Saracens
Saracens v Newcastle Red Bulls Premiership Preview
By saracensfan62
October 26 2026
I do like the small ironies in life. Christian Wade needs one try to own the Premiership try-scoring record outright, and this is the game where he gets his chance. He drew level with a former Saracen himself Chris Ashton the other week and he gets the chance to make history at the ground Ashton used to play at. I’d like him break the record somewhere else if at all possible. After 2 shambolic performances in league (v Quins) and Europe (v Connacht), we are back at the StoneX for a pretty vital game against Newcastle. Lose this, and you feel our season really has gone to pot before it’s even got properly going.
Saracens are 2-2 league wise and sitting on 11 points in 5th. We beat Leicester 40-38 in a messy yet thrilling encounter and comfortably swatted a weakened Bristol side 30-7. Losing 21-17 to a shoddy Sale side was very poor at a stretch, but yesterdays 33-15 defeat at Harlequins was the worst of the lot. We conceded four tries in the first 36 minutes, gave away 13 penalties by the 50th minute and had two yellow cards. What happened to the Wolfpack defence? What happened to any form of structured attack? Who knows.
Newcastle are 1-3, with their only win coming against Sale. They lost at home to Leicester 24-19 in a very exciting encounter, lost again at Exeter 34-28 before beating Sale 17-3 at Kingston Park, scoring all their points in the second half. Dan McFarland’s side have picked up four bonus points from their games thus far this season so it’s fair to say they have been competitive in most of them.
Tactical Analysis
Newcastle seem to have become more physical this season than. Their emphasis has always been on tight, forward focused rugby and winning those key collisions and they really seem to have found their mojo at various points so far. They have a lot of fight in them, and we must be careful not to underestimate them in any regard.
Our scrum was the one clear positive at the Stoop and we’ve got a maul try in each of our last two league games. Sure we can’t defend mauls to save our lives but we can at least try and make the most of our own one. Red Bulls have had trouble in this area this season, so I’d expect us to lean on it and try make the most of it. It’s rather tricky to try and describe Saracens’ style of play this season – clunky attack which has never stepped out of 3rd gear, a confused set of backs who seem to be all on varying wavelengths, a scrum that can dominate one day and capitulate the next, and a fly half who has the wobbles off the tee. Hmm….
Against Quins, a run of penalties inside our own 22 gave away easy field position and they got a penalty try out of it. Newcastle are a team that stays in games and a Hodge kick from the tee will punish anything silly. Fewer penalties would help us more than any tactical tweak I feel. Newcastle are good at keeping the scoreboard ticking over and a string of penalties in kickable areas can quickly turn into 9, 12 points unanswered.
Key Player Matchups
Roti Segun vs Christian Wade
Two very similar style players and yet they have their own unique aspects. Wade has been absolutely prolific thus far in the season, he has scored six tries in six league games and the way we’ve been defending you would bet that he’ll get a few more. He scored from a simple finish in the corner against Sale so we can’t let Newcastle get him one-on-one with our defenders in space. Whoever is on our left wing will have to deal with him all afternoon.
Alfie Barbeary vs Hoskins Sotutu
Two absolute tanks of back rowers, all power and aggression. I confess I haven’t seen a huge amount of Alfie Barbeary but I don’t think his true ability has really come through just yet. Hoskins being an all black will mean he adds a level of flair as well as physicality to the RB’s back row, so we will have to keep a watchful eye on him as the game proceeds.
Jamie George vs George McGuigan
Two classical hookers. Both with excellent darts and rather partial to a maul try. This will be a great matchup and no doubt whoever gives away those free kicks for wonky throws or breakfoot offences at the scrum will cost their team in the long run.
Team Prediction
I am not going to try and predict a matchday 23 for next weekend due to the rotation that seems to be happening amongst the squad from week to week. No doubt I’ll only get it drastically wrong.
What is known is that Olamide Sodeke broke his hand v Connacht so he won’t be involved, Fergus is concussed so Farrell will be stepping back into the position of 10. Let’s hope he plays better than he did in Ireland. Olly H and Sione I believe are injured still so expect to see Nick T, Lucio or maybe Angus in at centre. I can’t make anymore predictions than that I’m afraid folks!
Conclusion and Final Word
Must win game this, simples. Both for the league and our own team morale. As ever, come on you sarries.
