Stade Francais

[RagingBull]

I would like to see:
1. Ayerza
2. Youngs
3. Cole
4. Slater/Williams
5. Fitzgerald
6. Williams/Croft
7. O'Connor
8. Crane
9. Harrison
10. Williams
11. Goneva
12. Bai or Smith
13. Betham
14. Veainu
15. Tait

16. Ghiraldini/Thacker
17. Balmain
18. Logo/Brugnara
19. Barrow
20. Mcaffery/Pearce
21. Kitto
22. Bell
23. Thompstone

Would prob start williams @ Lock regardless of slater being fit and have slater on the bench.

Also have Youngs on the bench,

Goneva and Thompstone is prob tough choice anyone know the weather forecast for Friday?

[drc_007]

I thought Thompstone has had a great start to the season, seems to have really upped his game. I would have thought he has earned a starting spot.

[Chobbsy]

Lets hope that some of our hurt players are back and avaiable for selection - desperate for Marcos and i would repeat some of what I said on another thread -
I would deffo have O'Connor playing next week - no ifs or buts along with Pearce and Croft. Back them up with either Williams, McCaffery or Crane. We need to understand the importance of the win next week AND denying them a BP. I would also have Harrison start with BYB on the bench. The BP we conceeded to Ulster last year came back to bite us in the bum. Back 3 would for me be Thompstone, Tait and Veainu with Betham and Bai in the centre.

As we have a shortage of good centres I would like to see Betham and Tait

[RagingBull]

Maybe IF Bell is fit we could look @

9) harrison
10) Bell
11) Veainu
12) Williams
13) Betham
14) Goneva/Thompstone
15) Tait

Might be to risky though for a big game.

Could be one to look at maybe against Treviso with youngs @ 9.

[PAW]

"As we have a shortage of good centres I would like to see Betham and Tait"

It would be exciting, but yet another combination. JDV may only be 3-4 games away so maybe keep some continuity until then (injuries allowing).

Mind you, to counter my own argument, I am not sure we have played the same combination twice so maybe stretching the definition of 'continuity' a bit.

[Bill W (2)]

I have heard from Remi, Ze Stade Fan.

Alas he is lacking funds to visit WR but looks forward to welcoming us to Paris!

[Noddy555]

Is it ominous that stadt won last weekend or do we excuse the once in a season poor performance from les jaunes de Clermont Auvergne?

[Cagey Tiger]

Is it ominous that stadt won last weekend or do we excuse the once in a season poor performance from les jaunes de Clermont Auvergne?

I would say ominous in the respect that they may be getting out of the doldrums and back to the sort of form that we were expecting from them before the season started.

[Ze Stade Fan]

Beat top of the table Clermont!

Friday night could be interesting!!

KEEP THE FAITH!

Where is Reme?

Le Stade Fan?

Has not posted for a little while. Likely be at WR Friday though!

Are you there, mon ami?

Alas, alas, after a rowdy RWC2015 (five games, three of them in Cardiff!) the money is short my dear Tigers. And work being work I have little time to post. Still...

All I know is that there were post match declarations from Gonzalo Quesada and Sergio Parisse caught in the dressing room (www.stade.fr, for those who speak French with an Argentinian accent). In brief "dat wazz a grrrreat victory tonighte, now let us dink of Europe, only Europe and play dose two games at full blast, hombre, we'll think of Top14 afterwards."

To be fair I don't quite believe this...we still have a vast injury problem, and the club is reluctant to communicate on who is gonna be fit when... Our back row suffers a lot, there. Lakafia (twisted ankle after a scooter accident) the undomitable Burban (twisted knee) shall miss Welford Road. Jono Ross and Parisse might need a rest. Are we going to rely on the kids ? De Giovanni, Ugena are brave boys, extremely committed. Are they of Welford Roadish nature? It is in doubt.

Still we are only 11th of a top14 with a tough game ahead of us in Grenoble. What I do not know are the real intentions of Mr Savare, our sugar daddy who, after injecting around €30 M in the club is said to be reluctant to pay more. We rely on a very, very limited crew, with some unquestionable stars and a golden generation of unbelievable kids who saved us from the ruin when we were muck and mire.

So here are two tentative compositions, indicating whether we're letting the game down or are coming up to the challenge...

