, awful to play against.
Anthony Allen produced another top class performance against the Saints and the match up with Davies will be crucial, Allen/Tuilagi is perhaps the more robust whereas the King/Davies partnership the more settled. Manu Tuilagi is all bustling aggression but yet to develop the same understanding with Allen and it will be absolutely key to the outcome that Tuilagi M tightens his defensive mindset and matches it to his commitment and attacking prowess otherwise Regan will skate through as if seeking out Holly Willoughby – and who could blame him for that!
Scottish international Sean Lamont, who’s half century of caps started back in 2004, will come off his wing into the 12/13 channel which provides more opportunities for the Scarlets’ centres to wreak havoc however he may well find Tuilagi A doing the same thing.
In the absence of the latest big thing to come out of Wales; English born teenager George North, who’s just undergone shoulder surgery – (at 18!!!) it’ll be left to Pontypool’s own Gareth Maule, who’s crossed the whitewash in five of his last seven appearances, to do the honours out wide and try to get past the hard tackling Matt Smith.
At the back Morgan Stoddart looks set fair for Scarlets. Stoddart, who’s been ever present is a wonderful attacking full back and seems to always be on hand to either make or take the final pass.
There’s been no luck of the Irish for Geordan Murphy who, by his standards, had an indifferent start to the season and just when he is returning to his best he’s sustained a nasty looking injury which looks to keep out of action for a while.
Scott Hamilton, fully rested and still flushed with the glow of his trip to New Zealand and the ensuing nuptials, is ready for action though and will be in the #15 shirt with Agulla on the bench in support.
The Scarlets’ back division is hugely talented with Stephen Jones the puppet master pulling the strings and could give Tigers all sorts of problems however I rather think Tigers, now finding some form, will be too much for the hosts up front, provided Mr Rolland can be prevailed upon to permit some forward play, even perhaps having boned up on the scrummaging laws and as a belated New Year’s resolution decided to enforce them.
I expect Tigers’ own Captain Black, Jordan Crane, to lead his troops and to confound the efforts of the Welsh branch of Spectrum to repel the East Midlands’ invaders from Cloudbase and that the invading Tigers, having exercised the power of retro-metabolism after last week’s bruising encounter, will squeeze out a close fought win and progress through to the knock out phase of the European Cup and aim for the skies.
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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2011:01:18:18:28:58 by Stephen Bath.
Castro out?
I expect Deacon to be Captain, but JC would also do the job.
Hope you are right but I will be there willing them on for the fourth try, we need the bonus point.
Great review as usual.
"......with Castrogiovanni, who, from the moment he ran on to the pitch, looked below par last time out, and Julian White likely to be amongst the replacements."
I wonder if the Scarlets have been working on countering the scrum advantage?
Oh and you left out Will - Scarlet that is!
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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2011:01:12:14:42:55 by Rich W.
I'm so pleased that you're back!
Mind you, I'm glad it's only English fans who are arrogant -
[www.scarletfever.org]
It would have been nice if they'd linked it, although that might have attracted a few over and, to be honest, the standard of debate on there isn't that edifying.
I have noted that Dailywaffle wanders over there from time to time to get insulted!
Out of everything that I have read this week, this is what has wound me up the most. I'm fuming.
I go to sleep during nearly every Premiership match.'
I wonder what they'd say if Chris actually tried to wind them up? The only time I have seen any 'Aggro' after a Tigers match it was our friends from Llanelli who were trying to pick fights in Nottingham after Stimmo's kick.
'Phil Bennett must reprise his team talk pre Wales v England 1977 - 'Look what these @#$%& have done to Wales. They've taken our coal, our water, our steel. They buy our houses and only live in them for two weeks a year. And what have they given us? Absolutely FA! we've been exploited, raped, controlled and punished by the English and that's who we're playing. Look Gar, look at what they're doing to your fishing. Buying up the rights all over the place for fat directors with big wallets. Those are your rivers, yours and mine, not theirs.'
Yes, indeed.'
Indeed not I think.I hope we stuff them.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2011:01:13:22:19:28 by Tiggs.
What about the Slate? You English nicked all that too.
This, I'm afraid, typically Welsh outburst of bile is disappointing especially as I write on here and not for the national press. Somebody saw fit to cut and paste my opinion piece to which I object. Had I known I would have translated into Welsh for them and they could have a legal copy!!
I did indeed find it odd that a match featuring a team from Scotland and who's supporters do not, I suspect, in the main, speak Welsh, shouldn't have been able to access a commentary in a language they could understand.
The accusation of being a monoglot (I'm not totally so as it happens but don't speak Welsh!) is from the Welsh as The Welsh Language Board indicated in 2004 that just 611,000 people (21.7% of the population of Wales in households or communal establishments) were able to speak Welsh, which was an 0.9% increase since 2001 so it may be there are up to 650000 such people now, It would seem that were it the case that I was a monoglot then I share that affliction with almost 80% of those living in Wales. Although the Welsh Assembly (having nothing better to do) are due to pass legislation this year to increase the use of what is one of the official languages of Wales (the other is English)
From the figures the target audience of S4C is the 650000 Welsh speakers and quite how many of those would be tuning in the watch a rugby match I don't know but I would think it's the minority audience of all minority audiences.
They then call me unknowledgeable and it may indeed the case where Welsh rugby is concerned as it only comes to my attention when Tigers play a Welsh team.
