End Of Season Report Pt4
By RichW
July 16 2003
At last we draw to a close. This series appear to have been dragging on almost as long as the season! So where do we find ourselves as our thoughts turn to the new term?
Squad
¾ ers & fullies.
Well I for one find myself looking forward to the new year with a greater sense of anticipation than for a while. Last season’s relative failures have brought a real sense of just how important success is to the club and its supporters. I must confess to a sense of complacency last year – as if winning had become too easy and rather lost some of its lustre. Defeat is an inevitable risk in all sporting endeavour and without it victory is meaningless.
The joy of victory is thrown into stark relief by the experience of defeat and it is this contrast which provides the drive for success. So (if I may be allowed to mix my metaphors) I expect Tigers to gird their loins and ‘step up to the plate’ with renewed hunger. I certainly know now, if I had perhaps lost sight of it, why it is that I want them to succeed.
I’m also considerably encouraged by the recent signings where we see considerable strengthening in the right areas, though as I have noted earlier there still seem to be two positions (second row and blind-side flanker) where we lack sufficient strength in depth, especially for the world cup period. That said I’m considerably encouraged, nay delighted, to hear that Josh will be remaining another year and that he will captain the side during the big jamboree down under. His experience and knowledge allied with his combative qualities will be invaluable.
So how do we expect the world cup to affect us?
My feelings about Mr Woodward’s initial squad are mixed. Whilst I am delighted to see Mad-eye and Ollie back in the fold I can’t quiet manage the same enthusiasm for Julian White’s inclusion. Not that I wish to deny him opportunities with the national side, and indeed I believe him to be the best scrummaging prop (either tight or loose head) in England, but more that I feel our need may be the greater! The squad currently includes 10 tigers – a highly satisfying number – but the loss of all of them would indeed be onerous. To this number we must also add Geordan Murphy, Ramiro Pez and perhaps Darren Morris taking us up to very nearly a full team! However, this is the sort of number we lost four years ago and we came through that pretty well! Actually I don’t expect to lose all 13 so I am not wholly discouraged and I expect that several of our rivals will be similarly affected. Sso our much vaunted strength in depth will come to the fore. As I said I’m encouraged!
A prediction for the new season? Well if the new signings gel, the last few elements of strengthening can be accomplished and the youngsters step up to that plate, I anticipate a renewal of dominance.
There you go – ever the optimist – not so much blind faith as one-eyed faith!
So to my last set of markings: The back division has been the real problem this year as already mentioned this has been partially because of the confusion in the half-backs, partially because of some erratic selections and the number of injuries, but a look at the number of entries below to cover five spots (I make it 10 regular and another couple of occasional contenders) will suggest another cause – the absence of a settled line-up.
Now then:
Rod Kafer:
I’ve said before that I found some of the criticism levelled at Rod this season, unfair. In strictly playing terms he did exactly what he always did: ran hard, tackled hard and organised those around him. That he lacks a yard of pace and sometimes has unforgiving hands should not surprise us. They are the same flaws in his general game that were there last year when the voices of criticism were not nearly so loud. That he, reportedly, played most of the season with an injury may have hampered his performances, but should certainly earn him our admiration for his commitment to the cause rather than our censure. In the end I suspect that Dave’s problem this year lay in an inability to bring out of those around him, the performances which would have made for successful strategy, and into which his own game would have fitted. This I see as a coaching failure – and one which we must consider. I do not hold Rod responsible for the failings in basic skills which plagued Tigers in 2002/03, nor for the injuries which have inhibited progress, but he must be culpable for the confusion and lack of incision which crippled our back division this term. I take no pleasure in this, as I have always rather admired the Tugboat, but it is this failing which has significantly hampered our development over the last 12 - 18 months and, sadly, led to his departure. As the season wore on and his involvement with the team seemed to become less pivotal, I suspect that a parting of the ways became inevitable. As for his season – moderately disappointing but not so poor as some have suggested: 7/10.
Glenn Gelderbloom:
Like many I’m unclear why Glenn has not played a much more prominent role this term. An oddity I find particularly noteworthy when one considers our dearth of quality cover in the centre three-quarters. When one gets past Tug and Ollie there has been a real shortage. Glenn has been the obvious replacement so how we got to a centre pairing of the bruise brothers Freddie and Leon is all rather beyond me. Glenn’s more thoughtful, subtle game allied to his undoubted strength would have made him an ideal foil to either of the crash boys. It struck many of us as not at all surprising that his [eventual] inclusion alongside the Samoan immediately brought a balance and a penetration to the midfield which had been lacking in the absence of the first choice pairing of Tug and Ollie. I don’t think it too much of an exaggeration to describe his game as cerebral – a quality which was sadly absent for much of the year. I was delighted to see him captaining the side against the Barbarians and his return to first team action was a notable move in the right direction. Despite having played so little I reckon the magnitude of his impact in a few late season games warrants an 8/10!