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Discussion started by TheSaracens.com , 26/10/2026 16:06
TheSaracens.com
26/10/2026 16:06
26/10/2026 16:06
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I will be walking through Gate C full of apprehension for this one.
I think we have to go as close to the Gun 15 as possible for this one. Taking known injuries in to account, I would hope to see:
Carre
Jamie
Street
Maro
Martin
JMG
Earl
Barbeary
Williams
Faz
Roti
Sione
Cinti
Noah
Daly
Dan
Mawi
Weilbach
Tizard
Michelow
Bracken C
Bracken J
Malins
I think we have to go as close to the Gun 15 as possible for this one. Taking known injuries in to account, I would hope to see:
Carre
Jamie
Street
Maro
Martin
JMG
Earl
Barbeary
Williams
Faz
Roti
Sione
Cinti
Noah
Daly
Dan
Mawi
Weilbach
Tizard
Michelow
Bracken C
Bracken J
Malins
Worth pointing out that your ticket is also valid for the women's match that follows at 6pm
If the men play like they did yesterday then NRB will have their second win of season. Stick around for the women who should make the final again.
Didn’t Barbeary get injured against Connacht? It would be nice to have some updates on that front. I’d quite like to see Wade get his try, a nice little bit of history to witness, just not in a winning effort please. Shame I can’t make the women’s match, it would a nice tonic after the start the men have had.
Quote:TommyKentish
Didn’t Barbeary get injured against Connacht? It would be nice to have some updates on that front. I’d quite like to see Wade get his try, a nice little bit of history to witness, just not in a winning effort please. Shame I can’t make the women’s match, it would a nice tonic after the start the men have had.
He went off injured but as always no news on the severity
Quote:SarrovQuote:TommyKentish
Didn’t Barbeary get injured against Connacht? It would be nice to have some updates on that front. I’d quite like to see Wade get his try, a nice little bit of history to witness, just not in a winning effort please. Shame I can’t make the women’s match, it would a nice tonic after the start the men have had.
He went off injured but as always no news on the severity
Had his arm supported by his shirt suggesting some sort of fracture.
Quote:Sarriebone
Worth pointing out that your ticket is also valid for the women's match that follows at 6pm
Have I been particularly dim (rhetorical question), but today was the first time I heard that Saturday is to be a double header. And the advert I saw for tickets didn't even have KO times on it.
The Women's match was announced on Thursday, the back to back same ticket thing was only announced yesterday
It's back to the days when we just didn't know what to expect from Saracens (thank you rotation). Newcastle must be relishing this one and in a very short season as many have said short blips matter. Having said that we'll probably go and score a hatful.
Pila ovata optima est
Pila ovata optima est
Ian Tempest on the whistle for this one
Would ordinarily be perturbed about him but we seemed to get largely on his good side against Leicester a few weeks ago
Would ordinarily be perturbed about him but we seemed to get largely on his good side against Leicester a few weeks ago
I will refrain from commenting on the ref. I only notice them when they're on a bad day!
It's a long time since Sports network paid anything!
It's a long time since Sports network paid anything!
Maro has just become a new dad so I hope he gets the weekend to spend with his family before the internationals kick off.
Quote:TommyKentish
Didn’t Barbeary get injured against Connacht? It would be nice to have some updates on that front. I’d quite like to see Wade get his try, a nice little bit of history to witness, just not in a winning effort please. Shame I can’t make the women’s match, it would a nice tonic after the start the men have had.
Looks like Barbeary back in full training from the latest social media video
Sione also in the video
The shorts are great.
The one with Dan in shows how incredible he is through contact if we could just fine-tune the decision-making and get his support on the right page.
The one with Dan in shows how incredible he is through contact if we could just fine-tune the decision-making and get his support on the right page.
Looking at the team selected to play Cambridge University tomorrow night, Angus Hall is starting which presumably means he’s not in the mix. Weibach is on the bench so the same presumably applies to him.
We do get rare sightings of Nairau and Tuimaga tomorrow night!
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2026:10:29:21:44:21 by The Bard.
We do get rare sightings of Nairau and Tuimaga tomorrow night!
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2026:10:29:21:44:21 by The Bard.
Quote:The Bard
Looking at the team selected to play Cambridge University tomorrow night, Angus Hall is starting which presumably means he’s not in the mix. Weibach is on the bench so the same presumably applies to him.
