The Best of the Rest.
By Leemingtyke
November 28 2012
To the surprise of absolutely no-one Newcastle are dominating this seasons RFU Championship. To the uninitiated it might seem that this fact would make this seasons competition a bit of a non-event however, in my humble opinion, nothing could be further from the truth. Just below the Falcons the battle to be the best of the rest is well and truly on and it is producing some fantastic rugby along the way.
This weekend two of the three protagonists, Leeds Carnegie and the Bedford Blues, go head to head at the latest of our adopted homes – Otley’s famous Cross Green rugby ground.
Aided by their partnership with Saracens (this season they have no less than nine players on dual registration and one on a season long loan) Bedford are once again firmly ensconced in the top four of the Championship. One of the nine is a certain Mako Vunipola although the speed at which he has developed means he may have bigger fish to fry this weekend.
After a solid start to the season Bedford hit a lean spell losing at Bristol and then again at home to Newcastle. Against bottom club Doncaster they will have been looking to resume normal service but, although they took the 4 points, they had to rely on a stoppage time conversion from Jake Sharp to eke out a 21-22 win having been 21 –10 down with 4 minutes to go. However, with that hurdle successfully cleared the Blues steadied any nerves with a convincing 32-6 home win against Cornish Pirates on Friday night.
The Tykes come into the game looking for our 4th league win in a row. Dan Hemingway’s injury should result in a starting place for Mike Myerscough if he himself has recovered from a knock. If he hasn’t I expect Matt Smith will get a chance to stake his claim for a regular starting spot. Hopefully Richard Beck will shake off the knock which forced him off prematurely at Roth and I also suspect that Phil Nilsen did enough to keep hold of the No. 2 jersey.
This game has the potential to be a classic, the four fixtures between the two sides last season resulting in 205 points scored. Our 45-28 victory at Goldington Road was my personal highlight of the season.
This game could mark a defining moment in our season. At Clifton Lane last week we showed definite signs that we are maturing as a team. Defensively we were rock solid and our game management was excellent, by the time Rotherham got a foothold in the match we were out of sight.
The architects of the victory though were undoubtedly the forwards. Our young pack faced a domineering Rotherham front eight who are very used to getting their own way, particularly at home. In the cold and the encroaching fog and in front of a partisan Clifton Lane crowd they came of age. They stood their ground and then, in no uncertain terms, let Rotherham know who was going to win the rugby match. Lockwood and Burrows were immense.
This game, which marks the halfway point in the season, could also prove to be a red letter day in our rugby renaissance. If we can adopt the qualities we showed against Rotherham as our basic standard of performance then, with our proven attacking ability, the future is very bright indeed.
On Sunday, at the scene of the North’s famous victory against the All Blacks 33 years ago, we have the opportunity to announce to the rest of the championship, and anyone else who may have a passing interest, that Leeds Carnegie are back in business.
I’m backing the lads to do it, Leeds to win a high scoring but close game.
Come on Leeds!
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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2012:12:09:05:43:52 by Wildwillie .
So what has happened to the quality of the Championship with Bristol and Cornish falling away for example.
There were many who thought Falcons would be there for the taking after being the whipping boys last season, but their players stayed loyal, aided by a benefactor admittedly, and it would be a major surprise if they were to not go straight back up.
As if to prove the competitiveness of our league, it looks already as if Jersey may also be on their way back to whence they came.
COME ON LEEDS.
We've been through it all together.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2012:12:04:21:32:20 by Haxbytyke.
We either go for it with money and gusto or will remain second tier.
The difference at Newcastle is the head coach, Dean Richards is a born winner. Similar to Alex Ferguson he sets a standard of performance below which his players are not allowed to fall. I have a friend who is a Falcons fan and was at the B&I cup game against Cross Keys. Leading 52 - 0 with minutes left they conceded a late try, he said Richards was absolutely furious.
I think that what's lacking at Leeds, more than money, is strong leadership.
Every championship team is scouted voraciously too. Any Danny Cares, Jordan Cranes or similar are soon whipped away.
Quote:Bibby
And blood capsules...
Every championship team is scouted voraciously too. Any Danny Cares, Jordan Cranes or similar are soon whipped away.
I'm not condoning bloodgate in any way shape or form. What he did there was disgraceful and he was quite rightly banned for a long time.
I'm not a particularly big fan of Dean Richards but he is a strong leader who has got Newcastle playing to a system dictated by him (not pretty but pretty effective). Every single member of their team knows exactly what is expected of them if they want to play in the next game.
At Leeds you simply dont know how we are going to play from game to game.
I think the players we have are capable of much more than they are currently delivering and would benefit immenseley from strong leadership.