At Horizon Sports we have been getting a large number of emails complaining about there being no games on this week. Believe us the players need a week to recover from the last couple of rounds of matches ... but we will bring you any news as it comes in from the team training sessions ...
There is still no word from McTague the Saracens coach as he appears to, for some reason known only to himself, to be keeping a media silence, not talking to any members of the press at all. We asked the Stad Coach why he thought this might be ...
'Well I know Shaunie was pretty upset about that TMO decision ... what I don't get is why he is still brooding, it's all part of the game. I seriously think it only had as much bearing on the game as the ref missing that bad tackle of Penney's which would have taken us well out of sight of any potential comeback. I like the bloke but he does seem to be acting a bit childish - I mean he is happy to rip into the Wasps coach .... but anyway don't want to add to the bad blood that seems to be circulating in the comp so far.'
Could this be the reason ... who knows!
Monday 28 January 2008
Friday 25 January 2008
Wasps out of hiding ...
Three days after the defeat to Sale the London Wasps coach finally comes out to talk about the game which deposits them to the bottom of the league table:
Our resident pundit Garad Edwards caught up with Fase at the end of a very physical training session for the team;
“That second half was a very poor performance all round, errors everywhere. That simply wasn’t a side worth their reputation playing.”
“To be honest though we were a little unlucky not to have gone 14-10 up at the half, though that would have been against the run of play. The boys showed plenty of heart in the first half and covered the errors well - The second half quite simply saw the team collapse. Anytime we were inside either 22 we quite simply choked.”
“Sale played the better game, not difficult really, and deserved the win. It was a good clean match and we easily matched their physicality but it was basic ball skills that let us down.”
“Dawe’s team needed the points badly and we flattered them with our lacklustre performance. I can understand that Dawe has felt the pressure following their lockout by Stade; let him enjoy his moment, he obviously needs it. It’s just the start of the season and there’s plenty of rugby yet to be played.”
“Returning home for Stade in a couple of weeks will be a welcome break from the road. We’ll be working the boys hard to sharpen their handling skill after a few days off to reflect on their recent performance. The line-up could see a shake up!”
Our resident pundit Garad Edwards caught up with Fase at the end of a very physical training session for the team;
“That second half was a very poor performance all round, errors everywhere. That simply wasn’t a side worth their reputation playing.”
“To be honest though we were a little unlucky not to have gone 14-10 up at the half, though that would have been against the run of play. The boys showed plenty of heart in the first half and covered the errors well - The second half quite simply saw the team collapse. Anytime we were inside either 22 we quite simply choked.”
“Sale played the better game, not difficult really, and deserved the win. It was a good clean match and we easily matched their physicality but it was basic ball skills that let us down.”
“Dawe’s team needed the points badly and we flattered them with our lacklustre performance. I can understand that Dawe has felt the pressure following their lockout by Stade; let him enjoy his moment, he obviously needs it. It’s just the start of the season and there’s plenty of rugby yet to be played.”
“Returning home for Stade in a couple of weeks will be a welcome break from the road. We’ll be working the boys hard to sharpen their handling skill after a few days off to reflect on their recent performance. The line-up could see a shake up!”
Wednesday 23 January 2008
TMO - do we need them?
Tonight Stad Francais’ coach was given the sternest test of his unbeaten competitive career yet. Saracens came within a TMO (Television Monitor Official) decision of at least drawing the match!
Right from Stads kick off the Saracen team showed their intent of taking the match to the French team. Consistent pressure kept the Stad team pinned back in their 22 for most of the first half. The power pack of the French were kept at bay, hardly seeing the ball and only stout defending kept the Saracen backs out. The turning point in the first half came when the Stad forwards pounced on a 50/50 ball and set up a driving maul for the first time in the game. Rolling a full 20m the Saracen team were getting left in an awkward position and the only choice they had was to take it down, Unfortunately for them (and McTague would argue it was one of the only times the Officials saw anything all evening) it was spotted. The penalty drove the French pack down to a 5m lineout and from here they are virtually unstoppable. A very accurate (smooth pass card) throw to the back of the line saw Parisse (obviously enjoying the fact he has just been given the Italian captaincy for the 6 Nations) drive for a gap in the Saracen defence, coming up short he was driven over by De Villiers and Plooy. Hernandez very uncharacteristically missed the easy kick.
But then it was back to the Saracens putting on the pressure. A deep kick off looked as if the Saracen backs were going to swarm all over Dominici. However a bit of lucky play saw Hernandez pick up from the resulting ruck and launch a massive 85m+ kick which bobbled down to the Saracen line. It was a straight race and Saubade the ultra fast Stad winger was not going to lose out. He picked up smoothly and trotted over the line for another score, with Hernandez not missing this time the look on McTague’s face said it all … 70% of the possession and 12 – 0 down!
Things almost got worse from the resulting kick off as again Saubade made a superb break down the wing, he was in for certain as the only person that could stop him was Rod Penney. Saubade is famous for his hand-off so Penney was taking no chances – the crowd thought it was a high tackle, the Stad coach later called it a ‘cheap shot’, but as is often the case with Penney’s ‘tackles’ (the Wasps coach had nearly walked off the pitch in disgust the week before) the referee seemed to think it was OK. Saubade had to leave the pitch for treatment. The incident nearly provoked an all out brawl and Penney actually had to run away from a pack of angry Stad players. Meanwhile Saracens were taking advantage of the distraction and Russell was nearly in the corner for a score. What McTague’s spokesman later called a ‘revenge’ tackle saved the day for Stad and as Blin (the Stad hooker) walked towards the sin bin McTague made the call for a tap and go penalty rather than the points – a bad decision in hindsight as the Stad defence held and Saracens went in trailing 12 -0. The referee looked relieved to call the half to a close!
The second half saw Saracens again come out the blocks firing. A brilliant move between De Kock and Glen Jackson saw the Saracen winger Haughton break through the Stad defence and under the posts – Stad were on the ropes … 12 – 7. The Saracen pressure grew and grew, their number 15 Russell was playing an awesome game, he had been mixing it up with the forwards in the rucks all game (rucking ability) but as one fan put it, ‘went a ruck too far’ – finding himself at the bottom of a French ruck when he had been dishing it out all game was never going to be a good move, the injury kept him out the game for a while and we have since heard he will be needing treatment on a bad cut and dislocated shoulder which may keep him out for some time.
It was a bout of Saracen pressure that saw the incident that will be talked about for years to come at Vicarage Road. The Stad scrum half gathered and passed from a ruck on Stads line … Corleto looked to have an easy kick into touch … but then he slipped as he went to kick. The Saracen pack pounced but Corleto scrambled onto the ball and basically refused to let go. Lucky not to be taking a walk it gave the Saracens a penalty 9m out! McTague gave the instructions to go for the try yet again … the pack rolled forward but then De Kock faked the inside forward pass and flipped it out to Ben Skirving who ploughed over the line under the posts. Bergamasco tackled him on the line but it looked to everyone in the stadium that Skiriving had managed to get the ball down. The referee went to the TMO who took a long time over the decision. The screen in the ground seemed to indicate that Skirving had got the ball down before being rolled over by Bergamasco. The decision was relayed to the Ref, even he looked slightly bewildered as he motioned ‘NO TRY’. McTague was outraged on the touchline …
Horizon Sports has spoken to the TMO and he has indicated that Bergamasco actually managed to get his ear under the ball stopping it from being grounded … we in the studio have never seen anything like it and it is bound to open the whole TMO debate again!
From this point on Stad played with new heart and nearly got in themselves from yet another 90m (torpedo kicker and massive kick card) kick from Hernandez. It went down to the wire however with Saracens threatening to score after the klaxon. A failed gather from Saracens saw Corleto pick the ball up and run into touch.
From a neutrals point of view the game was a ‘corker’ – for Saracens it has to go down as an opportunity missed – the TMO decision is bound to keep us busy for quite a while. Since the game McTague has refused to answer any questions from the media – the official word is no comment. Jones had this to say:
‘We showed our class out there tonight, our defence soaked up continual pressure from the home side, who it must be said played an excellent game. We made our breaks when we could and then managed to convert them into points, that was the difference between the teams I think. The TMO decision … well I thought he had grounded it but when you look at what the TMO saw it is obvious he made the right decision … I am never going to rib Mauro about his ‘elephant ears’ again … All in all an excellent night for us, going to Vicarage Road is never easy. We are obviously going to be going into the Wasps game as favourites and understandably so really … Fase seems to be having a rough time lately which is a shame as in the World Cup he showed a lot of promise I thought, maybe he can turn it around. The Saracens and Sharks game is probably going to be a preview of the play off game I imagine … they have all to play for!’