For the purposes of my pieces I have to make what I hope is an educated guess at selection and which in the case of teams other than Tigers I base on reading back through match reports, web sites etc and try to see what the coaches usually do and what injuries there are - I repeat I am not a professional writer in the national press and do not have any researchers, it's just me.
Thanks to those who do enjoy the pieces and are kind enough to say so.
Hmmm...a sport eh? So not worth dredging up centuries old hatreds over then?
Pah!
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Mae'n rhyfedd yw nad yw'n fy mod yn ysgrifennu, yn fy ffordd amatur, fel Tigers 'gefnogwr gyfer Tigers' cefnogwyr er bod y rheiny o glybiau eraill yn Saesneg yn ddigon caredig i ddarllen fy witterings ac weithiau'n ymddangos yn eu mwynhau.
Mae hyn, yn anffodus, ffrwydrad nodweddiadol Gymreig o bustl yn siomedig yn enwedig gan fy mod yn ysgrifennu ar yma, ac nid ar gyfer y wasg genedlaethol. Rhywun wedi gweld yn dda i dorri a gludo fy marn i darn yr wyf yn gwrthwynebu. Pe bawn wedi meddwl y byddwn wedi eu cyfieithu i'r Gymraeg ar eu cyfer ac y gallai fod ganddynt gopi cyfreithiol!!
I ddim yn wir yn ei chael yn rhyfedd fod yn cyd-fynd yn cynnwys dîm o'r Alban a phwy sydd ddim cefnogwyr wneud, yr wyf yn amau, ar y cyfan na ddylai, yn siarad Cymraeg, wedi gallu cael mynediad i sylwebaeth mewn iaith gallent ddeall.
Y cyhuddiad o fod yn uniaith (Im 'nid yn llwyr er fel y mae'n digwydd, ond nid ydynt yn siarad Cymraeg!) Yn dod o'r Gymraeg fel Bwrdd yr Iaith Gymraeg yn 2004 yn nodi mai dim ond 611,000 o bobl (21.7% o boblogaeth Cymru mewn cartrefi neu sefydliadau cymunedol) yn gallu siarad Cymraeg, a oedd yn gynnydd o 0.9% ers 2001 felly gall fod yna hyd at 650,000 o bobl o'r fath yn awr, Byddai'n ymddangos a oedd yn yr achos fy mod yn uniaith yna rwy'n rhannu hynny gystudd gyda bron i 80% o'r rheini sy'n byw yng Nghymru. Er bod Llywodraeth Cynulliad Cymru (ar ôl dim byd gwell i'w wneud) i fod i basio deddfwriaeth eleni i gynyddu'r defnydd o'r hyn sydd yn un o ieithoedd swyddogol Cymru (mae'r llall yn Saesneg)
O'r ffigurau y gynulleidfa darged o S4C yn y 650,000 o siaradwyr Cymraeg a byddai gryn faint o'r rhai hynny yn cael eu tiwnio y wylio gêm rygbi nid wyf yn gwybod ond byddwn yn meddwl ei fod yn y gynulleidfa lleiafrif o holl gynulleidfaoedd lleiafrifol.
Maent wedyn yn fy ffonio unknowledgeable ac mae'n wir y gall achos lle rygbi Cymru yn y cwestiwn gan ei fod ond yn dod i fy sylw pan Teigrod yn chwarae i dîm o Gymru.
At ddibenion fy darnau rhaid i mi wneud yr hyn yr wyf yn gobeithio yw dyfalu ei addysg yn dethol ac sydd yn achos timau ac eithrio Teigrod Rwy'n seilio ar ddarllen yn ôl drwy adroddiadau yn cyd-fynd, gwefannau ac ati a cheisio gweld beth yw'r hyfforddwyr fel arfer yn ei wneud a'r hyn y mae anafiadau - dywedaf eto nid wyf yn awdur proffesiynol yn y wasg genedlaethol ac nid oes ganddynt unrhyw ymchwilwyr, dim ond fi.
Diolch i'r rhai hynny sydd yn mwynhau y darnau ac maent yn ddigon caredig i ddweud hynny.
Keep writing Chris, i don't always agree with your opinions, but isn't that the whole point!
I'm constantly amazed at your knowledge of opposition teams, it's very hard to guess our team each week, though most of us can make an educated guess. The opposition far more so.
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Quote:ChrisC
Seemingly not although Dailywaffle apparently finds my writing cringeworthy and rarely agrees with my opinions (but then I rarely agree this peripatetic poster either on his occasional visits) so there we are!
Oh, Scarlet Fever is pretty bonkers at times. No argument there.
However, and perhaps alone on here, I did find the piece somewhat arrogant. The fact that we rarely agree is not meant as a criticism, it is just a statement of fact.
Edit: spelling
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2011:01:14:14:29:55 by dailywaffle.
For example the S4C welsh language issue, i just read it as a bit of an anecdotal tangent from Chris that he'd either messed up the sky+ recording or the sky+ recording wouldn't let him choose the english commentary, unlike those that watched it live. Our friends in the West (is that an arrogant saying?) seemed to read it as a declaration of war.
The other accusation they seem very het up about is the overegging of the Premiership \ criticism of the Magners. Say what you see! I don't think Chris was comparing the leagues, rather the good example of a Premiership game and poor example of a Magners game that our teams were in last week.
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