Weibach is on do get rare sightings of Nairau and Tuimaga tomorrow night!
Where is the team listed?
Quote:SarrovQuote:The Bard
Looking at the team selected to play Cambridge University tomorrow night, Angus Hall is starting which presumably means he’s not in the mix. Weibach is on the bench so the same presumably applies to him.
Weibach is on do get rare sightings of Nairau and Tuimaga tomorrow night!
Where is the team listed?
[www.instagram.com]
Quote:SarrieboneQuote:SarrovQuote:The Bard
Looking at the team selected to play Cambridge University tomorrow night, Angus Hall is starting which presumably means he’s not in the mix. Weibach is on the bench so the same presumably applies to him.
Weibach is on do get rare sightings of Nairau and Tuimaga tomorrow night!
Where is the team listed?
[www.instagram.com]
Ta
SARACENS TEAM TO PLAY NEWCASTLE RED BULLS
1 Alex O’Driscoll
2 Theo Dan
3 Marcus Street
4 Nick Isiekwe
5 Hugh Tizard
6 Nathan Michelow
7 Toby Knight
8 Alfie Barbeary
9 Tom James
10 Owen Farrell (C)
11 Rotimi Segun
12 Sione Va’enuku
13 Nick Tompkins
14 Tobias Elliott
15 Elliot Daly
REPLACEMENTS
16 Jamie George
17 Phil Brantingham
18 Al Clarey
19 George Martin
20 Ben Earl
21 Charlie Bracken
22 Max Malins
23 Noah Caluori
1 Alex O’Driscoll
2 Theo Dan
3 Marcus Street
4 Nick Isiekwe
5 Hugh Tizard
6 Nathan Michelow
7 Toby Knight
8 Alfie Barbeary
9 Tom James
10 Owen Farrell (C)
11 Rotimi Segun
12 Sione Va’enuku
13 Nick Tompkins
14 Tobias Elliott
15 Elliot Daly
REPLACEMENTS
16 Jamie George
17 Phil Brantingham
18 Al Clarey
19 George Martin
20 Ben Earl
21 Charlie Bracken
22 Max Malins
23 Noah Caluori
Newcastle Red Bulls v Saracens
15 Josh Hodge, 14 Christian Wade, 13 Alex Hearle, 12 Will Rigg, 11 Werner Kok, 10 Brett Connon, 9 Simón Benítez Cruz; 1 Pouri Rakete-Stones, 2 George McGuigan, 3 Elliot Millar Mills, 4 Oscar Usher, 5 Cam Jordan, 6 Max Hicks, 7 Tom Christie (captain), 8 Sam Graham.
Replacements: 16 Samson Adejimi, 17 Tom West, 18 Francisco Moreno, 19 Finn Baker, 20 Ollie Leatherbarrow, 21 James Elliott, 22 Zack Henry, 23 Chris Harris.
Not available for selection: Sammy Arnold, Benjamín Elizalde, Allan Ferrie, Ethan Grayson, Cameron Hutchison, Franco Molina, Richard Palframan, Reuben Parsons, Raffi Quirke, Micky Rewcastle, Adam Scott, Hoskins Sotutu, Rusi Tuima, George Turner, Sam Waugh
15 Josh Hodge, 14 Christian Wade, 13 Alex Hearle, 12 Will Rigg, 11 Werner Kok, 10 Brett Connon, 9 Simón Benítez Cruz; 1 Pouri Rakete-Stones, 2 George McGuigan, 3 Elliot Millar Mills, 4 Oscar Usher, 5 Cam Jordan, 6 Max Hicks, 7 Tom Christie (captain), 8 Sam Graham.
Replacements: 16 Samson Adejimi, 17 Tom West, 18 Francisco Moreno, 19 Finn Baker, 20 Ollie Leatherbarrow, 21 James Elliott, 22 Zack Henry, 23 Chris Harris.
Not available for selection: Sammy Arnold, Benjamín Elizalde, Allan Ferrie, Ethan Grayson, Cameron Hutchison, Franco Molina, Richard Palframan, Reuben Parsons, Raffi Quirke, Micky Rewcastle, Adam Scott, Hoskins Sotutu, Rusi Tuima, George Turner, Sam Waugh
I presume all the internationals were down to be rested/rotated here but injuries mean Earl, Martin and George are on the bench
Most other teams are fielding their internationals. Given the usual restrictions on England players it is wired that they are the only ones present. Not an Argentinian, Welshman, Fijian or ‘Scotsman’ in sight.
