Premiership Round 2 review
They arrived at the Rec on the back of an unconvincing win at Worcester facing the flying Wasps but they rolled their sleeves up to make sure they got the start off the season they wanted.
Gary Gold has already implanted his South African culture in that team. They don’t play in their own half and the boot of Olly Barkley will punish any penalties the opposition gives away.
With the like of Matt Banahan, Nick Abendanon and Kyle Eastmond, they also have the striking power to score tries out wide.
As it has been there down fall for the past few season, consistency will be key but it is a very promising start of the season.
Exeter (lost to Northampton 24-21)
They showed they don’t need the ball much to score points with the like of Josh Tatupu and Matt Jess on the wings.
They never took a step back against a Saints pack on fire and defended with their heart of their sleeves in a trademark performance.
Like Saints, the half backs didn’t have a good game but they have now become a force to be reckoned with in this league.
Gloucester (beat London Irish 40-31)
The Cherry and White showed a lot of character for the second week running but came out with the goods this time.
The pack dominated to put them in the right position and the boot of a matured Freddie Burns sealed it with 25 points.
Another big test of character awaits next week when travel to Sixways. Can they be consistent?
Harlequins (beat London Welsh 40-3)
They had a lucky escape last week against Wasps and it’s fair to say London Welsh weren’t the toughest of opponents. But they did the job and got ten points from the first two games.
Sale will be a tougher opposition and they will be keen to get a good game under their belt before traveling to Welford Road for a clash against the Tigers on September 22 for a big test.
Leicester Tigers (beat Worcester 34-26)
Just like Quins, they have ten points from the first two games but they were ultra dominant and never had to try too hard.
Even if they played a bit too much in their own half at times and made some mistakes, the quality of their tries has to be a worrying side for the other teams.
They will take a more pragmatic approach in the next two weeks when they face Saracens at Wembley and Quins at home for what promises to be two mighty clashes.
London Irish (lost to Gloucester 40-31)
Defensive coach Shaun Edwards must be pulling his hair. He told The Rugby Paper a couple of weeks ago, that he wanted to reduce the points conceded to 15 points a game and discipline will be key for Irish this season.
It seems the players didn’t get the message with 80 points conceded in two games and 21 points offered to Freddie Burns from penalties.
They did well in attack to comeback into the game every time Gloucester scored but that game should have been theirs.
London Wasps (lost to Bath 30-23)
They proved they can score tries from anywhere with Christian Wade and Tom Varndell on superb form but they mustn’t get carried away and remember that they need a good platform up front to earn the right to throw the ball around.
They did it against Quins last week and they will need it week-in week-out to perform as well as they want in this tough league.
You might have the quickest wingers in the league but if the pack doesn’t give them the right platform, they’ll never see the ball.
The arrival of Stephen Jones at fly-half in the next couple of weeks will be key in that aspect.
London Welsh (lost to Harlequins 40-3)
The new boys were handed the hardest start of the season they could have imagined with games against the most successful English club in history Leicester Tigers and the reigning champions Harlequins.
The results were to be expected. Two games and two defeats for 78 points conceded.
But apart from that, they never stopped fighting and even managed to put both side on the back foot at times.
There is no doubt it will be a long season for them but if they can manage to start playing from the kick-off and score early points to build confidence they might create a few upset along the way.
Northampton (beat Exeter 24-21)
One game, two stories. Led by Dylan Hartley, above, the Saints pack was at his best yesterday. Dominant in the set pieces and relentless running around the breakdown to put the Chiefs on the back foot at will.
They should have scored at least three of four more tries if only the back line didn’t drop the ball for most of the game.
With the Pisi brothers, Vasily Artemeyev and Ben Foden they can be lethal out wide but they need a fly-half that can pass the ball properly (or kick for that matter). Ryan Lamd and Stephen Myler failed to impress but one of them will have to step up if Saints want to be seriously challenging for a trophy in May.
Sale (lost to Saracens 23-16)
A much better performance than against the Chiefs but they still need some work to be able to compete with the best in the league.
This kind of performance will help them in that direction though and Danny Cipriani‘s display for his first start was encouraging.
If his pack gives him the right platform, he will be the man to release a back line with potential.
Saracens (beat Sale 23-16)
The 2010 champions seem to have gone a step further this season. Their pack and kicking game is as good as the previous two campaigns but this time around it looks like they can also score tries.
Chris Ashton, above, and his try-scoring record arrived and they don’t want to waste him.
With Hodgson passing skills, the ball goes wide quickly and it gives another dimension to their game.
It’s easier to win scoring points five points at a time rather than three. Their clash against Tigers at Wembley on Saturday could be a cracker.
Worcester (lost to Leicester Tigers 34-26)
As Richard Hill said after the game, they might have suffered two defeats but they have played a better rugby than last season.
They were very unlucky to lose against Bath last week and conceded tries this week that only Leicester can score.
The forwards works hard while the back line has the attribute to score points and with the trusty boot of veteran Andy Goode, a win will come sooner rather than later.
The derby this Saturday against Gloucester could be the perfect way to kick off their campaign.
