The answer to that is obvious. We have played two games with an aggregate score of 45-44 and didn't win either of them. We played well in both games and couldn't quite manage the win. Playing well and losing narrowly is surely the most frustrating thing in sport. We would probably feel better about the situation (and have more league points) if Van Straaten had missed the final conversion last week, giving us the win and then we had been thumped 50-0 at Kingsholm on Saturday.

Frustrated

It is encouraging that we have come so close in the last couple of away league matches, but I'm sure I'm not alone in feeling frustrated by the inconsistency which we are showing. This season we have had some excellent displays (Rotherham & Northampton) and some dire ones (Gloucester at home). At the start of the season we were winning the close games (London Irish and Newcastle) but now we aren't, as demonstrated by the last few matches. We have also gone through stages where we have been scoring tries for fun, but others where we haven't been able to get over the line for long periods of time. At one point we went three consecutive games at The Stoop without scoring a try (although we did win two of them) and then finally scored late in the next game. In the same way, our defence has sometimes looked very solid, but at other times holes have appeared everywhere.

I believe that we have continued to develop over the last few seasons, as shown by our finishing position in the league (11th in 2001, 9th in 2002 and 7th in 2003). It is certainly possible that we could continue with that progress and finish 5th this season, but I wouldn't bet on it. We are currently in 7th ahead of Newcastle on points difference. We are only 5 points behind Sale in 5th place. Interestingly, they are only behind Irish and Northampton on points difference, which demonstrates how close things are up top behind Bath.

In the last few seasons by this point in the season, we have lost touch with the teams at the top of the table, and are not clear from relegation trouble. This year the table is a lot different with Rotherham a long way off the pace at the bottom, so what do we have to look forward to in 2004?

Firstly, lets hope for an injury free spell now and a settled team. We seem to have more injury problems than most teams, although I'm sure supporters of all the other clubs think the same thing. Maybe things will be improved if Cameron Steele would resist the temptation to write in the program that things are looking good on the injury front. Whenever he does so, it appears to be the catalyst for a new run of injuries, usually starting before we have even got round to reading the program.

Fixtures

On the field, the fixture list for the remainder of the Premiership season is as follows:

One instantly noticeable thing about the list is that we only have nine premiership matches left to play in the next 4 ½ months, compared with the 13 played in the last 3 ½. We are used to having a few Powergen Cup games during this period, which will be missing this season, so it becomes vitally important to keep our Parker Pen Cup run going as long as possible in order to keep the interest up.

Another important thing is that following the current run of away games, we will be back to having half of our remaining games at home. It has been very unfortunate that we have had this spell on the road now with people wanting to see the World Cup players at The Stoop. The fixture list has been criticised for these runs of home or away games but I did spend some time playing with fixture lists to try to prove whether it could be done better and I have to admit that it is more difficult than it looks.

The one thing I can never understand is why we always have a home game on the weekend of the Army/Navy match at Twickenham. This has been the case for each of the three years that I have been going to the Stoop. To make matters worse, we are always playing teams whose supporters have a distance to travel (Leeds, Northampton and now Rotherham). We missed the start of last years Friday night game and I'm not sure whether we will be able to make it this year. There certainly won't be many people coming down the M1.

Domestic

Looking at the fixtures, there are certainly a number of winnable games there. We should be targeting Newcastle, Saracens, Leicester (who will be without their internationals) and Rotherham as potential wins. If we can pick up a bonus point or two as well then 20 league points should be a minimum target. That would give us 51 points at the end of the season, compared to 44 last season. It would be unlikely to give us that 5th place finish though, but would surely be enough for a European Playoff spot.

Europe

The other way of gaining entry to The Heineken Cup next season would be by winning the Parker Pen Cup. I must admit to not knowing much about the French clubs in the tournament, but we do appear to have a good chance of progressing further. We play Montauban in the next round, and we must be favourites to win, as they qualified as “lucky losers” following their defeat by London Irish. If we do get through then we will play either Brive or Castres in the Quarter Final.

A potential semi final against London Irish, Narbonne, Connaught or Pau could then follow. If we were to make it through to the final then we should remember that the other half of the draw contains Bath, who must surely be favourites. However, domestic form doesn't always travel to Europe, so there may be a surprise on the way.

