Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

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Tigerbeat
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by Tigerbeat »

25tiger wrote: Sun Apr 28, 2019 10:26 am Whilst clearly we aren’t playing anywhere near well enough to justify beating anyone on reputation, yesterday was a game that we should have won. I personally felt that during the second half we wasted our opportunities by going for penalties instead of the corner. I know the lineout hasn’t functioned consistently but scoring tries was the only way we were ever going to beat a team that comes to play and wins with 5/7s not 3s like Bristol. Lacking confidence, leadership or just tactical nous? Either way that ended the game for us.
In tight games like yesterday, taking the points was the correct decision, even Pat Howard stated that on the terraces......it put Tigers in the lead and extended it to 6 points.....if they had gone for the corner and come away with nothing there would be more people saying the wrong decision was made.....Remember the England World Cup game against Wales?
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by 25tiger »

Tigerbeat wrote: Sun Apr 28, 2019 10:31 am In tight games like yesterday, taking the points was the correct decision, even Pat Howard stated that on the terraces......it put Tigers in the lead and extended it to 6 points.....if they had gone for the corner and come away with nothing there would be more people saying the wrong decision was made.....Remember the England World Cup game against Wales?
We were playing Bristol at home in a position of relative safety from relegation, all the momentum was on our side at that point in the game and Bristol had given away multiple penalties... the shackles should have been off.
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by SthrnTiger »

Scuttle wrote: Sun Apr 28, 2019 10:10 am After yesterday I am left wondering if the problem is all in the mind. On balance I thought the score was a fair reflection of the game; I don't think either team played well but neither do I think either team played badly. It was a tight, tense game reflecting the league positions of both teams. The difference between the 2 was defence; Bristol we're up quickly, made their tackles and closed down our space which meant we were pretty lateral in attack. We missed tackles. Otherwise I didn't see much difference. For Tigers I think some are struggling to handle the pressure, whether their own or that of fan expectation, and it is pervading all areas of their play. I also felt there may have been some complacency yesterday, not a conscious "we don't need to try too hard to win this one", but more one brought on by Newcastle losing the night before, something more subtle. I just didn't see the same "up and at them" fizz that we saw against Newcastle. I realise my ideas of pressure and complacency may seem mutually exclusive but I feel the answer lies in their minds somewhere along that continuum. I do think we have some good players not playing to their potential and the good players in good teams are good at playing what is on front of them; that comes from confidence, which is all in the mind.
I didn’t watch the game but I imagine the lateral back play was due to a lack of any gainline players in the backs, very difficult to score tries without any these days. England managed it during the Ford-Farrell era but that back line was full of pace and had B. Vunipola at the top of his game.
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by ourla »

I haven't seen the game but I think it's been clear for a while that nothing major is going to change this season in regard of team performance. It was all about securing enough points to secure safety and starting to get a coaching and playing squad built for next season. Whilst we are a carrying a bit of dead wood there is plenty of established and importantly young talent in that squad. What you'd hope is for the new recruits coming into add to that and that the coaching team can rebuild the grit and confidence we're going to need to turn things around.
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by TigerCam »

kend wrote: Sat Apr 27, 2019 8:28 pm
FrontRowUnionMember wrote: Sat Apr 27, 2019 7:23 pm Ultimately I fail to see any discipline, gameplan or structure imparted by this current coaching setup.
Yes, if you want to wear the rose tinted glasses, you may look at the initial declared recruitment plus those rumoured to be following, and hope for a better outcome, but ultimately I’m not seeing any evidence of coaching improvement with the current lot, so how is that going to change.
Look at today, we’ve been turned over by what really is a fairly average looking Bristol side. Man for man, we’re they better calibre players? Or are we that poor collectively.
I see Sarries and Exeter, the current pace setters, and regardless of the starting lineups they field, I see a clear structure and style that surpasses the player selection. With us I don’t see anything like that, it all seems hopeful on individuals to give moments of inspiration.
Four coaches (five if you count Burke) in quick succession and sacking MoC one game into the season is likely to do that to you. The current setup hasn't had a stable base to build from so it's actually hard to judge. We might have been man-for-man better but how often have Toomua and Smith played together?

It's been said before; it took Sarries some while to get to their current position. Didn't happen overnight.
The Tigers have had 2-3 seasons to reset and sort out! The only thing that gets reset is the panic button season on season and the only thing that gets sorted out out is that there is a lack of direction!! I believe it was Cockers that said Thacker was not big enough? As Lam says, if you are good enough then you are big enough as was proved by Thacker not just yesterday but in all the games he has played for Bristol. Swapping Slater for May was another really stupid decision IMO as are many others!! Get the Generals on the park to set the plays and then let the backs finish the job. As good as May, is any winger with half his talent, when put in the right place will finish.
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by JGT57 »

Does anyone know where we signed our new lock from? He played yesterday- referred to as Skinner in commentary?
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by WhitecapTiger »

25tiger wrote: Sun Apr 28, 2019 10:46 am
Tigerbeat wrote: Sun Apr 28, 2019 10:31 am In tight games like yesterday, taking the points was the correct decision, even Pat Howard stated that on the terraces......it put Tigers in the lead and extended it to 6 points.....if they had gone for the corner and come away with nothing there would be more people saying the wrong decision was made.....Remember the England World Cup game against Wales?
We were playing Bristol at home in a position of relative safety from relegation, all the momentum was on our side at that point in the game and Bristol had given away multiple penalties... the shackles should have been off.
We had already beento the corner several times and came away with nothing.