The PEWC CUP remember will see each team play each other twice in the group phase … the leader will gain a place in the final and then the 2nd and 3rd team will play each other for the other place in the final for the coveted cup, the loser playing again in the 3rd/4th playoff.
Right from Stads kick off the Saracen team showed their intent of taking the match to the French team. Consistent pressure kept the Stad team pinned back in their 22 for most of the first half. The power pack of the French were kept at bay, hardly seeing the ball and only stout defending kept the Saracen backs out. The turning point in the first half came when the Stad forwards pounced on a 50/50 ball and set up a driving maul for the first time in the game. Rolling a full 20m the Saracen team were getting left in an awkward position and the only choice they had was to take it down, Unfortunately for them (and McTague would argue it was one of the only times the Officials saw anything all evening) it was spotted. The penalty drove the French pack down to a 5m lineout and from here they are virtually unstoppable. A very accurate (smooth pass card) throw to the back of the line saw Parisse (obviously enjoying the fact he has just been given the Italian captaincy for the 6 Nations) drive for a gap in the Saracen defence, coming up short he was driven over by De Villiers and Plooy. Hernandez very uncharacteristically missed the easy kick.
But then it was back to the Saracens putting on the pressure. A deep kick off looked as if the Saracen backs were going to swarm all over Dominici. However a bit of lucky play saw Hernandez pick up from the resulting ruck and launch a massive 85m+ kick which bobbled down to the Saracen line. It was a straight race and Saubade the ultra fast Stad winger was not going to lose out. He picked up smoothly and trotted over the line for another score, with Hernandez not missing this time the look on McTague’s face said it all … 70% of the possession and 12 – 0 down!
Things almost got worse from the resulting kick off as again Saubade made a superb break down the wing, he was in for certain as the only person that could stop him was Rod Penney. Saubade is famous for his hand-off so Penney was taking no chances – the crowd thought it was a high tackle, the Stad coach later called it a ‘cheap shot’, but as is often the case with Penney’s ‘tackles’ (the Wasps coach had nearly walked off the pitch in disgust the week before) the referee seemed to think it was OK. Saubade had to leave the pitch for treatment. The incident nearly provoked an all out brawl and Penney actually had to run away from a pack of angry Stad players. Meanwhile Saracens were taking advantage of the distraction and Russell was nearly in the corner for a score. What McTague’s spokesman later called a ‘revenge’ tackle saved the day for Stad and as Blin (the Stad hooker) walked towards the sin bin McTague made the call for a tap and go penalty rather than the points – a bad decision in hindsight as the Stad defence held and Saracens went in trailing 12 -0. The referee looked relieved to call the half to a close!
The second half saw Saracens again come out the blocks firing. A brilliant move between De Kock and Glen Jackson saw the Saracen winger Haughton break through the Stad defence and under the posts – Stad were on the ropes … 12 – 7. The Saracen pressure grew and grew, their number 15 Russell was playing an awesome game, he had been mixing it up with the forwards in the rucks all game (rucking ability) but as one fan put it, ‘went a ruck too far’ – finding himself at the bottom of a French ruck when he had been dishing it out all game was never going to be a good move, the injury kept him out the game for a while and we have since heard he will be needing treatment on a bad cut and dislocated shoulder which may keep him out for some time.
It was a bout of Saracen pressure that saw the incident that will be talked about for years to come at Vicarage Road. The Stad scrum half gathered and passed from a ruck on Stads line … Corleto looked to have an easy kick into touch … but then he slipped as he went to kick. The Saracen pack pounced but Corleto scrambled onto the ball and basically refused to let go. Lucky not to be taking a walk it gave the Saracens a penalty 9m out! McTague gave the instructions to go for the try yet again … the pack rolled forward but then De Kock faked the inside forward pass and flipped it out to Ben Skirving who ploughed over the line under the posts. Bergamasco tackled him on the line but it looked to everyone in the stadium that Skiriving had managed to get the ball down. The referee went to the TMO who took a long time over the decision. The screen in the ground seemed to indicate that Skirving had got the ball down before being rolled over by Bergamasco. The decision was relayed to the Ref, even he looked slightly bewildered as he motioned ‘NO TRY’. McTague was outraged on the touchline …
Horizon Sports has spoken to the TMO and he has indicated that Bergamasco actually managed to get his ear under the ball stopping it from being grounded … we in the studio have never seen anything like it and it is bound to open the whole TMO debate again!
From this point on Stad played with new heart and nearly got in themselves from yet another 90m (torpedo kicker and massive kick card) kick from Hernandez. It went down to the wire however with Saracens threatening to score after the klaxon. A failed gather from Saracens saw Corleto pick the ball up and run into touch.
From a neutrals point of view the game was a ‘corker’ – for Saracens it has to go down as an opportunity missed – the TMO decision is bound to keep us busy for quite a while. Since the game McTague has refused to answer any questions from the media – the official word is no comment. Jones had this to say:
‘We showed our class out there tonight, our defence soaked up continual pressure from the home side, who it must be said played an excellent game. We made our breaks when we could and then managed to convert them into points, that was the difference between the teams I think. The TMO decision … well I thought he had grounded it but when you look at what the TMO saw it is obvious he made the right decision … I am never going to rib Mauro about his ‘elephant ears’ again … All in all an excellent night for us, going to Vicarage Road is never easy. We are obviously going to be going into the Wasps game as favourites and understandably so really … Fase seems to be having a rough time lately which is a shame as in the World Cup he showed a lot of promise I thought, maybe he can turn it around. The Saracens and Sharks game is probably going to be a preview of the play off game I imagine … they have all to play for!’
The PEWC CUP remember will see each team play each other twice in the group phase … the leader will gain a place in the final and then the 2nd and 3rd team will play each other for the other place in the final for the coveted cup, the loser playing again in the 3rd/4th playoff.
Sharks will not let it go ...
We caught up with Coach Dawe after the Sharks vs Wasps match, we imagined the win would have taken some of the animosity away from the situation, but it quickly became apparent that the two coaches had exchanged further words after the final klaxon. As we talked to Dawe he was enjoying a glass of wine in celebration of what he termed his teams, ‘destruction of Wasps’. Fase the Wasps coach had by this time declined the invitation of an after match beverage reportedly muttering something about being ill and having to catch the train home!
It was obvious that Dawe was savouring the victory –
‘The boys did themselves proud, after all the bad blood and the accusations of dirty play we just showed them how to play. You want to do the rough stuff, we can do that too but we prefer to play in style. The weather hampered us against Stad, but this week we showed the sort of open play rugby we are capable of.’
When asked what he made of the deliberate high tackles that were going in Dawe shrugged them off, ‘Refs have a hard time, that first Wasps ‘assault’, to use the words bandied around by Fase last match, was certainly at least a yellow card, the big one in the second half, well to be honest I was busy watching Hodgson’s golden feet – I’ll look at the video and see if we should make a formal complaint, I prefer however to work it out on the pitch the next time we play them!’
On his teams performance he had this to say, ‘Lamont is a quality player, he’s shown his pace in the last few matches now. Chabal, well what can I say, give him the ball he’ll head for that line. Magnus Lund caused Stad some worries last match and this match I think he was basically a cut above the Wasps players. Hodgson was having trouble with his boots in the first half, I’ll be talking to the maker very shortly!! All in all the game was, well, MEN & BOYS really although I am waiting for the usual lame excuses about illness BLAH BLAH, can’t see him lasting much longer than the Stad match to be honest, the fans will not stand for it!!’
Well as subtle as ever we left the outspoken coach to his ‘wine’ … any reply from Fase? Well at the moment their seems to be an official ‘no comment’ from him and the Saracens coach McTague … the pressure is mounting!