Africa

Finally, Quins have the annual friendly against Natal Sharks to look forward to. I have never been to this match, but it is always an enjoyable game to watch on TV and, despite concern that it is an irrelevance which will distract from the important business at hand, I believe that it has always been good experience for a few of the youngsters in the Quins squad (remember Henry Barratt & Andy Reay last season).

Longer Term

In the longer term, we can look forward to further improvement next season as some more of the youngsters break through and establish themselves in the first season. There will probably be some personnel changes over the summer, and I'm not going to start speculating on that. I will just say that I hope there isn't too much change and the squad is allowed to consolidate and build on the positive aspects of this year.

We will also probably have a new ground to attend next season as it looks like Rotherham will be replaced by either Worcester or Orrell. Personally, I hope it is Worcester as I believe that they deserve their chance in the Premiership. I hope we see Rotherham back soon though.

Outside the 1^st XV

Elsewhere, the reserves continue their season at Bath on the 5th of January and then have home matches against London Irish and Wasps on the 19th and 26th. There is now a league for the reserve teams and they have had a successful season, losing just once. The games are well worth attending and are a good chance to see the up and coming talent. I remember watching Nick Duncombe and Ugo Monye a few times in the reserves before they became first team regulars. Why not make the trip to The Stoop for one of those games in January?

In the longer term, the performances by the reserves are encouraging for the future of the club. Lets hope that we see more of them break through into the first team in the future.

The Under 19's and Under 21's have also had a good season so far this year, and a number of the Under 21's have been involved in England Trials. Again, these are good matches to see the up and coming talent, but as they are generally played on Saturday afternoons they often clash with first team games and have more competition for our time. Lets hope that both teams continue to do well when their season restarts in mid January.

The Ladies have also done well this season and are currently four points off the top of the table with a game in hand. They have started to get quite a large following and I hope that they get another opportunity to play at the Stoop soon, as the last time that they did, quite a number of people stayed behind to watch. The Ladies have a friendly away to Roslyn Park on 11th January, followed by a crunch league game at home to leaders Chesham on Sunday the 18th, when they will be aiming to gain revenge for their defeat in the away leg earlier in the season and keep up the pressure at the top of the table.

Finally, the amateurs have also had a good season so far and they have home games on the 10th and 24th of January on the College pitch near the Stoop. Once again, lets hope that they can continue their good form for the rest of the season.

Off-Field

Off the field, there have once again been good things happening at The Stoop this season. The management have done very well in addressing the concerns raised by supporters after the first couple of games and I'm sure that you will all join me in thanking them for their efforts. I believe that we are very lucky to have the communication with the management that we have. There are many clubs which are envious of the supporter/management relationship that we have and long may it continue.

I would also like to congratulate the committee of Quinssa for their work so far, and I hope that they are able to build the club in line with their targets. Their first event of the year is the Evening with Tony Spreadbury on the 6th of January, and the away coaches are proving very popular. It is nice to know that there is an inclusive supporters club, who are working to benefit everybody.

In conclusion

Overall, I believe that things are looking up at The Stoop and that it will indeed be a happy new year. The most important thing at the end of the day is what happens on the pitch and lets hope that the team can exceed my target of 20 points. Perhaps we should make it 25.

Let us not forget the Six Nations and Summer/Autumn internationals. England have a hard year ahead of them, and they have a difficult game in prospect against France who will be after revenge after the World Cup final. All of the other nations will be gunning for the World Champions as well.

In the Summer, England will be heading back down under. Unfortunately, I have been unable to find a fixture list for the Summer tour, but I believe it includes a World Cup final rematch against Australia and two games against New Zealand, now coached by Graham Henry. I assume that there will also be the usual Twickenham games in the Autumn and the Barbarians match at the end of the season.

Lets hope that Jason Leonard adds to his record number of appearances and also that Will Greenwood continues his impressive scoring record for England. Also, it would be nice to see some other Quins players making appearances for their countries. Mike Worsley and Pat Sanderson are on the fringes of the England squad, and Pat can have done his cause no harm with an impressive game against the New Zealand Barbarians. It surely can't be long before we see Ceri Jones in the Welsh shirt can it? Ugo Monye has been impressive in the England sevens squad and surely he will get his chance in the 15 a side game soon, maybe against the Barbarians.

Finally, there are the New Years Honours to be announced this week. There are reports that the entire England squad will receive an honour, and those who already have one will be upgraded. It this is the case then Jason Leonard will be getting closer to the award we all believe he deserves.