But that threat was soon nullified, not only were the supposedly stronger Worcs pack held at bay and made to play most of the game in their own half but Selbourne Boome and Damo Browne not only cleaned up their own lineout ball but stole half a dozen or so of the opposition throws into the bargain.
The backs carried on their sterling work from Gloucester last week and were a threat all over the park and at the end of the day the score more than flattered a Worcester side whom their coach described at ‘outplayed from one to fifteen’.
The talk of the day was of course the return to try scoring form of Ben Cohen. It’s good to see him playing with fire and a bit of a spring in his step again. The catalyst may well have been the axing from this weeks England squad but if he does the job for the Saints I’m sure Andy Robinson will soon be back knocking on his door.
So on Saturday we go into the second game Powergen Cup game with Saints heading their group. A win at the Gardens against the Dragons of Wales will see the Saints move clear and with a trip to Welford Road in early December to come a berth in the semi finals of this competition is well within reach. First however we must overcome the team from Gwent.
As the Dragons showed last week in their win over the Tigers they can play up there with the best but they are having a bit of a Jeckyll and Hyde season. Languishing in the nether regions of the Celtic League, two weeks ago the Welsh rugby programme ScrumV basically pulled apart their game and the disorganisation and lack of leadership on the field.
Of course they turned things round last weekend but it seems like their supporters are never quite sure which Dragons are going to turn up and I’ve a feeling that if we get under their skin early on, and the crowd can play a big part in this, we can take a step near the trip to Wales for the semi finals. There’s a lot of rugby to be played before then though and that game against Tigers in December could well be a winner takes all game for the group.
SAINTS WITH HEART
This week sees the start of this years Saints with Heart IV fundraising, in aid of the British Heart Foundation, begin in earnest. On Friday around 30 teams will compete in a giant quiz night at the Gardens with all proceeds going to the BHF while the main event, the sponsored walk is only ten days away. However an intrepid Saints supporter, along with his gang of little helpers, have already started the ball rolling with a mini walk of their own.
Last weekend Chris Hoddle, a Northamptonian now living and teaching in Lancashire organised the ‘Saints with Heart Northern Walk’ enlisting many of his schoolchildren and their parents (and not forgetting Bilbo the dog) to the cause. A walk for the smaller children on the Friday was followed by a two tier walk on the Sunday for all, aided and abetted by the local mountain rescue team. When all is counted Chris, who still attends just about every Saints game, hopes that it will add around £2,000, including £100 from Bilbo, to the SWH4 kitty.
For those wishing to donate to Saints with Heart you can either fill your pockets with change to fill the SWH4 before you come to the gardens on the 15th for the Irish game or you can now donate directly online at http://www.bhf.org.uk/sponsor/robertstainsby/
CENTRAL CONTRACTS, NO THANKS
I see yet another club v country skirmish is on the horizon with the RFU stating that they want to centrally contract (or ‘player share’ as the spin goes) the English elite squad. Now quite why a team, be it the national one or not, that only plays eight games a year should have control over players for 52 weeks is beyond me but again the ‘excuse’ of player welfare is being bandied about. Now while it should always be a main concern this suggests, to me anyway, that the RFU think. 1: the clubs are not responsible employers and will overuse the players, 2: if, as a player, you are outside the elite squad you don’t warrant their ‘protection’ anyway.
Surely if it is the number of games people are playing then a properly structured season and a reduction in games played for ALL players is the way forward. It seems odd to me that we hear player burnout on one hand then see the sanctioning of expanded competitions like the Powergen Cup on the other.
Another reason stated by the RFU is Andy Robinson’s access to the English players building up to the next World Cup.
Now the clubs have already offered extra training days and it should not be forgotten that in his last year in charge Clive Woodward never used all the days at his disposal, despite his protestations at his resignation. It should also be remembered one of the first people Sir Clive thanked after England won the World Cup were the very clubs that are now being held as responsible for Robinsons 50% success rate. You can’t have it both ways when nothing has changed in the meantime re access.
Sadly, now the political infighting is yet again starting to overshadow whatever is happening on the pitch and the scapegoat excuse that’s it is all the clubs doing is wearing a bit thin. Perhaps someone should sit down with those at the coalface, the players, the people most affected and ask them exactly where they stand on this and then move forward with their vision on how they should be handled. I won’t hold my breath though and no doubt, yet again, we are in for another round of tit for tat point scoring with those very players left as pawns in the middle.