It was obvious that Dawe was savouring the victory –
‘The boys did themselves proud, after all the bad blood and the accusations of dirty play we just showed them how to play. You want to do the rough stuff, we can do that too but we prefer to play in style. The weather hampered us against Stad, but this week we showed the sort of open play rugby we are capable of.’
When asked what he made of the deliberate high tackles that were going in Dawe shrugged them off, ‘Refs have a hard time, that first Wasps ‘assault’, to use the words bandied around by Fase last match, was certainly at least a yellow card, the big one in the second half, well to be honest I was busy watching Hodgson’s golden feet – I’ll look at the video and see if we should make a formal complaint, I prefer however to work it out on the pitch the next time we play them!’
On his teams performance he had this to say, ‘Lamont is a quality player, he’s shown his pace in the last few matches now. Chabal, well what can I say, give him the ball he’ll head for that line. Magnus Lund caused Stad some worries last match and this match I think he was basically a cut above the Wasps players. Hodgson was having trouble with his boots in the first half, I’ll be talking to the maker very shortly!! All in all the game was, well, MEN & BOYS really although I am waiting for the usual lame excuses about illness BLAH BLAH, can’t see him lasting much longer than the Stad match to be honest, the fans will not stand for it!!’
Well as subtle as ever we left the outspoken coach to his ‘wine’ … any reply from Fase? Well at the moment their seems to be an official ‘no comment’ from him and the Saracens coach McTague … the pressure is mounting!
Northern excursion ends in horror for Wasps!
Our reporters at the Sale game have given us this detailed report:
Sharks to receive, Wasps shank kick off straight to Julien Laharrague (the number 15) he moves out to the left wing nails a pass to Rory Lamont (14) who explodes down the leftwing (2 break aways!), and promptly runs it in for a try, Charlie Hodgson pushes the conversion wide.
At the second kick off Rory Lamont gets the ball out wide on the left flank again and bursts through the front line of defence(1 more break away) but second line took him into touch. At wasps line out they get ball into middle of park but the maul collapses, Richard Wigglesworth (sale 9) manages to ferret ball out of ruck and flips it out to luke Mcallister (13) who charges for the line but is promptly stopped by a foul from Wasps number 11 .
Sharks take the penalty touch and drive into a try with Chabal steamrollering wasps defence (hand off) . Hodgson's kick sliced again!!!! 10-0.
Wasps kick finds a gap in sharks defence and they drive into space , Lee thomas picked up an injury at this point that took him out for the rest of the half.
Hodgson tries took pick up ball to relieve but the attentions of the Wasps number 15 caused him to fail to gather, allowing Wasps number 15 to gather and drive home for a try, which they duly converted.
Wasps recieved the miskick from Hodgson again (having a shocker) and drive forward again as the klaxon goes , late in the Sharks 22 Hodgson gets the ball and trys for touch but slices in field, the forwards seizing their chance drive into the Wasps half sensing the chance of an overtime try ,the Wasps come back at pace but again choke at the 22 Hodgson seeing his chance grabs the ball and runs it out of play to end the half he wasn't chancing a kick this time!
SECOND HALF
Hodgson has a change of boots for the second half! kicks off the game much better , what follows is 20 minutes of middle of the park grinding by both teams forwards till Wiggle worth flips a pass to Oriol Ripol who runs it home for another try, Hodgson is right on the money this time and gets the conversion.
Late into the second half a massive ruck on the Wasps 22 grinds to a halt and collapses as Wigglesworth passes the ball to Chabal the klaxon goes, Chabal drives forward passes to Lamont who explodes through the wasps line (hand off 2 breakaways) only to be stopped 5meters short of the try line, Luke Mcallister picked up the ball moves across the line took the tackle and made the gap for Sebastien Lund to run in between the posts, Hodgson converted the try and it was game over 24-7!
The crowd went wild, the Wasps coach in a brief after match talk to the press was blaming an illness running through the changing room … from here in the stands it looked like he should be blaming a defence that wouldn’t even get a job as a sieve, the holes are too large, and an attack which relies on the other team’s errors to give them any score … things are looking bleak for Wasps unless they can pull something back against Stad in the next match!
Next fixtures:
Wasps entertain Staid in North London
Sale host Saracens up North
Sharks to receive, Wasps shank kick off straight to Julien Laharrague (the number 15) he moves out to the left wing nails a pass to Rory Lamont (14) who explodes down the leftwing (2 break aways!), and promptly runs it in for a try, Charlie Hodgson pushes the conversion wide.
At the second kick off Rory Lamont gets the ball out wide on the left flank again and bursts through the front line of defence(1 more break away) but second line took him into touch. At wasps line out they get ball into middle of park but the maul collapses, Richard Wigglesworth (sale 9) manages to ferret ball out of ruck and flips it out to luke Mcallister (13) who charges for the line but is promptly stopped by a foul from Wasps number 11 .
Sharks take the penalty touch and drive into a try with Chabal steamrollering wasps defence (hand off) . Hodgson's kick sliced again!!!! 10-0.
Wasps kick finds a gap in sharks defence and they drive into space , Lee thomas picked up an injury at this point that took him out for the rest of the half.
Hodgson tries took pick up ball to relieve but the attentions of the Wasps number 15 caused him to fail to gather, allowing Wasps number 15 to gather and drive home for a try, which they duly converted.
Wasps recieved the miskick from Hodgson again (having a shocker) and drive forward again as the klaxon goes , late in the Sharks 22 Hodgson gets the ball and trys for touch but slices in field, the forwards seizing their chance drive into the Wasps half sensing the chance of an overtime try ,the Wasps come back at pace but again choke at the 22 Hodgson seeing his chance grabs the ball and runs it out of play to end the half he wasn't chancing a kick this time!
SECOND HALF
Hodgson has a change of boots for the second half! kicks off the game much better , what follows is 20 minutes of middle of the park grinding by both teams forwards till Wiggle worth flips a pass to Oriol Ripol who runs it home for another try, Hodgson is right on the money this time and gets the conversion.
Late into the second half a massive ruck on the Wasps 22 grinds to a halt and collapses as Wigglesworth passes the ball to Chabal the klaxon goes, Chabal drives forward passes to Lamont who explodes through the wasps line (hand off 2 breakaways) only to be stopped 5meters short of the try line, Luke Mcallister picked up the ball moves across the line took the tackle and made the gap for Sebastien Lund to run in between the posts, Hodgson converted the try and it was game over 24-7!
The crowd went wild, the Wasps coach in a brief after match talk to the press was blaming an illness running through the changing room … from here in the stands it looked like he should be blaming a defence that wouldn’t even get a job as a sieve, the holes are too large, and an attack which relies on the other team’s errors to give them any score … things are looking bleak for Wasps unless they can pull something back against Stad in the next match!
Next fixtures:
Wasps entertain Staid in North London
Sale host Saracens up North
Tuesday 22 January 2008
A night to remember ...
Thrillers all round …
In an evening unspoilt by the weather spectators at both games left the grounds after witnessing some fine rugby. Our reporters were at both grounds, first lets get the summary of what happened up in Sale this evening …
Wasps made the long journey up the M40 and M6 to play what many thought was going to be a grudge match. It didn’t take long for the match to explode into action. Sale received the long Wasps kick and then Lamont burst through the entire Wasps team and streaked away for a try within the first minute … Hodgson seemed to be having trouble with his boots and his conversion went wide. The home crowd hardly had time to settle back in their seats when another break saw the Sale forwards punching through the middle with Chabal lumbering over for another score, this time nearer to the posts. Yet again though Hodgson failed to convert.
The game then got physical with the Wasps prop getting sin binned for a very high tackle which denied the Sale backs another score. The referee just managed to keep control as tempers flared. In the aftermath the Wasps full back did manage to pull a try back which was calmly converted. Half time came with the home crowd wondering how on earth they were only 10-7 ahead. Dalalgio, the Wasps captain firmly believed that the second half would see them pull the score back … how wrong could he be!
Hodgson obviously had a change of boots at half time and in the home team totally dominated the second half running in another 2 tries! The Sharks ran away with a big 6 points … it’s back to the drawing board yet again for Wasps. More from our match side reporters tomorrow, and no doubt we will hear from the coaches.