I give up with these coaches.... To pick that pack with the options we have honestly blows my mind.
Thats the 23 and we have to trust the team are well prepared and eager to set a few wrongs, right. I don't care what name is on the back of shirt, if they are wearing one they represent Saracens and I trust they will put it all out there this weekend. Those players have so much responsibility this week to put some pride back into the shirt and the club as a whole. They must be hurting too. They need a performance that will put down a marker for others not selected to say that when the rotation period ends someone will have to do something very special to get hold of a place in the team. International honours don't cut it round here.
Many posting on this forum have been banging on for sometime about youth being given a chance. Well this is a chance for some of them and they have to take it. Similarly squad players sat just below international honours currently need to show why they deserve to be talked about in the 23. Theo Dan, Nick I, Alfie, Nick T and even Faz and Max. Now is the time to remind everyone why the coaches have backed you over the years.
Many posting on this forum have been banging on for sometime about youth being given a chance. Well this is a chance for some of them and they have to take it. Similarly squad players sat just below international honours currently need to show why they deserve to be talked about in the 23. Theo Dan, Nick I, Alfie, Nick T and even Faz and Max. Now is the time to remind everyone why the coaches have backed you over the years.
"we have to trust the team are well prepared". First time for everything...
Quote:LondonSarrie
"we have to trust the team are well prepared". First time for everything...
Fair, based on the past couple of seasons. Big game for the coaches too.
Keylock is off with Ampthill, Davidson is playing tonight. If Max or Faz get injured in the warm up we could be in a bit of bother at 10.
Lose tomorrow and we are in a world of trouble. Saints at home, then Glos and Exeter away, followed by Bath at home are the next 4 in the league.
Lose tomorrow and we are in a world of trouble. Saints at home, then Glos and Exeter away, followed by Bath at home are the next 4 in the league.
Lose tomorrow and I think we’re done and dusted in the league before the autumn internationals.
The fixture list couldn’t have given us a kinder start really. We haven’t played a decent side yet!
The fixture list couldn’t have given us a kinder start really. We haven’t played a decent side yet!
Good to see bearbary included, looked like he’d broken his arm up at Connacht.
I can definitely see why the English and Argentinian international players aren’t in the starting XV as they both had training camps from Monday to Wednesday. I am assuming that Fergus is not available due to concussion protocol. I know less about our 2 Welsh internationals or the Fijian
So pick a starting XV that has trained together all week and have some cavalry on the bench to hopefully see us home. We definitely need a win and ideally 5 points if we are going to push for top 4 this season.
So pick a starting XV that has trained together all week and have some cavalry on the bench to hopefully see us home. We definitely need a win and ideally 5 points if we are going to push for top 4 this season.
Spoke to Mark McCall at Cambridge tonight, he said the Welsh and Argentinians didnt get back u til today so weren’t considered. England back much earlier. Phil Morrow was there bemoaning England have less access than the other nations at the moment!
Quote:Rees-Zammit and Wainwright both played last nights game , so couldn’t be the same for all the Wales squadThe Bard
Spoke to Mark McCall at Cambridge tonight, he said the Welsh and Argentinians didnt get back u til today so weren’t considered. England back much earlier. Phil Morrow was there bemoaning England have less access than the other nations at the moment!
Is Morrow still considering a return to the club after the World Cup as I believe was reported?
The fitness levels seems to have decreased since his departure
Given Bard’s feedback from Mark McCall the selection makes more sense. I personally would still have started JMG at 6 and had Rhys on the bench to add some more experience to the pack.
Quote:How did the game against Cambridge go?The Bard
Spoke to Mark McCall at Cambridge tonight, he said the Welsh and Argentinians didnt get back u til today so weren’t considered. England back much earlier. Phil Morrow was there bemoaning England have less access than the other nations at the moment!
Quote:MarkCol7Quote:Rees-Zammit and Wainwright both played last nights game , so couldn’t be the same for all the Wales squadThe Bard
Spoke to Mark McCall at Cambridge tonight, he said the Welsh and Argentinians didnt get back u til today so weren’t considered. England back much earlier. Phil Morrow was there bemoaning England have less access than the other nations at the moment!
