I've said it many times before - TY has been a good servant to the club but has long ago gone by his sell by date.
Should not be captain and hopefully he isn't under the new coaching structure.
The kick game has taken over prem rugby. If utilised correctly can either give front foot rugby or get you out of a hole.
We are useless at it so either work on it or get it out of our game.
Sorry but GM should be no where near the squad of players.Hope SB has the brass b--ls to be his own man.
I can see players dropped or shipped out who are underperforming. Some had the opportunity to make a claim and impress the new boss.
We had an opportunity to get more than a point against another underperforming team and failed.
And what do we get - the same old well rehearsed lines.
GM is the prime example of HERO 2 ZERO.
JP14 wrote: ↑Sun Jan 26, 2020 8:53 am
Just seen the highlights, defence on Homer’s try really poor from both Olowofela and Veainu.
It really was. Murphy must have had his head in his hands. We'd defended well and controlled much of the game after half time with Bath possibly fortunate not to have conceded a penalty try to go with their yellow card.
Owolfela had a decent game and some of his kick chases in the second half helped our kicking. Stepping in as a winger is criminal though, if he'd stepped in to cut off the passing lane then that would have been forgivable but to step in for a double tackle really isn't excusable. TV's attempted tackle was poor technique, he was too flat footed and so had no drive into the tackle allowing Homer to step out of it.
JP14 wrote: ↑Sun Jan 26, 2020 8:38 am
For me, especially away, tactics have really let us down
You mean we actually had tactics yesterday?!!
Of course Tigers had tactics here they are:
1. Am I a Forward? Yes - then head down and run into someone.
2. Am I a Centre or Wing? Yes - then pass to a Half Back or Full Back.
3. Am I a Half Back or Full Back? Yes - then hoof it somewhere.
That sounds about right! But you forgot:
Am I in a position where I should hang on to the ball, go to ground a recycle it? Yes - then go for a ridiculous offload and turnover possession
Oakham lad born and bred, Tigers season ticket holder who is enjoying steady progression back towards the good old days!
1. Am I a Forward? Yes - then head down and run into someone.
2. Am I a Centre or Wing? Yes - then pass to a Half Back or Full Back.
3. Am I a Half Back or Full Back? Yes - then hoof it somewhere.
That sounds about right! But you forgot:
Am I in a position where I should hang on to the ball, go to ground a recycle it? Yes - then go for a ridiculous offload and turnover possession
When we offloaded we made ground. There was too much contact and recycle which made no impact on the gain line. You have to be a bit more imaginative to break down defences. We were particularly unlucky that Bateman mullered two breaks one by dropping the ball under no pressure and then by offloading to a Bath defender instead one of the three Tigers support players.
If anything I'd like to see more interplay between the forwards. Bristol used short pop passes between forwards to devastating effect Vs Glaws yesterday and Sarries have been doing it for years. Create some doubt in defences rather than making it easy to target our solitary runner.
1. Am I a Forward? Yes - then head down and run into someone.
2. Am I a Centre or Wing? Yes - then pass to a Half Back or Full Back.
3. Am I a Half Back or Full Back? Yes - then hoof it somewhere.
That sounds about right! But you forgot:
Am I in a position where I should hang on to the ball, go to ground a recycle it? Yes - then go for a ridiculous offload and turnover possession
When we offloaded we made ground. There was too much contact and recycle which made no impact on the gain line. You have to be a bit more imaginative to break down defences. We were particularly unlucky that Bateman mullered two breaks one by dropping the ball under no pressure and then by offloading to a Bath defender instead one of the three Tigers support players.
If anything I'd like to see more interplay between the forwards. Bristol used short pop passes between forwards to devastating effect Vs Glaws yesterday and Sarries have been doing it for years. Create some doubt in defences rather than making it easy to target our solitary runner.
I completely agree that offloading is an essential part of the game and we must do more of it but with the caveat it’s from an offload-able position. I’m thinking Bateman, White and a few others who either offloaded forward or to Bath players!
If we can judge when the offload is on then I’m all for it, if it’s not then don’t force it
Oakham lad born and bred, Tigers season ticket holder who is enjoying steady progression back towards the good old days!