Down at Vicarage Road the crowd hardly got to sit down as the game was played at a furious pace. With hardly a break down in play the game was phase after phase of excitement. In the end Stad Francais managed to keep their unbeaten record but only with the help of the Television Monitor Official who controversially ruled a Saracens try to be held up mid way through the second half. The final score of 12-7 was the closest game Stad had experienced in many a game. A detailed report will appear tomorrow and no doubt the coaches will have plenty to say!
The table as it stands tonight with a 2 week break coming up is :
Stad Francais played 2 won2 points 8
Sale Sharks played 2 won1 points 6
Saracens played 2 won0 points 3
London Wasps played 2 won0 points 2
In an evening unspoilt by the weather spectators at both games left the grounds after witnessing some fine rugby. Our reporters were at both grounds, first lets get the summary of what happened up in Sale this evening …
Wasps made the long journey up the M40 and M6 to play what many thought was going to be a grudge match. It didn’t take long for the match to explode into action. Sale received the long Wasps kick and then Lamont burst through the entire Wasps team and streaked away for a try within the first minute … Hodgson seemed to be having trouble with his boots and his conversion went wide. The home crowd hardly had time to settle back in their seats when another break saw the Sale forwards punching through the middle with Chabal lumbering over for another score, this time nearer to the posts. Yet again though Hodgson failed to convert.
The game then got physical with the Wasps prop getting sin binned for a very high tackle which denied the Sale backs another score. The referee just managed to keep control as tempers flared. In the aftermath the Wasps full back did manage to pull a try back which was calmly converted. Half time came with the home crowd wondering how on earth they were only 10-7 ahead. Dalalgio, the Wasps captain firmly believed that the second half would see them pull the score back … how wrong could he be!
Hodgson obviously had a change of boots at half time and in the home team totally dominated the second half running in another 2 tries! The Sharks ran away with a big 6 points … it’s back to the drawing board yet again for Wasps. More from our match side reporters tomorrow, and no doubt we will hear from the coaches.
Down at Vicarage Road the crowd hardly got to sit down as the game was played at a furious pace. With hardly a break down in play the game was phase after phase of excitement. In the end Stad Francais managed to keep their unbeaten record but only with the help of the Television Monitor Official who controversially ruled a Saracens try to be held up mid way through the second half. The final score of 12-7 was the closest game Stad had experienced in many a game. A detailed report will appear tomorrow and no doubt the coaches will have plenty to say!
The table as it stands tonight with a 2 week break coming up is :
Stad Francais played 2 won2 points 8
Sale Sharks played 2 won1 points 6
Saracens played 2 won0 points 3
London Wasps played 2 won0 points 2
Monday 21 January 2008
In the studio with the boys ...
Here we are in the studio with our regular columnists, Bill, Mark and Jona ...
Guys, we are in for a good couple of matches tomorrow night, the weather looks fine and there is a lot riding on the matches as well as the pride! So what do you think we are in for this week?
(Bill) Well Andy the Wasps Sharks game looks like it may be all out war, there is no love lost between either the teams or the coaches. After two weeks of thinly veiled 'sledging' they can finally sort it out on the field. The match itself will probably be very open, the Sharks last week tried to play a very open attacking game against Stad, Wasps did the same against Saracens and I don't think the weather did either of them any favours, hopefully tomorrow should be different.
(Mark) Let's hope the board has a decent ref sorted for that game Andy or it may get out of hand.
(Jona) To me the Saracens Stad game is going to either blow hot or cold, both teams know each other so well and both have a fairly similar style of play. It's going to be a tight one to say the least.
Well be sure to join us tomorrow night for some post match commentary ...
The PEWC CUP table as it stands:
Stad Francais 4
Saracens 2
London Wasps 2
Sale Sharks 0
Guys, we are in for a good couple of matches tomorrow night, the weather looks fine and there is a lot riding on the matches as well as the pride! So what do you think we are in for this week?
(Bill) Well Andy the Wasps Sharks game looks like it may be all out war, there is no love lost between either the teams or the coaches. After two weeks of thinly veiled 'sledging' they can finally sort it out on the field. The match itself will probably be very open, the Sharks last week tried to play a very open attacking game against Stad, Wasps did the same against Saracens and I don't think the weather did either of them any favours, hopefully tomorrow should be different.
(Mark) Let's hope the board has a decent ref sorted for that game Andy or it may get out of hand.
(Jona) To me the Saracens Stad game is going to either blow hot or cold, both teams know each other so well and both have a fairly similar style of play. It's going to be a tight one to say the least.
Well be sure to join us tomorrow night for some post match commentary ...
The PEWC CUP table as it stands:
Stad Francais 4
Saracens 2
London Wasps 2
Sale Sharks 0
Monday morning training in Paris ...
We have been in Stad Francais' training ground as the sun was trying to press through the overcast sky ... Hernandez could be seen honing his kicking skills, obviously Stad are worried about the kind of conditions they faced in England last week. The other noticable thing was some of the backs training with the forwards at the breakdown, it seemed they were learning some rucking skills. Jones could be worried about the strong Saracens pack.
All the team looked healthy and in good spirits and so they should be, their owner had just managed to secure a sponsorship deal with the surf industry giants 'Billabong', a partnership guaranteed to add even more 'flair' to the Stad set up - surf chicks as cheerleaders maybe!
All the team looked healthy and in good spirits and so they should be, their owner had just managed to secure a sponsorship deal with the surf industry giants 'Billabong', a partnership guaranteed to add even more 'flair' to the Stad set up - surf chicks as cheerleaders maybe!
Sunday 20 January 2008
Weekend training, all is quiet ...
As all the teams have a quiet weekend in their training camps there has been little contact with the media. We understand all the players are fit and although there is bound to be a few changes none of the sides to our knowledge have bought in any new players or staff ... the weather for the next round still looks like being fine or only light rain, so the teams should be able to show their stuff!
Thursday 17 January 2008
Next weeks fixtures ...
After the excitement of the first round of matches we are all looking forward to next weeks. One of the fixtures in particular promises to be full of fire, even before kick-off. The Wasps coach has come in for some harsh words from the Sale Sharks over the last week. Sparked by the Wasps claims of 'tackles bordering on assualt' and then the comments about Saracens 'dirty, underhand' play the Sharks management have basically accused the Wasps of being not up to the task. Both teams seem to be out to prove something. The other game sees Saracens host Stade. Always close games the French don't normally travel well and this game will really test them.
Thankfully the weather looks fair for both grounds, a far cry from the last games!
Kick off 7:00pm Tuesday 22nd January
Saracens vs. Stade Francais
Sale Sharks vs. London Wasps
Thankfully the weather looks fair for both grounds, a far cry from the last games!
Kick off 7:00pm Tuesday 22nd January
Saracens vs. Stade Francais
Sale Sharks vs. London Wasps
Dawe has his say ...
We caught up with Ian Dawe, the Sale Coach, getting off the plane from Paris in the still driving rain ...
'Damn just goes to show that if you don't make the pressure count count it can all so easily come undone.
We dominated the first half entirely Stade never even got into our half but we couldnt convert no matter how we tried. Lund made a fantastice break from the start but stout defence smothered the play, late in the first half Lamont made a fantastic break away on the left wing it took 3 defenders to bring him down but alas the forwards choked at the 9th hour.
Unfortunately we went to sleep for the first 10 minutes of the second half and were punished severely , their number 14 was outstanding , if i were a Wasps coach I would probably say that he was on performance enhancing drugs or something to the effect, but I am not ... the boy done good and thoroughly deserved his MOM award. On a more serious note Charlie Hodgeson injured his ankle in prematch warm up , but was so fired up for the game he neglected to tell me , it would explain why his kicking was off last night . It looks as though he may be a doubt for the next match but you know ... Wasps are going to pay either way!'
'Damn just goes to show that if you don't make the pressure count count it can all so easily come undone.
We dominated the first half entirely Stade never even got into our half but we couldnt convert no matter how we tried. Lund made a fantastice break from the start but stout defence smothered the play, late in the first half Lamont made a fantastic break away on the left wing it took 3 defenders to bring him down but alas the forwards choked at the 9th hour.