Is Morrow still considering a return to the club after the World Cup as I believe was reported?
The fitness levels seems to have decreased since his departure
Obviously the journey from Wales to Sarries is much more onerous that the journey from Wales to Bristol.......or something like that.
Has the match started? My feed is tracking the Bath game, but is stalled on the Sarries match. 
It's a long time since Sports network paid anything!
It's a long time since Sports network paid anything!
Feed now started. 0-10. Pants again!
It's a long time since Sports network paid anything!
It's a long time since Sports network paid anything!
Our coaches are an absolute joke. The more time these players spend with them, the worse they are getting. Hard to imagine a worse 35 mins of rugby so far.
Lost for words really with this. Can’t attack, can barely defend, line out a mess. The scrum is okay?
Venter has not coached in the Prem since his last stint at Sarries. The game has moved on hugely so it’s no surprise the man leading/dictating the coaching team and Sarries tactics is behind the times
Quote:SarrovQuote:How did the game against Cambridge go?The Bard
Spoke to Mark McCall at Cambridge tonight, he said the Welsh and Argentinians didnt get back u til today so weren’t considered. England back much earlier. Phil Morrow was there bemoaning England have less access than the other nations at the moment!
Cambridge 0 - Saracens 26
[x.com]
As a change from badmouthing the coaching staff may I just observe that the change of shorts by Tempo at halftime into ones that didn’t have glue in the yellow card pocket has been of some help?
Supporting Saracens for over 55 years.
Supporting Saracens for over 55 years.
Better. Just Better.
Men advantage obviously helped and not losing line outs or dropping balls too.
Men advantage obviously helped and not losing line outs or dropping balls too.
Not our full strength starting 15 and Faz off form from the tee but still up to third level on points with Gloucester who are second. Not too shabby for such a (allegedly) poorly coached squad!
Supporting Saracens for over 55 years.
Supporting Saracens for over 55 years.
Massive impact from Charlie and Noah.
Roti excellent as always and the scrum continues to be a shining light
Roti excellent as always and the scrum continues to be a shining light
Hugely impressive from Tobias Elliott, he turned that game around with his effort before our 2nd try which led to their first yellow
Was generally great in defence aswell, will get overshadowed as Noah was also very good off the bench
Charlie Bracken made a massive difference in the second half aswell
Games to forget for both second rows again and Tompkins, Farrell also cannot be our first choice 10 under any circumstances anymore
Was generally great in defence aswell, will get overshadowed as Noah was also very good off the bench
Charlie Bracken made a massive difference in the second half aswell
Games to forget for both second rows again and Tompkins, Farrell also cannot be our first choice 10 under any circumstances anymore
First half, too many mistakes from a lot of our senior players. Our less experienced players really outshone them and big plaudits to O’Driscoll, Sione, Noah, Mitch, Toby, Brants, Charlie, Roti, Tobias.
The Prem is so tight that as we speak (H-T in Saints game), we are third and Quins are up to 6th.
The Prem is so tight that as we speak (H-T in Saints game), we are third and Quins are up to 6th.
Whilst the first half was dire, especially the line out, the performance picked up considerably in the 2nd half and we deservedly took the 5 points. I actually thought Barbeary had his best 60 mins for us making some hard yards against a solid NRB defence. Our excellence was on the wings where all 3 wingers who played made useful contributions. I thought our scrum was on top which was a big plus.
Whilst Farrell’s place kicking was poor I actually thought he did a pretty good job in terms of passing and also field position.
I would love to see and hear an unedited showing of Venter’s words at halftime as I can imagine they were direct!
Overall I thought it was infinitely more enjoyable to watch as a spectator at the ground than the game we played against Sale! Lastly, whilst no means full I thought it was a decent sized crowd for the Newcastle fixture and with many of the stars not playing.
One area I would like to see improve is that compared to many teams we don’t make many turnovers at the breakdown or gain breakdown penalties.
Whilst Farrell’s place kicking was poor I actually thought he did a pretty good job in terms of passing and also field position.
I would love to see and hear an unedited showing of Venter’s words at halftime as I can imagine they were direct!
Overall I thought it was infinitely more enjoyable to watch as a spectator at the ground than the game we played against Sale! Lastly, whilst no means full I thought it was a decent sized crowd for the Newcastle fixture and with many of the stars not playing.