The kids :

Zhvania - Sempéré - Kubriashvili (still injured?) or Oléon
Flanquart - Gabrillagues
Ugena - Ross - De Giovanni
Daguin - Morné Steyn (right, not quite a kid)

Sinzelle Bosman Doumayrou Arias (Ole Pop' Arias, still young in his head)
Bonneval

The old seasoned warriors

Van der Merwe (one of those...) Bonfils Slimani
Papé - Flanquart (or Pyle if fit)
Ross - Parisse - Ugena
Dupuy (rings a bell, hey?) Plisson
Sinzelle Danty Waisea Arias
Camara

Age is not the matter but rather quality, based on my high falootin' scientific device called "my nose". But whatever happens I know that Gonzalo Quesada will make me wrong, blessed be the champion of France !

[Hinckley Bob]

Jono Ross and Parisse might need a rest. Are we going to rely on the kids ?

Please think of the kids and give Parisse a rest.

[tigercaspian]

Welcome back ZSF and as usual some good and interesting thoughts.
I agree ......please leave Parisse in Paris!!

[Bill W (2)]

We look forward to welcoming Stade Francais to WR albeit without ZSF.

May the best team win - or failing that Tigers!

KEEP THE FAITH!

[GS]

The backs are still a work in progress I feel, but plenty of promise. My fear is that after a prolonged exposure the England contingent have caught the same lurgy that affected Flood when he lost his ability to kick after a prolonged exposure to the England set-up. We do have an option for YBY starting but Cole and OTY have to start no matter how off their game they are. We have 3 international LH's and they are all crook and as a result we are very thin at TH too. We need a large step forward from the tight five to stand any chance on Friday.

[ourla]

Friday night could be interesting!!

Where is Reme?

Le Stade Fan?

Has not posted for a little while. Likely be at WR Friday though!

Are you there, mon ami?

Alas, alas, after a rowdy RWC2015 (five games, three of them in Cardiff!) the money is short my dear Tigers. And work being work I have little time to post. Still...

All I know is that there were post match declarations from Gonzalo Quesada and Sergio Parisse caught in the dressing room (http://www.stade.fr, for those who speak French with an Argentinian accent). In brief "dat wazz a grrrreat victory tonighte, now let us dink of Europe, only Europe and play dose two games at full blast, hombre, we'll think of Top14 afterwards."

To be fair I don't quite believe this...we still have a vast injury problem, and the club is reluctant to communicate on who is gonna be fit when... Our back row suffers a lot, there. Lakafia (twisted ankle after a scooter accident) the undomitable Burban (twisted knee) shall miss Welford Road. Jono Ross and Parisse might need a rest. Are we going to rely on the kids ? De Giovanni, Ugena are brave boys, extremely committed. Are they of Welford Roadish nature? It is in doubt.

Still we are only 11th of a top14 with a tough game ahead of us in Grenoble. What I do not know are the real intentions of Mr Savare, our sugar daddy who, after injecting around €30 M in the club is said to be reluctant to pay more. We rely on a very, very limited crew, with some unquestionable stars and a golden generation of unbelievable kids who saved us from the ruin when we were muck and mire.

So here are two tentative compositions, indicating whether we're letting the game down or are coming up to the challenge...

The kids :

Zhvania - Sempéré - Kubriashvili (still injured?) or Oléon
Flanquart - Gabrillagues
Ugena - Ross - De Giovanni
Daguin - Morné Steyn (right, not quite a kid)

Sinzelle Bosman Doumayrou Arias (Ole Pop' Arias, still young in his head)
Bonneval

The old seasoned warriors

Van der Merwe (one of those...) Bonfils Slimani
Papé - Flanquart (or Pyle if fit)
Ross - Parisse - Ugena
Dupuy (rings a bell, hey?) Plisson
Sinzelle Danty Waisea Arias
Camara

Age is not the matter but rather quality, based on my high falootin' scientific device called "my nose". But whatever happens I know that Gonzalo Quesada will make me wrong, blessed be the champion of France !

That, my son, is a fine post.

Personally in European terms Friday is a gimme. I don't like to make a big thing on the 5th game but it is season defining. B ugger, that is kind of a big thing. And it's only Monday - ish.

[TheproudTiger]

Ahhhh its nice to hear again from my favourite overseas fan "ZSF" and as always a very interesting post full if interesting observations.