Cardiff Tig wrote: ↑Thu May 23, 2019 5:54 pm
Do you think Cipriani would have performed as well as Ford has this season if you swapped the teams they were playing in? And would Ford have got player of the season if he was in the Gloucester team?
No to the first, and definitely yes to the second. Cipriani is a gifted player. He has class, and he stands out. So is George, and with more experience, he can get even better. As for Cips in Japan? I would have him there. He can change a game. He's got a brilliant rugby brain. His basics are as good as anyone in the game. He has vision and when you need to come from behind, with 10 minutes to go, I'd even bring him on to play out of position. He's a winner.
It's all hypothetical but I think yes to the first and no to the second.
In my opinion Cipriani would've taken control of the backs and had them running those numbers at pace off early phase ball or without numbers he gives width a chance, it's what he does and something that he has taken with him from Wasps to Gloucester and to the benefit of the entire Gloucester set up.
It's an opinion amongst the regular crowd that I mingle with that the Tigers backs have not been as good as the sum of their parts and have looked ineffective because of indecision by half backs.
If you are going late then you go with numbers, if you are going without numbers then you go early, the playmakers have been totally incapable of implementing these most simple basics.
Leicester have May on the wing and the bloke has rarely seen the ball in any space.
BFG wrote: ↑Sun May 26, 2019 4:16 pm
Leicester have May on the wing and the bloke has rarely seen the ball in any space.
Maybe not, but I believe he's still equal top try scorer in the Premiership. If he'd have had more space he'd have had a hatful!
I absolutely agree but all he really needs is the ball early, he'll make some extra space.
How Leicester have struggled with May on the wing and Tuilagi at outside centre is just beyond belief.
The decision making inside them has been poor to selfish, in my opinion.
More likely the problem is woeful defence. Knowing that you will need to score more than 30points per game is a challenge.
We need to defend better. Our forwards need to secure more ball and create space for the backs to exploit. Dan Carter would have struggled with our 4-8 level of performance.
mol2 wrote: ↑Sun May 26, 2019 6:09 pm
More likely the problem is woeful defence. Knowing that you will need to score more than 30points per game is a challenge.
We need to defend better. Our forwards need to secure more ball and create space for the backs to exploit. Dan Carter would have struggled with our 4-8 level of performance.
Leicester have had plenty of good possession in matches this past season, it's how they have used it that has been the bigger issue.
Accepted the forwards haven't been of the old smash it DNA of Tigers teams past but at the same time they haven't been as bad as folk are making out.
This is the crux of the issue here, Tigers are too used to smashing it up and think it's the cure for everything, that's why the injuries are regularly more than most others.
Slow ball with BY or White waving their arms at the ref for a decision when the ball is clearly present to be dug out quickly isn't the forwards fault, and when the ball is quick from 9 then these silly circle patterns around the 10 and him getting himself confused heads up on where best to give it also isnt the forwards fault.
What many folk don't realise is that Sarries often have a plan of how to play successfully off limited possession, and plans of how to defend differing situations.
No team does or is going to hog all the good possession, others have just been much better with what they do get.
Last edited by BFG on Mon May 27, 2019 12:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Good post BFG but to slightly correct you Exeter play nearly every game with the lion's share of possession and territory but they too are sometimes lost when opposing packs have parity or get on top. That's down to their halfback pairing too which imo isn't good enough to take them to the next level.
"Rugby isn't a contact sport,ballroom dancing is a contact sport. Rugby is a collision sport" Heyneke Meyer
Scott1 wrote: ↑Mon May 27, 2019 12:19 pm
Good post BFG but to slightly correct you Exeter play nearly every game with the lion's share of possession and territory but they too are sometimes lost when opposing packs have parity or get on top. That's down to their halfback pairing too which imo isn't good enough to take them to the next level.
The Exeter pack is very measured in contact, they don't go stupid and as a result they are controlled and do possession well, they don't blow themselves out in matches and manage to put a full season together and without too much injury disruption.
However when it comes to the really big matches then being so measured in contact is a much bigger test for them.
I have a suspicion from signings that the Tigers vision is to smash it harder in the future, they have been doing that for a while but just not very well with it leading to things like injuries and red cards.
None of it will matter anyway if 9's are going to carry on waving their arms about or if the 10 is going to run circles ten metres back from the gain line then they won't be able to smash a raspberry doughnut!
All 8 of Chiefs pack can carry though which helps,if you look at their stats by game all of them will carry many times for positive metres and that's tough to defend against for 80 minutes where as with our pack I don't think I've ever saw more than 4 be in positive metres and it usually can be as low as 2 but usually averages around 3,add the missed tackles to that and you've got no chance of winning games!
"Rugby isn't a contact sport,ballroom dancing is a contact sport. Rugby is a collision sport" Heyneke Meyer
mol2 wrote: ↑Sun May 26, 2019 6:09 pm
More likely the problem is woeful defence. Knowing that you will need to score more than 30points per game is a challenge.
We need to defend better. Our forwards need to secure more ball and create space for the backs to exploit. Dan Carter would have struggled with our 4-8 level of performance.
Leicester have had plenty of good possession in matches this past season, it's how they have used it that has been the bigger issue.
Accepted the forwards haven't been of the old smash it DNA of Tigers teams past but at the same time they haven't been as bad as folk are making out.
This is the crux of the issue here, Tigers are too used to smashing it up and think it's the cure for everything, that's why the injuries are regularly more than most others.
Slow ball with BY or White waving their arms at the ref for a decision when the ball is clearly present to be dug out quickly isn't the forwards fault, and when the ball is quick from 9 then these silly circle patterns around the 10 and him getting himself confused heads up on where best to give it also isnt the forwards fault.
What many folk don't realise is that Sarries often have a plan of how to play successfully off limited possession, and plans of how to defend differing situations.
No team does or is going to hog all the good possession, others have just been much better with what they do get.
Sarries have that incredible kick chase. They know they can kick long and high with their defence swarming all over the catcher. If they don't come up with the ball they move the ball far away from their try line and then have that defence trying to nick a penalty. Turning defence into offence.