One area I would like to see improve is that compared to many teams we don’t make many turnovers at the breakdown or gain breakdown penalties.
Quote:MarkCol7
Hugely impressive from Tobias Elliott, he turned that game around with his effort before our 2nd try which led to their first yellow
Was generally great in defence aswell, will get overshadowed as Noah was also very good off the bench
Charlie Bracken made a massive difference in the second half aswell
Games to forget for both second rows again and Tompkins, Farrell also cannot be our first choice 10 under any circumstances anymore
Agree on Tobias
I thought (apart from kicking) Faz was decent enough
Second rows were far from the cause of our issues but Nick and Tiz seem to be the focus of a lot of grief the last 2 seasons for some reason
It looked to me in the second half we specifically stopped competing at the breakdown and just focused on spacing, line speed and not giving away penalties. Which against a red bulls team that maybe punched themselves out with carrying in the first half worked well as we just waited for them to make mistakes. Feot like a smart half time adjustment at the time but i need to wait and see on the replay.
Gloucester losing to Saints means that we go into the international window having been leapfrogged by Northampton. Still fourth place isn’t bad!
Supporting Saracens for over 55 years.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2026:10:31:19:30:24 by Supporting Saracens for over 55 years. .
Supporting Saracens for over 55 years.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2026:10:31:19:30:24 by Supporting Saracens for over 55 years. .
Strange league this year if we are 4th, for much of that match it looked like 10th v 9th!
Second half was a lot more like it. Everything happened at a decent pace and with a bit of intent.
Shout out to Charlie for his best performance of the season by a distance. Noah also looked really good and I thought Mitchelow had a nice abrasive game
Shout out to Charlie for his best performance of the season by a distance. Noah also looked really good and I thought Mitchelow had a nice abrasive game
5 points is great.
First half was abject. Reality is they outscored us by 14? points when we had the same number of players and we weren't even scoring a point an entry in the first half.
Farrell 60, 50 and 29% kicking his last three games. He's far from alone in being a starter today who shouldn't be in a match day 23 anymore.
Well done to our young backs. Elliott, Segun and Caluori all good. Va'eneku seems to literally improve his decision-making by the game. Loved seeing him commit the defender and make the pass for the try rather than stick his head down and go for the line. Also great to see Bracken finding some form. I felt Martin made a big impact when he came on.
I thought the referee was genuinely one of the worst I have ever seen. Terrible for both sides. Amazed NRB didn't have a card sooner and then we seemed to get a lot of charitable calls in the second half. TMO not calling back Dalys lazy running for offside a bit of a doozy.
Overall hard to shake the feeling that the better sides would have buried us if we played like that in the first 40. Feels like the Prem break is coming at the right time where hopefully the coaches can park this rotation thing and build on the positives of last year.
First half was abject. Reality is they outscored us by 14? points when we had the same number of players and we weren't even scoring a point an entry in the first half.
Farrell 60, 50 and 29% kicking his last three games. He's far from alone in being a starter today who shouldn't be in a match day 23 anymore.
Well done to our young backs. Elliott, Segun and Caluori all good. Va'eneku seems to literally improve his decision-making by the game. Loved seeing him commit the defender and make the pass for the try rather than stick his head down and go for the line. Also great to see Bracken finding some form. I felt Martin made a big impact when he came on.
I thought the referee was genuinely one of the worst I have ever seen. Terrible for both sides. Amazed NRB didn't have a card sooner and then we seemed to get a lot of charitable calls in the second half. TMO not calling back Dalys lazy running for offside a bit of a doozy.
Overall hard to shake the feeling that the better sides would have buried us if we played like that in the first 40. Feels like the Prem break is coming at the right time where hopefully the coaches can park this rotation thing and build on the positives of last year.
Hmm.
Ok my thoughts for those who want to hear.
-better
-first half was horrific. Like horrific.
-30 mins after half time was very good. Last 10 were not good.
-Noah and Charlie made a massive impact. To be honest, I thought Charlie changed the game. As said above, best game of the season by miles.
-our scrum was very good throughout.
-I still worry about our complete and utter inability to score tries in attack at times.
-most important thing was a win today. I still think the performance wasn’t great if I’m honest.
