Team for London Irish

[Leicestertinytiger]

Surely the team has to be rotated and some fresh players brought into the XV. I would go with, assuming players like Barrow Batemen etc aren’t available. Kalamafoni could probably do with a rest too.

Always been impressed with Holmes, don’t understand why he hasn’t been given more game time.

15. May
14. Thompstone
13. Tuilagi
12. Toomua
11. Holmes
10. Ford (C)
9. Harrison
1. Mulipola
2. Polata - Nau
3. Cole
4. Wells
5. Kitchener
6. Hamilton
7. Evans
8. Mapalangi

Traynor Youngs Bateman Williams O’Connor Youngs Owen Malouf

[Spicer]

We need to win this match. After this we have two nothing European matches as we are out of the competition. Our players may be average but we should beat Irish who will be going down.

I'd rotate for the European matches giving the finge/promising players a chance to prove they should replace the current first team. A la Evans, Hardwick etc

[Jimmy Skitz]

15. Worth
14. Malouf
13. Tuilagi
12. Toomua
11. May
10. G. Ford
9. Harrison
1. Logo
2. Polota-Nau
3. Cole
4. Wells
5. Kitchener
6. Mapapalangi
7. Evans
8. Kalamafone

[strawclearer]

We're effectively out of Europe so we should put out the best 15/23 we've got for every Premiership game - starting with the Not-Nots. Let's get 5 points and some much needed practice at playing a team game!

[ellis9]

We're effectively out of Europe so we should put out the best 15/23 we've got for every Premiership game - starting with the Not-Nots. Let's get 5 points and some much needed practice at playing a team game!

We have to rest the England players at some point so we cannot play them in all of the remaining Premiership games.

[Rugbyflanker]

Who said the England players were our best players Cole is back to his very best but our England HB pairing has been meh for a while. Id like to see Harrison,Toomua given a chance.

[Tigerbeat]

Rest them for the European games...Premiership has more importance

[strawclearer]

Rest them for the European games...Premiership has more importance

Exactly. Right now, training sessions have more importance than European games!

[TigerCam]

Any XV+ with some mental and physical backbone would be nice?

[Rugbyflanker]

Mulipola
TPN
Cole
Wells
Maksimiwi
Hamilton
Evans
Kalamafoni
Harrison
Ford
Malouf
Toomua
Tuilagi
Thompstone
May

Rizzo,Thacker,Bateman,Kitchener,Mapapalangi,Youngs,Ford,Tait

[strawclearer]

Subject to fitness but guessing OTY tweaked a hamstring...

15 Mat Tait
14 Adam Thompstone
13 Manu Tuilagi
12 Matt Toomua
11 Jonny May
10 George Ford
9 Ben Youngs
1 Logovi’i Mulipola
2 Tatafu Polota-Nau
3 Dan Cole
4 Harry Wells
5 Graham Kitchener
6 Valentino Mapapalangi
7 Brendan O'Connor
8 Sione Kalamafoni

Replacements
16 Michele Rizzo
17 Greg Bateman
18 Pat Cilliers
19 Mike Williams
20 Luke Hamilton
21 Sam Harrison
22 Nick Malouf
23 Jonah Holmes

[MrPartridge]

I have one wish - a mobile back row. None of the incumbents deserve to play against Irish IMO. I’d like to see two from Evans, O’Connor or Thacker in the starting back row. Apart from at scrum time our forwards are awful. Lightweight and lumbering. Let’s get a bit of pace in the back row and compete at the breakdown. It will never happen but Thacker would make more yards from the base of our scrum than Kalamafoni.

Great shout from JS for Worth at 15. He looked a prospect last year. We can put him and Evans in the same ‘talented players we’ve not developed in the last 12 months’ tray.

As for Malouf... a vaguely promising start has gone wrong. His positional play is poor. Holmes should be above him in the pecking order IMO.

[WiggoTiger]

Any XV+ with some mental and physical backbone would be nice?

+1

[NONAME]

The problem is not mobility but physicality. Our guys put in a great effort against Exeter, a team built on Physicality but once they got on top through our error then the game was over. Tigers need one or two players in the forwards who actually scare the opposition and are respected through out the game. When AM joined the Tigers he began to move out the less athletic forwards and put more athletic ones in place. They are good players but you still need the grinders, the enforcers, who will break the line and make meters.

Matt O'Connor is doing a fine job with the players he has but they aren't in many instances the players he really wants. Our backline will come good and the season is not yet over. A run of 7 games moved Wasps up to second place, who is the best team for putting a run in after Christmas....I'm looking forward to Exeter v Tigers playoff and a Wasps v Leicester final!

Remember we are undefeated this year!

[Leicestertinytiger]

Am I the only one who doesn’t rate Malouf at all? Obviously a good finisher but his positioning is awful and is terrible under the high ball. Might make it at 13 but not as a winger. Don’t understand why we signed him when we have 4 other wingers, let him play in the A League to learn the 15 man game.

Whenever I’ve seen Holmes play he has been great, good support lines and reading of the play. Why doesn’t he get in the team I don’t know, has shown much more potential.