Sometimes the failure of an offload is down to poor support lines, it's not only down to the ball carrier.
Once you break the gain line and take contact, you have to either offload or recycle very very quickly otherwise the defence will have time to compose themselves. A failed offload might look bad, but it's no worse than allowing the move to slowly peter out because no one was willing to take a risk.
For too long we've only offloaded when going backwards and panicking, it's refreshing to see the players try to do it when we have momentum even if it doesn't always come off. Overall it might have failed more often than it succeeded yesterday, but the first step on the road to success is actually having a go.
The more we try to offload, the more players will be in the habit of expecting it and the more often it will work.
Tiglon wrote: ↑Sun Jan 26, 2020 12:41 pm
The more we try to offload, the more players will be in the habit of expecting it and the more often it will work.
Agreed and I am definitely glad to see more of it in our gameplan. Whites offload to a Bath player 5m out after a great break was slightly frustrating though! But yes, at least we are trying something new!
Oakham lad born and bred, Tigers season ticket holder who is enjoying steady progression back towards the good old days!
It might work if we attack in patterns, which we never do. Watch any NZ domestic team and the way they shift their forwards in pods of 3 around the field, its almost a work of art. Most of the time our lads are strung out like they're queueing at the bar.
Tiglon wrote: ↑Sun Jan 26, 2020 12:41 pm
Sometimes the failure of an offload is down to poor support lines, it's not only down to the ball carrier.
Once you break the gain line and take contact, you have to either offload or recycle very very quickly otherwise the defence will have time to compose themselves. A failed offload might look bad, but it's no worse than allowing the move to slowly peter out because no one was willing to take a risk.
For too long we've only offloaded when going backwards and panicking, it's refreshing to see the players try to do it when we have momentum even if it doesn't always come off. Overall it might have failed more often than it succeeded yesterday, but the first step on the road to success is actually having a go.
The more we try to offload, the more players will be in the habit of expecting it and the more often it will work.
Agree with this. The support is often slow to react to breaks which, for me, is symptomatic of a team low on confidence.
Some points about the game. For me the difference between the sides was Burns - his passing and kicking were a class above everyone else on the pitch. Tigers are always going to struggle with both half backs away - Hardwick is decent player but not (yet) anywhere near Ford. Whites's call (or who ever made the play call) to box kick in the final minutes was right IMHO. They are on their 22 with a LBP; playing out from there is a risk (turnover or penalty with a kick to the corner) of losing the LBP. Exit with a box kick and hope to force an error is the rational tactical call.
TBH I wouldn't get hopes up too high for the rest of the season. The side is back waiting for a new head coach. Players will once again be wondering whether they fit into Borthwick's thinking. The club is still up for sale. All that uncertainty will feed into performances on the pitch. Gramsci would understand: “The old is dying and the new cannot be born. In this interregnum a great variety of morbid symptoms can appear.”
BengalTiger wrote: ↑Sun Jan 26, 2020 6:14 am
The lineout is a mess we lose the game, have I heard that before?
Under pressure Tom Youngs could not hit a cows behind with a banjo, for how many years has that been true?
We have one consistent (senior squad) Hooker at the club (imho) but he rarely even makes it onto the bench sadly. Such a shame we let Thacker and McGuigan go.. how we could use them now. I sincerely hope this is an area that is completely overhauled during the summer
this is interesting.....wondered about Kerr's (continued) absence ; as for Thacker and Mcguigan , irrespective of their relative merits or weaknesses the question needs to be asked as to whether they (either) would actually get picked.
Or indeed perhaps more pertinently what does it take for Tom Y not to be an automatic starter ?
Seemingly heading rapidly toward senility .....Not long or far to go now , in fact, getting worse daily.....
Perhaps some people in here should take a deep breath & realise GM isn't on the actual pitch, far too often over the past few seasons its been the senior players letting us down.
Not that long ago the starts the past two weeks away from home would of led to a thrashing, so we are moving forward.
What we certainly need is a new captain, we have an outside voice coming in & hopefully some player upgrades. We need to get rid of some of the dead weight out of the squad, of which there is still quite a bit, trust in the younger players coming through & pick square pegs in the square holes.