-I’m afraid I’m not a fan of any of our coaches (bar rob webber) and would bin them in a heart beat, including bv.
-rotation doesn’t work.
-the cheese board in the 100 club was fantastic, the blue cheese in particular. The pickle was too sweet though.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2026:10:31:20:49:19 by Stonexjim.
Ok my thoughts for those who want to hear.
-better
-first half was horrific. Like horrific.
-30 mins after half time was very good. Last 10 were not good.
-Noah and Charlie made a massive impact. To be honest, I thought Charlie changed the game. As said above, best game of the season by miles.
-our scrum was very good throughout.
-I still worry about our complete and utter inability to score tries in attack at times.
-most important thing was a win today. I still think the performance wasn’t great if I’m honest.
-I’m afraid I’m not a fan of any of our coaches (bar rob webber) and would bin them in a heart beat, including bv.
-rotation doesn’t work.
-the cheese board in the 100 club was fantastic, the blue cheese in particular. The pickle was too sweet though.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2026:10:31:20:49:19 by Stonexjim.
Quote:MarkCol7
Hugely impressive from Tobias Elliott, he turned that game around with his effort before our 2nd try which led to their first yellow
Was generally great in defence as well
We have great options coming through on the wings but Segun and Elliott remain our best starting options for me precisely because their defence is as good as their attack. Bracken and Caluori will get plenty of chances and the opportunity to round out their skillsets too which is great.
Quote:Stonexjim
-the cheese board in the 100 club was fantastic, the blue cheese in particular. The pickle was too sweet though.
I'm fed up of you coming on here having a go at the the pickle. We all know it was the rotation pickle. You have to give it a chance and if it's still terrible after four tries then maybe it will be good on the fifth ...
Agree on all the rest.
Quote:PaulHeroxQuote:Stonexjim
-the cheese board in the 100 club was fantastic, the blue cheese in particular. The pickle was too sweet though.
I'm fed up of you coming on here having a go at the the pickle. We all know it was the rotation pickle. You have to give it a chance and if it's still terrible after four tries then maybe it will be good on the fifth ...
Agree on all the rest.
😂
some random thoughts
attendance was embarrassingly poor. Saturday mid afternoon. No transport problems, but even a substantial number of season ticket holders in east stand couldn't be bothered. West stand about half full. Worst attendance I've seen at the Stonex for a prem game for years. If there is anyone here who decided not to show - why was this? I suffered the horror at Quins first hand last week but still came out today - what other issues were there?
First half was awful. Big credit to Tobias Elliott who was left trying to defend against 4 attackers several times - amazing he did as well as he did. The try up the middle by Kok was just appalling defence stemming from a missed tackle in midfield & two senior players just waving at Kok as he drifted past unchallenged.
Faz goal kicking - oh dear. Left 10 points out there which made the final result look a lot closer than it should have.
Second half - amazing improvement. We suddenly had quick ball & Charlie & Noah gave the Red Bulls nightmares. Somehow our handling looked 200% better.
Scrum - very good.
Lineout - chuck it to Nick worked, a lot of other options didn't.
A bit disappointing that we allowed two scores at the end.
attendance was embarrassingly poor. Saturday mid afternoon. No transport problems, but even a substantial number of season ticket holders in east stand couldn't be bothered. West stand about half full. Worst attendance I've seen at the Stonex for a prem game for years. If there is anyone here who decided not to show - why was this? I suffered the horror at Quins first hand last week but still came out today - what other issues were there?
First half was awful. Big credit to Tobias Elliott who was left trying to defend against 4 attackers several times - amazing he did as well as he did. The try up the middle by Kok was just appalling defence stemming from a missed tackle in midfield & two senior players just waving at Kok as he drifted past unchallenged.
Faz goal kicking - oh dear. Left 10 points out there which made the final result look a lot closer than it should have.
Second half - amazing improvement. We suddenly had quick ball & Charlie & Noah gave the Red Bulls nightmares. Somehow our handling looked 200% better.
Scrum - very good.
Lineout - chuck it to Nick worked, a lot of other options didn't.
A bit disappointing that we allowed two scores at the end.
Quote:PaulHeroxQuote:MarkCol7
Hugely impressive from Tobias Elliott, he turned that game around with his effort before our 2nd try which led to their first yellow
Was generally great in defence as well
We have great options coming through on the wings but Segun and Elliott remain our best starting options for me precisely because their defence is as good as their attack. Bracken and Caluori will get plenty of chances and the opportunity to round out their skillsets too which is great.