Unfortunately we went to sleep for the first 10 minutes of the second half and were punished severely , their number 14 was outstanding , if i were a Wasps coach I would probably say that he was on performance enhancing drugs or something to the effect, but I am not ... the boy done good and thoroughly deserved his MOM award. On a more serious note Charlie Hodgeson injured his ankle in prematch warm up , but was so fired up for the game he neglected to tell me , it would explain why his kicking was off last night . It looks as though he may be a doubt for the next match but you know ... Wasps are going to pay either way!'
Wednesday 16 January 2008
IN THEIR OWN EYES ...
Saracens versus Wasps … the fallout & Stad praise the Sharks:
Horizon Sports were at both post game press conferences, luckily the two coaches were not in the same room! Here at HS we suspect we have not heard the last of this game!
Firstly looking rather resigned McTague, the Saracens coach, talked to Mike Tindale as the Sarries were leaving Vicarage Road:
“Hi Mike, well that started well and ended in a little confusion.
The weather played such a part that I don’t think the ref had much to do but try and keep warm!! Of course I am disappointed, to go from 14 zip to 14 square is a bit depressing but no you have to look at the stats to see that no points were scored against the wind in that match. I also have spoken to our Scrummie and he claims he didn’t hear the end of normal time. When he realised he quickly released the pass to the fullback, expecting him to bury it into touch. Unfortunately the full back was expecting the scrummie to do so … and well the pass was a surprise and the rest is history.
The opening phases saw the boys getting a nice clean couple of tries, the opposition just didn’t like to get in there and make it personal, basically they were afraid of getting physical. They whinged about the physicality of the Sevens against Sale if I remember rightly, maybe the coach isn’t cut out for the big boys league. Also I think the second half showed that they also lack a little control with their number 8 getting 'sin binned'. I know my boys aren’t angels but we do try and play fair. If we dominated the first half then they certainly dominated the second, both times with the wind was at the teams’ backs, a draw is a fair result for what happened out there today, a win would have been nicer for the home supporters but I guess the guys wanted to show there stuff off and get a bigger margin of victory, we were held by the weather not by Wasps . I was happy, well they our attacks were unstoppable and the defence strong and well placed, both the opposition tries were from breakthrough passes by the fly half helped no doubt by the wind.
My man of the match has to be Rod Penney, not only was he in front line making us huge ground on offense, but was also seen flying back to drop their wingers on the breakaway plays..... Our training focus for the guys this week will be on clearing the ball quicker from the pack, and I will be sending the scrummy to get his ears syringed!! Thanks to all the supporters that showed up for the match in such awful conditions and I hope we have the same atmosphere for when we entertain Stad Francais next week!’
Not exactly kind words but not the fighting words that came out of the Wasps press conference a few hours later. Obviously still fuming Fase begrudgingly said a few words to the associated press a few hours after the end of the match from their HQ in High Wycombe:
‘“Despite an impressive fight-back following some early errors by the forwards we feel that we were simply not given a level playing field.” When quizzed about exactly what he meant by this all Fase would offer was,
“The standard of decision making by the ref was quite simply appalling. There were at least three blatant fouls as we moved inside the Saracens 22, each as ugly as McTague’s cackling face.”
The incidents he was referring too seemed to be tackles made by Penney, the Saracen’s winger, which were marginal at the best but went completely unseen by the linesman and referee. The video footage tends to be obscured and inconclusive as well (the ref rolls made by Shaun M in each case were 1,1 or 1,2 !).
Ian Dickey from the Observer asked about the conditions out there on the pitch;
“With playing conditions making ball handling difficult for both teams we played well throughout the second half and were only denied victory by the officials. To be honest it was only Saracen’s greed that let us back in at the end and let Lol (Dalagio) lead the boys superbly to even the match.”
He rounded the short conference off by a scathing attack on McTague and the tactics of Saracens;
“It’s a shame that a side that I only had praise for throughout the sevens tournament felt that they didn’t have the strength to play us man to man and had to resort to such underhand play. I think that we can almost take that as a back-handed compliment as we move on to next weeks game at Sale with heads held high.”
With that he stormed out the room, with the accusations of ‘assault like’ dirty tackles still fresh in the Sale Sharks coaches mind next week will be interesting to say the least!
Meanwhile the press conferences held in Paris following the Stad/Sharks thriller were of an all together gentlemanly nature. Jonno caught Jones, the Stad coach, on his way to a welcome pint in the hospitality rooms, he had this to say about the match.
‘The real winners of tonight’s match has to be the fans of both sides who travelled to see there team. Considering the conditions I thought both sides played with a lot of flair. The wind kept kicking to a minimum and it was tense out there. I was surprised with the tenacity shown by the Sharks, considering our second XIV had held them at sevens the previous week I was expecting a bit of an easier match to be honest. But Sharks showed that at this level there are no easy matches and I felt proud that our defense managed to keep them out. A great game played by two great sides, I will tip Sharks to decimate the Wasps next week and look forward to meeting them again come finals time. The main man for us in my opinion was Fillol at scrum half. He directed the play in both attack and defense and made some fine decisions out there. Looking forward to next week … well its our old foes Saracens. It’s never easy to play at Vicarage Road with the stands packed in over the narrow pitch, the atmosphere is always oppressive. Both teams know each other so well and they are always the team we find it hardest to dominate … but as the great gridiron coach Vince Lombardi once alluded to … winning is a habit … and at the moment our coaching staff have the habit!’
Horizon Sports were at both post game press conferences, luckily the two coaches were not in the same room! Here at HS we suspect we have not heard the last of this game!
Firstly looking rather resigned McTague, the Saracens coach, talked to Mike Tindale as the Sarries were leaving Vicarage Road:
“Hi Mike, well that started well and ended in a little confusion.
The weather played such a part that I don’t think the ref had much to do but try and keep warm!! Of course I am disappointed, to go from 14 zip to 14 square is a bit depressing but no you have to look at the stats to see that no points were scored against the wind in that match. I also have spoken to our Scrummie and he claims he didn’t hear the end of normal time. When he realised he quickly released the pass to the fullback, expecting him to bury it into touch. Unfortunately the full back was expecting the scrummie to do so … and well the pass was a surprise and the rest is history.
The opening phases saw the boys getting a nice clean couple of tries, the opposition just didn’t like to get in there and make it personal, basically they were afraid of getting physical. They whinged about the physicality of the Sevens against Sale if I remember rightly, maybe the coach isn’t cut out for the big boys league. Also I think the second half showed that they also lack a little control with their number 8 getting 'sin binned'. I know my boys aren’t angels but we do try and play fair. If we dominated the first half then they certainly dominated the second, both times with the wind was at the teams’ backs, a draw is a fair result for what happened out there today, a win would have been nicer for the home supporters but I guess the guys wanted to show there stuff off and get a bigger margin of victory, we were held by the weather not by Wasps . I was happy, well they our attacks were unstoppable and the defence strong and well placed, both the opposition tries were from breakthrough passes by the fly half helped no doubt by the wind.
My man of the match has to be Rod Penney, not only was he in front line making us huge ground on offense, but was also seen flying back to drop their wingers on the breakaway plays..... Our training focus for the guys this week will be on clearing the ball quicker from the pack, and I will be sending the scrummy to get his ears syringed!! Thanks to all the supporters that showed up for the match in such awful conditions and I hope we have the same atmosphere for when we entertain Stad Francais next week!’
Not exactly kind words but not the fighting words that came out of the Wasps press conference a few hours later. Obviously still fuming Fase begrudgingly said a few words to the associated press a few hours after the end of the match from their HQ in High Wycombe:
‘“Despite an impressive fight-back following some early errors by the forwards we feel that we were simply not given a level playing field.” When quizzed about exactly what he meant by this all Fase would offer was,
“The standard of decision making by the ref was quite simply appalling. There were at least three blatant fouls as we moved inside the Saracens 22, each as ugly as McTague’s cackling face.”
The incidents he was referring too seemed to be tackles made by Penney, the Saracen’s winger, which were marginal at the best but went completely unseen by the linesman and referee. The video footage tends to be obscured and inconclusive as well (the ref rolls made by Shaun M in each case were 1,1 or 1,2 !).
Ian Dickey from the Observer asked about the conditions out there on the pitch;
“With playing conditions making ball handling difficult for both teams we played well throughout the second half and were only denied victory by the officials. To be honest it was only Saracen’s greed that let us back in at the end and let Lol (Dalagio) lead the boys superbly to even the match.”