The backs carried on their sterling work from Gloucester last week and were a threat all over the park and at the end of the day the score more than flattered a Worcester side whom their coach described at ‘outplayed from one to fifteen’.
The talk of the day was of course the return to try scoring form of Ben Cohen. It’s good to see him playing with fire and a bit of a spring in his step again. The catalyst may well have been the axing from this weeks England squad but if he does the job for the Saints I’m sure Andy Robinson will soon be back knocking on his door.
So on Saturday we go into the second game Powergen Cup game with Saints heading their group. A win at the Gardens against the Dragons of Wales will see the Saints move clear and with a trip to Welford Road in early December to come a berth in the semi finals of this competition is well within reach. First however we must overcome the team from Gwent.
As the Dragons showed last week in their win over the Tigers they can play up there with the best but they are having a bit of a Jeckyll and Hyde season. Languishing in the nether regions of the Celtic League, two weeks ago the Welsh rugby programme ScrumV basically pulled apart their game and the disorganisation and lack of leadership on the field.
Of course they turned things round last weekend but it seems like their supporters are never quite sure which Dragons are going to turn up and I’ve a feeling that if we get under their skin early on, and the crowd can play a big part in this, we can take a step near the trip to Wales for the semi finals. There’s a lot of rugby to be played before then though and that game against Tigers in December could well be a winner takes all game for the group.
SAINTS WITH HEART
This week sees the start of this years Saints with Heart IV fundraising, in aid of the British Heart Foundation, begin in earnest. On Friday around 30 teams will compete in a giant quiz night at the Gardens with all proceeds going to the BHF while the main event, the sponsored walk is only ten days away. However an intrepid Saints supporter, along with his gang of little helpers, have already started the ball rolling with a mini walk of their own.
Last weekend Chris Hoddle, a Northamptonian now living and teaching in Lancashire organised the ‘Saints with Heart Northern Walk’ enlisting many of his schoolchildren and their parents (and not forgetting Bilbo the dog) to the cause. A walk for the smaller children on the Friday was followed by a two tier walk on the Sunday for all, aided and abetted by the local mountain rescue team. When all is counted Chris, who still attends just about every Saints game, hopes that it will add around £2,000, including £100 from Bilbo, to the SWH4 kitty.
For those wishing to donate to Saints with Heart you can either fill your pockets with change to fill the SWH4 before you come to the gardens on the 15th for the Irish game or you can now donate directly online at http://www.bhf.org.uk/sponsor/robertstainsby/
CENTRAL CONTRACTS, NO THANKS
I see yet another club v country skirmish is on the horizon with the RFU stating that they want to centrally contract (or ‘player share’ as the spin goes) the English elite squad. Now quite why a team, be it the national one or not, that only plays eight games a year should have control over players for 52 weeks is beyond me but again the ‘excuse’ of player welfare is being bandied about. Now while it should always be a main concern this suggests, to me anyway, that the RFU think. 1: the clubs are not responsible employers and will overuse the players, 2: if, as a player, you are outside the elite squad you don’t warrant their ‘protection’ anyway.
Surely if it is the number of games people are playing then a properly structured season and a reduction in games played for ALL players is the way forward. It seems odd to me that we hear player burnout on one hand then see the sanctioning of expanded competitions like the Powergen Cup on the other.
Another reason stated by the RFU is Andy Robinson’s access to the English players building up to the next World Cup.
Now the clubs have already offered extra training days and it should not be forgotten that in his last year in charge Clive Woodward never used all the days at his disposal, despite his protestations at his resignation. It should also be remembered one of the first people Sir Clive thanked after England won the World Cup were the very clubs that are now being held as responsible for Robinsons 50% success rate. You can’t have it both ways when nothing has changed in the meantime re access.
Sadly, now the political infighting is yet again starting to overshadow whatever is happening on the pitch and the scapegoat excuse that’s it is all the clubs doing is wearing a bit thin. Perhaps someone should sit down with those at the coalface, the players, the people most affected and ask them exactly where they stand on this and then move forward with their vision on how they should be handled. I won’t hold my breath though and no doubt, yet again, we are in for another round of tit for tat point scoring with those very players left as pawns in the middle.
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