COCKERS OUT! ....and take that grey shirt with you!

[Big Dai]

Dismal, pathetic, lacklustre, gutless. Just a few of the words hurled at the screen during this performance. I expected a loss but frankly the score flattered the Tigers. Well played the Saints, You were class today.

I've just corrected the spelling of shirt in the subject field to include the 'r' .....a Freudian slip perhaps. The squad has far too many weak points for my liking this year. The pivotal positions of 10 and 2 look particularly strained and with flood off and hurting the thought of Staunton in at 10 gives me the heebie jeebies. With the departed Vesty doing well, for all teams BATH, (I mean Bath for flips sake!) it really makes one want to spit.

It's an understatement to say Tigers must improve but the one sumptuous move for the first try did show promise of what could be delivered. I believe others will watch the performances this year and find easier targets to exploit than they did last year.

[Big Dai]

......Huh......Why did that submit before I was ready.......(just like Tigers first 6 minutes today!)

So the headline might be premature.....and the shirt may yet prove to be lucky but I fear the squad has too many holes in it to do well this year. the front line picks are good, but injury and internationals will expose the flaws.

Moves have been badly managed.

[Big Dai]

............I'll be soothed by my post dinner Remy soon.......but for now I'm seething!

[Darc Tiger]

We always lose the first game.

But there were things that worked for us today. We just looked so rusty and ill disciplined, particularly in the first half. We didnt turn up until it was too late though.

Need to work hard to sort out the discipline that could have had Saints 20-30 points ahead by half time, and shake off that rust that cost us 14 sloppy points at the start.

Im not hitting my panic button yet. But obviously we must do better, and play with the same urgency we did at the end for entire matches.

[Andy W]

...well in fairness we are no worse off than last season i.e. taking nothing away from the 'gardens, and we still managed to win the title last year!

That said, I would agree that we looked a bit "under cooked", and same as last season we rather slept walked into the game, seemingly unaware of the onslaught that was bound to happen - havent learnt that lesson. We left plenty of points in the pitch though, which, while never good, does show that we could still easily have made say 30, which means something.

I think if Tigers line out had functioned as well as Saints' then we would have at least one more point, possibly more, to shout about. Cockers will be annoyed about the set piece.

It was a shame when Flood departed as he was playing well (ex the goal kicking perhaps, and putting his first two kicks straight to Foden), and we missed his direction. It was awful seeing Youngs crabbing 20 yards sideways, on so many occassions, looking for some structure or a runner...you wonder what they spent pre season doing.

And I take the point about strength in depth. The 2nd row didnt look up to it today, and the back row looked like a reasoable Premiership back row, as opposed to the best in the land, or Europe, which I guess we should aspire to.

So, work to do, which will happen, and am not worried as long as Croft/Crane/Flood play enough games for us one way or the other.

As for the grey shirts, well they are self-evidently rubbish, and I didnt enjoy being told by the website that "blue is so last year", when I had bought my daughter one...

Onwards and upwards.

[maxy437]

The whole pack looked totally uninterested today, and things only got worse when Staunton came on. Both meant that youngs didn't have a great game. Lacked direction and enough ball.

On the bright side, Cockers will have them fired up for next week. Should be looking to fix mistakes

[Ian Cant]

Was at Saints and it wasn't all doom and gloom. manu looked great when he came on and we must play Amorisino to have some speed. saints chased very well and we didn't. Discipline was woeful and ref pearson was right to ping us.
This league will be tough but we can rise to the top. All make lots of noise next week and I do agree that the away shirt is awful!

[WiggoTiger]

Agree with Big Dai am very worried at 2 and 10, Duffey was shocking throwing in and Staunton in for his kicking!!!
Why not put 12trees in at 10 and give us a more running attacker, too slow and predictable with staunton.

Also too many missed chances, Hamilton chances in 1st half and Tuilagi not slipping the pass to Smurph again in 1st half.

Both sides too many poor kicks.

Never expected much as we always lose first away game and then start better at home to culminate in a championship win in May!!
Lets not paper over cracks at 2 and 10 but lets get behind the lads and as Bill would say 'KEEP THE FAITH'

[Daveyboy]

I went too.

It wasn't a bad game of rugby to watch. We came back strongly in the 2nd half - it's a shame the game wasn't played over 90 minutes or we would have won!

I am very grateful that Myler impersonated a Pakistan cricketer: he was obviously in close contact with his bookmaker on the Indian sub-continent, ensuring that he missed so many penalties.

[crateman]

Wiggo, Alesana's decision not to pass to smurph was sound, and it was definitely a decision - he clearly looked. Geordan was well marked by 2 defenders, while Alesana had but one to crash through. He didn't make it but had the best chance of the 2.

Accepting Barnes's (et al) point of view is risky. I usually assume they're wrong and then look again.

[Bill W (2)]

I presume Tigers had no briefing on the "new" interpretations.

And with Ben Kay absent no longer know how to marshall line outs.

Very poor start to the season.

But we must KEEP THE FAITH!

[greeny]

But the Tigers will be there at the end of the season..............will Northampton

[adambexson]

re the cover at 10, I for one would be keener to see George Ford there rather than Staunton....