He rounded the short conference off by a scathing attack on McTague and the tactics of Saracens;
“It’s a shame that a side that I only had praise for throughout the sevens tournament felt that they didn’t have the strength to play us man to man and had to resort to such underhand play. I think that we can almost take that as a back-handed compliment as we move on to next weeks game at Sale with heads held high.”
With that he stormed out the room, with the accusations of ‘assault like’ dirty tackles still fresh in the Sale Sharks coaches mind next week will be interesting to say the least!
Meanwhile the press conferences held in Paris following the Stad/Sharks thriller were of an all together gentlemanly nature. Jonno caught Jones, the Stad coach, on his way to a welcome pint in the hospitality rooms, he had this to say about the match.
‘The real winners of tonight’s match has to be the fans of both sides who travelled to see there team. Considering the conditions I thought both sides played with a lot of flair. The wind kept kicking to a minimum and it was tense out there. I was surprised with the tenacity shown by the Sharks, considering our second XIV had held them at sevens the previous week I was expecting a bit of an easier match to be honest. But Sharks showed that at this level there are no easy matches and I felt proud that our defense managed to keep them out. A great game played by two great sides, I will tip Sharks to decimate the Wasps next week and look forward to meeting them again come finals time. The main man for us in my opinion was Fillol at scrum half. He directed the play in both attack and defense and made some fine decisions out there. Looking forward to next week … well its our old foes Saracens. It’s never easy to play at Vicarage Road with the stands packed in over the narrow pitch, the atmosphere is always oppressive. Both teams know each other so well and they are always the team we find it hardest to dominate … but as the great gridiron coach Vince Lombardi once alluded to … winning is a habit … and at the moment our coaching staff have the habit!’
THE WAIT IS OVER ...
Horizon Sports bring you the latest news from tonights matches:
THE GAME IS ON …
On a damp, windy and miserable night in both Paris and London it can be only be said that no-one would have walked away from the games disappointed. The break away cup event could have been in danger of being a wash out (literally) in its opening night … instead it was a showcase for club rugby.
Horizon Sports were at both grounds to bring you all the action … firstly we visit Vicarage Road in North London where in terrible conditions a good crowd turned out to see the match. The atmosphere was tense from the start as Saracens were on the pitch to ‘greet’ their local rivals with strains of the Who’s classic song, “Who are you … who who are YOU?” belting out over the PA.
This clearly rattled Wasps as their early play was dire, fighting against the gale force wind they were pinned down in their 22m for most of the first half. An early break by the winger Haughton in the corner was easily converted with assistance from the wind by Russell. Wasps kick off was literally blown back in their face and the resulting passage of play saw poor handling skills from Wasps allow the big ex league centre Farrell to plough the line and under the posts. As this point of the game it was looking far too easy for Saracens and then completely against the run of play Voyce, the Wasps full back, managed to snap up a ball and have an easy run under the posts at the stroke of half time. One of the few times Wasps had even seen the ball saw them going in only 7 points down.
The half time talk from Dalalgio must have been a corker as Wasps showed a never say die spirit in the second half. An over confident looking Saracens took the field only to see Russell completely slice the kick off and taken by the wind it sailed out, not making the ten yards required. It was obvious that Wasps were a team with a mission as they assaulted the Saracen line again and again. The visiting fans and their coach Steve Fase were fuming as a series of very late tackles and one straight arm, which if it had been spotted would have been a red card, thwarted their every move. The game slipped by and it looked like Saracens had held on to the victory.
The final hooter went and it was at this stage things went wrong for Saracens. From up in the commentary box it seemed like the raging wind was muffling the advice from the Saracens coach McTague as the Saracens looked as if they were keeping the ball in play looking for the bonus ‘try fest’ point. Solid defending kept them out and after a few near run (and yet another dodgy tackle from Saracens) attempts from Wasps the Saracens fly half finally called to the scrum half to give him the ball so he could boot the ball out. However he fumbled the kick and managed to knock on giving Wasps an excellent mid field position on Sarries 22!
A well worked peel off the back and pass to Voyce saw him crashing over the line … the crowd were hushed as the conversion attempt sailed over with the wind behind it … the teams went in tied at 14 all. The air in the Saracens dressing room was blue as the coach laid into the team. Wasps put up a spirited fight and in the end deserved to come away with a draw. I am sure we will hear from the coaches tomorrow!
Meanwhile over in Paris the expectant Parisian crowd braved the conditions. They had every reason to feel optimistic. There home form was excellent and the arrival of the World Cup winning coach added to the feeling that this was going to be their year!
This feeling lasted about 2 minutes … Lund caught the kick off as it veered off its intended target in the wind. The flanker made an excellent break (hand off and two break away cards) down the right wing and it appeared all Stad could do was stand and watch. Only an excellent covering tackle by Corletto saved the try. But the Stad players were left stranded as the Shark players descended on the ball. The muddy conditions obviously added to the difficulty of gathering from the ground in open play and the rucks and Thomas saw the ball squeeze from his hands for a knock on. The Stade spectators gave a sigh of relief, this is not what they had come to watch. It seemed that Stade were rattled by the opening few minutes and at the scrum Sale took the ball against the head. A break away from Chabal at number 8 was only just stopped by some solid Stad defending. It was at this point that Sale Sharks began to bite … they threw everything except the proverbial kitchen sink at the Stad line. Stad were pinned down in their 22 for the first time in ages. The cross wind made clearance kicks to risky and the crowd were treated to open running rugby which was reminiscent of Sevens play. Considering the conditions this was amazing stuff, but Stad couldn’t break out of their half and Sale assaulted the try line again and again. The Parisian crowd were worried but the Stad defence held firm, a number of game saving tackles being made only 3m out. Bergamasco and Lienberg making some fine tackles. A huge sigh of relief went around the ground as Hernandez kicked the ball out to end the half with both teams scoreless. One could only wonder if the Sharks were going to pay dearly for failing to make the extreme pressure pay.
They didn’t have to wonder for long however as the second half started with Hodgson, who had had an excellent game thus far, make a very bad kick off. The wind carried the ball over the dead ball line and the French team were quick to ask for the scrum back. An open side darting break from Fillol the scrum half saw good support play from Corletto who picked up and passed inside to Saubade who crashed over under the posts. The Sharks looked stunned as they watched the Hernandez conversion sail over. After 90% of possession in the first half they found themselves trailing 0-7 after a few minutes of the second half kick off. It was Stad’s turn to pile on the pressure, from the kick off the French team broke up the middle of the pitch, a number of players crashed through tackles and it was Saubade, the big winger, who again was lunging for the line. This time it was closer as the Ref went to the TMO to see if he had made a double movement over the line. The verdict was a try and the English club side looked gutted. Only the swirling wind sending the conversion wide gave them a little to be cheerful for.
Parisse succumbed to the pressure of the match, failing to catch the kick off. It suddenly looked like the Sharks would make a come back. Close pack play from Sharks forwards saw Sheridan catch a pop pass, put his head down and go for the line. Only a De Villier tackle and Bergamasco managing to drive Bruno into touch after he had picked up saved the try. Stad were under pressure again, a line out from their own 5 yard line. This was the gutsiest play of the match as Blin threw over the back to Parisse. A risky move but it saw the French team break down their left wing. A few excellent passes and blurring speed from Dominici (one of the rare smooth pass and break away card combinations) saw Stad on for the third bonus point try. Only 2 Shark players were close and the crowd erupted as Hodgson took Dominici out with a straight arm tackle, the referee missed this infringement and then rubbed salt in the wound by penalising Dominici for not rolling away. Hodgson decided against the kick in the gale force sidewind conditions and gave it to the pack to tap and go. Again the Stad defence held out for a few vital phases. But they took the ball into a ruck which just before the hooter sounded the Referee said ‘not coming out lads,’ awarding the scrum to the Sharks. 10m out this was the chance they needed to reduce the score and maybe get a vital ‘close game’ point.