I really hope Tobias gets a chance at 15, a back 3 of him, Segun and Caluori would be much more effective
Daly and Malins unfortunately are just well off the pace
Quote:PaulHeroxQuote:MarkCol7
Hugely impressive from Tobias Elliott, he turned that game around with his effort before our 2nd try which led to their first yellow
Was generally great in defence as well
We have great options coming through on the wings but Segun and Elliott remain our best starting options for me precisely because their defence is as good as their attack. Bracken and Caluori will get plenty of chances and the opportunity to round out their skillsets too which is great.
Hmm I can't say I agree with this. I think today showed exactly why Caluori is our number one winger (imo of course). The guy is a cheat code. Elliott defended well but he dropped one early then threw one into touch on advantage. I appreciate he didn't get much ball other than that but he doesn't scare attacks like Caluori.
As I've said before, I think Segun is a really good Prem level winger but nothing more because his catching is average.
I think Caluori and Segun would be our two gun wingers at the moment. I love Jack B but sometimes it feels like he needs shaking up. Dumb penalty against Quins last week a case in point.
Quote:The Wolfpack WatchQuote:PaulHeroxQuote:MarkCol7
Hugely impressive from Tobias Elliott, he turned that game around with his effort before our 2nd try which led to their first yellow
Was generally great in defence as well
We have great options coming through on the wings but Segun and Elliott remain our best starting options for me precisely because their defence is as good as their attack. Bracken and Caluori will get plenty of chances and the opportunity to round out their skillsets too which is great.
Hmm I can't say I agree with this. I think today showed exactly why Caluori is our number one winger (imo of course). The guy is a cheat code. Elliott defended well but he dropped one early then threw one into touch on advantage. I appreciate he didn't get much ball other than that but he doesn't scare attacks like Caluori.
As I've said before, I think Segun is a really good Prem level winger but nothing more because his catching is average.
I think Caluori and Segun would be our two gun wingers at the moment. I love Jack B but sometimes it feels like he needs shaking up. Dumb penalty against Quins last week a case in point.
Tobias single handedly bailed us out at least twice in the first half. Noah is a phenomenal talent but if he had started we would likely have been 14 points further behind at half time. Last few games our right wing has been a soft target. Not the fault of Jack or Noah, they are young lads learning the game, but it made a tangible difference today.
I genuinely have no idea what you mean by saying Segun’s catching is average. Either way, in a team rammed with internationals an "average Prem winger" has been our best back this season.
Yes, Tobias did well defensively on a couple of occasions and it's clear Nick T is no longer able to defend in those wider channels like he used to. I'm not sure that is enough to trump the ability of other wingers. He has barely played in a year.
Caluori has the tendency to think he can catch up with the outside winger when he stays in tight. Can obviously get away with that at school boy rugby but people are much faster now. So fair enough this is a fault at present. I personally think his pros massively outweigh his cons and gives us something the other wingers don't have.
Segun regularly drops the ball. Last week for a try (I personally don't think Jack, Tobias or Noah drop that) and his high ball catching is nowhere near Noah's. It was quite amusing to be honest when Segun and Wade went for a high ball today.
It's just the way I see it
Caluori has the tendency to think he can catch up with the outside winger when he stays in tight. Can obviously get away with that at school boy rugby but people are much faster now. So fair enough this is a fault at present. I personally think his pros massively outweigh his cons and gives us something the other wingers don't have.
Segun regularly drops the ball. Last week for a try (I personally don't think Jack, Tobias or Noah drop that) and his high ball catching is nowhere near Noah's. It was quite amusing to be honest when Segun and Wade went for a high ball today.
It's just the way I see it
Noah certainly looked faster and stronger today than I’ve seen before, and a bit more certain in defence. We are certainly blessed in that position with a few others waiting ‘in the wings’
Outside centre is another matter, no-one remotely near owning the shirt at the moment.
Excellent game from O’Driscoll. Michelow getting better too. For once the bench made us stronger.
Outside centre is another matter, no-one remotely near owning the shirt at the moment.
Excellent game from O’Driscoll. Michelow getting better too. For once the bench made us stronger.
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