But let's do the same again and expect differing outcomes....
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by Scott1 »

Someone said yesterday what did Thacker do that our hookers didn't,well he ran 10/22 metres with 2 clean breaks and 2 defenders beaten while making 19 tackles only missing one while scoring the winning try. So not much really :smt005
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by Dangerous4 »

This is yet another game I want to forget. :smt022
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by 25tiger »

WhitecapTiger wrote: Sun Apr 28, 2019 2:16 pm We had already beento the corner several times and came away with nothing.

But let's do the same again and expect differing outcomes....
Like kicking for 3, inevitably messing up the restart and gifting them points with petulant errors and wasteful handling...

Happened game after game for 2 seasons but let’s not let the truth get in the way of a good discussion!
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by WhitecapTiger »

25tiger wrote: Sun Apr 28, 2019 3:01 pm
WhitecapTiger wrote: Sun Apr 28, 2019 2:16 pm We had already beento the corner several times and came away with nothing.

But let's do the same again and expect differing outcomes....
Like kicking for 3, inevitably messing up the restart and gifting them points with petulant errors and wasteful handling...

Happened game after game for 2 seasons but let’s not let the truth get in the way of a good discussion!
So, we can't convert lineout drives and we're :censored: at taking restarts. Where would you like to take the point next? We're also generally :censored: at chasing or taking our own kick-offs. We had kicked to corner on several previous occasions 'in this game' and got nothing, take 3 - get 'something' out of possession....I'd suggest that's what G Ford thought after seeing numerous attacking lineout opportunities 'inevitably messed up'.

That our players then fluffed their restart lines is immaterial, they may (probably would) have done that restarting from a try/conversion.

3 points moved the scoreboard, gave the players/supporters a small momentary lift, chance to gather thoughts and breath and some space on the scoreboard.....our 'attacking' play had little chance of doing that....momentum? Don't make me laugh....we were in possession but had little real momentum in reality,

That's not letting truth (or indeed someone's subjective opinion) get in the way of anything and It's been happening for far more than 2 seasons if you wish to go down that track.

I'm normally screaming for kicks to the corner but even I could see it was futile based on earlier failures to convert chances, dawdling, labouring and wasting opportunities that most other clubs stick away in about 10% of the time our huffing and puffing takes. Doesn't matter what we wanted to happen or thought could happen....in cold light of that match (and others) we were never going to score from a lineout, too laboured, too static, too likely to mess up the throw/jump/catch/set/drive and too easily read by a defence that inevitably gets ages to reset due to our ponderous attack options/decisions and tendency to have more meetings and discussion than the People's Front of Judea before doing anything.

Our players have given up points, possession and matches in every aspect of play this season...and others....through petulant errors and wasteful handling, it's not limited to restarts from successful penalty kicks.

Messing up (failing to convert) close range lineout drives has happened far more over several previous seasons than messed up restarts.
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by ashleytiger »

You think we may have a problem then? :smt010
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by WhitecapTiger »

ashleytiger wrote: Sun Apr 28, 2019 4:43 pm You think we may have a problem then? :smt010
One or two :smt002 :smt005 :smt005
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by Bristol Tiger »

Traveller wrote: Sat Apr 27, 2019 10:53 pm Does it really matter who does and doesn't take the field. The implication is that by selecting a XV they will somehow perform as a collective - a team - who tackle for each other, clear rucks for each other. You get this jist. We know now that just won't happen. There will be some pointless article in the Mercury on Wednesday about 'learning from our mistakes', on Thursday there will be another one along the lines of 'we can't afford to give away soft tries', on Friday there will be a 'looking to battle until the bitter end. Pride in the jersey etc' article. On Friday evening around 10pm this forum will be alive with reports on how we gave away 20 soft points in the first fifteen minutes, Toomua got a yellow card, the line out collapsed, we were slow at the breakdown and got pinged by the Ref, and how the attack is more predictable than Trumps views on Mexicans.
This made me laugh (in that British black humour way). Unfortunately, I think you are spot on ...
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Re: Tigers v Bristol - 27th April 2019

Post by beech »

Having just watched Worcester play Gloucester I am quite depressed. Worcester put up a tremendous fight and won thus ensuring their premiership status next season. If Tigers had shown the same committment yesterday we would be safe now. I have tried to stay positive this year but, I am afraid, the way the team is playing my faith is seriously being put to the test.
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