Again Chabal broke, again the Stad defence held firm until a combination of quick passing saw an overlap on the left. The final pass let them down and from a snaffled ruck Hernandez received the ball and not trusting the wind ran into touch to end the game. Both sets of supporters gave the players a standing ovation as they left the pitch … if this was the standard of games the audience were in for then it seemingly justified the break away challenge cup … bring on next week!!
THE GAME IS ON …
On a damp, windy and miserable night in both Paris and London it can be only be said that no-one would have walked away from the games disappointed. The break away cup event could have been in danger of being a wash out (literally) in its opening night … instead it was a showcase for club rugby.
Horizon Sports were at both grounds to bring you all the action … firstly we visit Vicarage Road in North London where in terrible conditions a good crowd turned out to see the match. The atmosphere was tense from the start as Saracens were on the pitch to ‘greet’ their local rivals with strains of the Who’s classic song, “Who are you … who who are YOU?” belting out over the PA.
This clearly rattled Wasps as their early play was dire, fighting against the gale force wind they were pinned down in their 22m for most of the first half. An early break by the winger Haughton in the corner was easily converted with assistance from the wind by Russell. Wasps kick off was literally blown back in their face and the resulting passage of play saw poor handling skills from Wasps allow the big ex league centre Farrell to plough the line and under the posts. As this point of the game it was looking far too easy for Saracens and then completely against the run of play Voyce, the Wasps full back, managed to snap up a ball and have an easy run under the posts at the stroke of half time. One of the few times Wasps had even seen the ball saw them going in only 7 points down.
The half time talk from Dalalgio must have been a corker as Wasps showed a never say die spirit in the second half. An over confident looking Saracens took the field only to see Russell completely slice the kick off and taken by the wind it sailed out, not making the ten yards required. It was obvious that Wasps were a team with a mission as they assaulted the Saracen line again and again. The visiting fans and their coach Steve Fase were fuming as a series of very late tackles and one straight arm, which if it had been spotted would have been a red card, thwarted their every move. The game slipped by and it looked like Saracens had held on to the victory.
The final hooter went and it was at this stage things went wrong for Saracens. From up in the commentary box it seemed like the raging wind was muffling the advice from the Saracens coach McTague as the Saracens looked as if they were keeping the ball in play looking for the bonus ‘try fest’ point. Solid defending kept them out and after a few near run (and yet another dodgy tackle from Saracens) attempts from Wasps the Saracens fly half finally called to the scrum half to give him the ball so he could boot the ball out. However he fumbled the kick and managed to knock on giving Wasps an excellent mid field position on Sarries 22!
A well worked peel off the back and pass to Voyce saw him crashing over the line … the crowd were hushed as the conversion attempt sailed over with the wind behind it … the teams went in tied at 14 all. The air in the Saracens dressing room was blue as the coach laid into the team. Wasps put up a spirited fight and in the end deserved to come away with a draw. I am sure we will hear from the coaches tomorrow!
Meanwhile over in Paris the expectant Parisian crowd braved the conditions. They had every reason to feel optimistic. There home form was excellent and the arrival of the World Cup winning coach added to the feeling that this was going to be their year!
This feeling lasted about 2 minutes … Lund caught the kick off as it veered off its intended target in the wind. The flanker made an excellent break (hand off and two break away cards) down the right wing and it appeared all Stad could do was stand and watch. Only an excellent covering tackle by Corletto saved the try. But the Stad players were left stranded as the Shark players descended on the ball. The muddy conditions obviously added to the difficulty of gathering from the ground in open play and the rucks and Thomas saw the ball squeeze from his hands for a knock on. The Stade spectators gave a sigh of relief, this is not what they had come to watch. It seemed that Stade were rattled by the opening few minutes and at the scrum Sale took the ball against the head. A break away from Chabal at number 8 was only just stopped by some solid Stad defending. It was at this point that Sale Sharks began to bite … they threw everything except the proverbial kitchen sink at the Stad line. Stad were pinned down in their 22 for the first time in ages. The cross wind made clearance kicks to risky and the crowd were treated to open running rugby which was reminiscent of Sevens play. Considering the conditions this was amazing stuff, but Stad couldn’t break out of their half and Sale assaulted the try line again and again. The Parisian crowd were worried but the Stad defence held firm, a number of game saving tackles being made only 3m out. Bergamasco and Lienberg making some fine tackles. A huge sigh of relief went around the ground as Hernandez kicked the ball out to end the half with both teams scoreless. One could only wonder if the Sharks were going to pay dearly for failing to make the extreme pressure pay.
They didn’t have to wonder for long however as the second half started with Hodgson, who had had an excellent game thus far, make a very bad kick off. The wind carried the ball over the dead ball line and the French team were quick to ask for the scrum back. An open side darting break from Fillol the scrum half saw good support play from Corletto who picked up and passed inside to Saubade who crashed over under the posts. The Sharks looked stunned as they watched the Hernandez conversion sail over. After 90% of possession in the first half they found themselves trailing 0-7 after a few minutes of the second half kick off. It was Stad’s turn to pile on the pressure, from the kick off the French team broke up the middle of the pitch, a number of players crashed through tackles and it was Saubade, the big winger, who again was lunging for the line. This time it was closer as the Ref went to the TMO to see if he had made a double movement over the line. The verdict was a try and the English club side looked gutted. Only the swirling wind sending the conversion wide gave them a little to be cheerful for.
Parisse succumbed to the pressure of the match, failing to catch the kick off. It suddenly looked like the Sharks would make a come back. Close pack play from Sharks forwards saw Sheridan catch a pop pass, put his head down and go for the line. Only a De Villier tackle and Bergamasco managing to drive Bruno into touch after he had picked up saved the try. Stad were under pressure again, a line out from their own 5 yard line. This was the gutsiest play of the match as Blin threw over the back to Parisse. A risky move but it saw the French team break down their left wing. A few excellent passes and blurring speed from Dominici (one of the rare smooth pass and break away card combinations) saw Stad on for the third bonus point try. Only 2 Shark players were close and the crowd erupted as Hodgson took Dominici out with a straight arm tackle, the referee missed this infringement and then rubbed salt in the wound by penalising Dominici for not rolling away. Hodgson decided against the kick in the gale force sidewind conditions and gave it to the pack to tap and go. Again the Stad defence held out for a few vital phases. But they took the ball into a ruck which just before the hooter sounded the Referee said ‘not coming out lads,’ awarding the scrum to the Sharks. 10m out this was the chance they needed to reduce the score and maybe get a vital ‘close game’ point.
Again Chabal broke, again the Stad defence held firm until a combination of quick passing saw an overlap on the left. The final pass let them down and from a snaffled ruck Hernandez received the ball and not trusting the wind ran into touch to end the game. Both sets of supporters gave the players a standing ovation as they left the pitch … if this was the standard of games the audience were in for then it seemingly justified the break away challenge cup … bring on next week!!
Monday 14 January 2008
Long trips and breakfast deals ...
Sale make the long trip to Paris to try and escape the northern rain, Wasps and Saracens are not so lucky as the weather in North London looks set to be messy ...
The London boys will be getting:
Heavy rain and a strong southerly wind blowing up the pitch - on the plus side it will be fairly mild.
Sale will feel right at home in Paris meanwhile as the conditions are very similar although the wind will not be as strong.
It looks set to be a powerful close encounter between the forwards!
The London boys will be getting:
Heavy rain and a strong southerly wind blowing up the pitch - on the plus side it will be fairly mild.
Sale will feel right at home in Paris meanwhile as the conditions are very similar although the wind will not be as strong.
It looks set to be a powerful close encounter between the forwards!
Sunday 13 January 2008
A QUIET WEEKEND ...
With only a couple of days to go until the first matches it is hardly surpising that all the team camps are quiet. Don't forget to view on the night of the matches for the news ... you'll here it first on Horizon Sports!
Wednesday 9 January 2008
What an appertiser!
Saracens and Stade Francais were involved in a pre comp friendly tonight. While both coaches obviously rested some of the bigger names it was still a closely fought contest. For a while it resembled a Super 14 southern hemisphere game with both teams involved in a kicking battle. Saracens looked like they would go in at half time 7 points up. However a kick ahead and chase by the Stade team managed to get in under the posts!
The second half saw more forward play although it was he backs who seemed to star for both sides in attack and defense. Another well worked back move and some very heavy hits in defense saw Stade leading 21-14 at the hooter. Amazingly Hernandez tried to kick and chase, obviously going for another try. However the crowd held their collective breath as he made his one kicking mistake of the match … the ball fell to the Haughton the Saracens winger who burst through the advancing Stade players. Some good covering defence managed to keep him wide as he crashed over the line. It was all down to Jackson to convert and tie the game … the roar from the home Stade crowd said it all as the ball fell short.
The second half saw more forward play although it was he backs who seemed to star for both sides in attack and defense. Another well worked back move and some very heavy hits in defense saw Stade leading 21-14 at the hooter. Amazingly Hernandez tried to kick and chase, obviously going for another try. However the crowd held their collective breath as he made his one kicking mistake of the match … the ball fell to the Haughton the Saracens winger who burst through the advancing Stade players. Some good covering defence managed to keep him wide as he crashed over the line. It was all down to Jackson to convert and tie the game … the roar from the home Stade crowd said it all as the ball fell short.
The final score was 21-19 with both teams showing some exciting running rugby!
If the commitment to attacking play is indicative of what we are in store for then … BRING IT ON!
SHARK BAIT...
Horizon Sports caught up with Ian Dawe the coach of Sale Sharks this morning. Dawe was obviously not happy with some of the fallout from the Sevens Comp, however he had kind words about the young Stade side that held his international players to a draw …
“ it is too harsh to say they disrespected the tournament, it was a good chance to let the younger fringe players shine. They showed great resolve and tenacity to fight back for the draw, although of course a few high tackles seemed to have been missed by the ref, but that’s rugby.”
This then got him talking about some of the comments allegedly made by the Wasps coach …
“If he (Fase the Wasps coach) thinks things got rough then he should try and remember that rugby is supposed to be a contact sport! The game is played by men and if his prima donnas can’t handle this then maybe they should go and play in the ‘Andrex League’ (for our foreign viewers this is the English toilet paper which prides itself on being ‘soft’).
Dawe then spoke about the match with Saracens which he narrowly lost …
“Fair play to Saracens for an excellent victory although we (the Sharks) were a little jaded in the final after chasing Wasps around the pitch in the match before, obviously they didn’t want to get their kit dirty!”
When asked if he was looking forward to the Cup Challenge he continued with the sledging of Wasps …
“ we are looking forward to showing the Wasps how to play the ‘mens’ game … I think they need reminding!’
Here at Horizon sports we think we are going to be in for a cracker of a comp …
“ it is too harsh to say they disrespected the tournament, it was a good chance to let the younger fringe players shine. They showed great resolve and tenacity to fight back for the draw, although of course a few high tackles seemed to have been missed by the ref, but that’s rugby.”
This then got him talking about some of the comments allegedly made by the Wasps coach …
“If he (Fase the Wasps coach) thinks things got rough then he should try and remember that rugby is supposed to be a contact sport! The game is played by men and if his prima donnas can’t handle this then maybe they should go and play in the ‘Andrex League’ (for our foreign viewers this is the English toilet paper which prides itself on being ‘soft’).
Dawe then spoke about the match with Saracens which he narrowly lost …
“Fair play to Saracens for an excellent victory although we (the Sharks) were a little jaded in the final after chasing Wasps around the pitch in the match before, obviously they didn’t want to get their kit dirty!”
When asked if he was looking forward to the Cup Challenge he continued with the sledging of Wasps …
“ we are looking forward to showing the Wasps how to play the ‘mens’ game … I think they need reminding!’
Here at Horizon sports we think we are going to be in for a cracker of a comp …
PEWC ELVS
Horizon sports in conjunction with the PERB (Ponders End Rugby Board) have announced a series of Experimental Law Variations to be used in the PEWC CUP. They are aimed at producing a more spectacular game.
Details of these rules can be obtained from the PERB by contacting crashtackleAThotmail.co.uk
Details of these rules can be obtained from the PERB by contacting crashtackleAThotmail.co.uk
NO STING IN THE TAIL ...
London Wasps were left ruing what could have been after consecutive losses saw them only coming ahead of a Stade 2nd IV in the PEWC Sevens competition. In the press conference after the evening Fase, the coach, tried to explain away the results:
"The Saracens simply outplayed us, we had no real answers on the night and made too many basic errors. At least we put some points on the board, Saracens are worthy champions. The Sale game was a different matter however, they put in some extremely hard tackles which my staff and I feel were unnecessary in Sevens and to be honest bordered on assualt! We stood up to them all the way and it was only a questionable penalty that handed them the victory. I am sure my players will be looking forward to meeting them in the near future."
The Wasps players looked subdued leaving the ground and will be wanting to put a better performance in against Saracens when the PEWC CUP starts next week!
"The Saracens simply outplayed us, we had no real answers on the night and made too many basic errors. At least we put some points on the board, Saracens are worthy champions. The Sale game was a different matter however, they put in some extremely hard tackles which my staff and I feel were unnecessary in Sevens and to be honest bordered on assualt! We stood up to them all the way and it was only a questionable penalty that handed them the victory. I am sure my players will be looking forward to meeting them in the near future."
The Wasps players looked subdued leaving the ground and will be wanting to put a better performance in against Saracens when the PEWC CUP starts next week!
Tuesday 8 January 2008
LATEST SCORES ...
Tonight Saracens managed to win the PEWC SEVENS competition sweeping aside London Wasps in the early game 21-7 before seeing off Sale Sharks in the final 21-14. Wasps had also lost to Sale Sharks in a hard fought game 7-10 which must dampen their spirits before next weeks games. Stade Francais fielded a 2nd XIV seven which managed to hold the Sharks to a 7 all draw.
Meanwhile the Stade first XV were dismissing Leciester Tigers 14-0, the Tigers hardly saw the Staid 22 and if it hadn't beeen for some staunch defensive work the score could have been higher. The match can have only boosted the confidence of the French team going into next weeks match with Sale.
The Staid coach was remarkably subdued during the after match press conference, praising the Tiger's defence he hinted that the crowd should expect Staid to come out with all cylinders firing in an offense orientated game next week at Sale!
Meanwhile the Stade first XV were dismissing Leciester Tigers 14-0, the Tigers hardly saw the Staid 22 and if it hadn't beeen for some staunch defensive work the score could have been higher. The match can have only boosted the confidence of the French team going into next weeks match with Sale.
The Staid coach was remarkably subdued during the after match press conference, praising the Tiger's defence he hinted that the crowd should expect Staid to come out with all cylinders firing in an offense orientated game next week at Sale!
Monday 7 January 2008
Stade ruffles some more feathers ...
In a move guaranteed to provoke response from the other teams Stade are rumoured to be putting out a second team seven for the Tuesday comp while the First XV play a visiting side from the north of England. Details are sketchy at the moment but the Stade coach gave us this short comment on his way to the training ground in North London :
"Our players are confident we can play a full XV game at the same time as the sevens comp and probably win them both! We got the opportunity to play a full match on the same night with a visiting side and obviously took the opportunity so as to try some of our training ground moves out in a full match."
Commentators are quick to blame this move on the fact that Stade may want a ready made excuse if there sevens form remains as it is at present having recently been beaten by both Wasps and Saracens!
"Our players are confident we can play a full XV game at the same time as the sevens comp and probably win them both! We got the opportunity to play a full match on the same night with a visiting side and obviously took the opportunity so as to try some of our training ground moves out in a full match."
Commentators are quick to blame this move on the fact that Stade may want a ready made excuse if there sevens form remains as it is at present having recently been beaten by both Wasps and Saracens!
Friday 4 January 2008
Fixtures announced ...
The draw for the first week of the PEWC CUP was made in Enfield today under independant scrutiny ... the first round of games to take place on the 15th January at 7:15 KO ...
Wasps v. Saracens
Stade v. Sale
Watch out for pre-match views from the coaches soon on Horizon Sports ....
Wasps v. Saracens
Stade v. Sale
Watch out for pre-match views from the coaches soon on Horizon Sports ....
New Year Sevens...
The teams are spending a final weekend of rest before the one day sevens tournament on Tuesday. While many see it as no indication to how the season will kick off the following week pride is certainly at stake ... no one will want to lose badly and have to start the following weeks full comp psychologically 'kicked' ...
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