Ollie Smith:
Now for another of one those opportunities to celebrate – all too infrequent this year! Ollie had, until his unfortunate injury at Newcastle, an exceptional season. His quality is such that we might sometimes forget his age thinking of him as a senior player. Well he is no such thing – but he is a star in the making and his excellence was fittingly rewarded against Italy in this year’s 6N, with his first cap; the first of what I believe will be many. Not only did he gain his cap but he took his opportunity to make a sublime try-creating break, taking the opportunity to put down a marker for England in World Cup year. I have no doubt that, had injury not intervened, he would have toured with the senior party this summer (though I suspect that he would have found himself on the plane to North America after the Maori game) but at least he is not forgotten and is included in the initial World Cup squad. What has impressed me most this season is that I can’t see any weaknesses in his game. He has pace and power, good hands, developing footballing skills and a defensive game which leaves me awestruck. His tackling this year has been exceptional. I have lost count of the number of superb take-outs but one which sticks in my mind was against Joe Shaw of Newcastle in September. As the Falcon tried to go on the outside and indeed looked to have outpaced the cover Ollie tracked across to scythe him down and, if my memory serves, turn over possession. Simply splendid! Yet another superb product of the youth policy. Well done young man. 9/10
Freddie Tuilagi:
Now we all love the Samoan exocet but I think if we’re honest we’ll admit that this year was not his finest. He started it well enough but his mid-season form suffered as he tried to make too many big hits often leaving his wing exposed in defence and took too much ball direct at contact without coming from deep and without protecting the ball properly in attack. Nor did his transferral into the centres seem to signal, initially at least, any real re-assertion of his abilities. With the best will in the world Freddie’s game is a tad limited and if he is to play in the centre he needs to be accompanied by someone a little more creative and crafty than Leon. The result of this pairing seemed to be hesitancy on Freddie’s part as he seemed uncertain of the role he was intended to play. To be fair, in the latter stages of the season his game did seem to gain a greater degree of diversity as he started to try to chip the defence occasionally and began to pass more frequently and more surely. This, I have no doubt, was a consequence of Glenn’s return and resulted in his finishing the season on a real high. If those standards can be maintained Freddie (and we) will enjoy what is likely to be his last season. An intermittent year, saved by a late season resurgence: 7/10
Leon Lloyd:
Am I alone in finding Leon infuriating? No I thought not! When he runs straight and hard, playing at 100%, he is still a handful for any defender. When he’s half-hearted and drifts around the pitch as he did away to the Irish this year he’s simply awful. He’s always going to be a greedy player – he simply doesn’t like passing the football – that’s part of his game and it’s too late to change him now. So it’s no good berating him for that – though we all do! However, I’ll be happy to overlook his limitations it he can simply concentrate all his energies on doing what he does best – the aforementioned running hard and straight. Oddly enough the one aspect of his game which has improved this year is his kicking game and he now looks considerably happier tracking back to cover the deep kick. I’ve often wondered about the ploy of using Leon at outside centre and indeed have felt that his running style and lack of blinding pace rather fit him to that position. However, he has had numerous opportunities this year and, though he was part of a unbalanced pairing much of the time, he never looked comfortable or threatening. It’s time for him to make a permanent return to the wing – which I feel means fewer starts for him in this hugely competitive area. But at least he and Freddie can happily spell each other. All in all Leon has gone backwards this season – now I will concede that his early season was badly hampered by an injury which had dragged on all summer and most of the autumn but he came out of it short on confidence and looking uncertain. The result was a particularly anodyne season. Just about (with a following wind) 6/10!
Steve Booth:
Steve no longer gets the space he used to. The opposition have learned the danger of that! Personally I felt he had a quieter season as a consequence. But that considered, I do feel that he was one of the more threatening backs this year. His defence has always been, for me, a little suspect but it had clearly been worked on this year and while he will never be an Alan ‘the Clamp’ Bateman or Johnny Wilkinson, it was certainly an area of improvement. Similarly I was impressed by his outings at full-back. Now it is my opinion that (somewhat like Jason Robinson) Boothy is wasted at fullie. ‘Get him into the game in the opposition red zone and let him cause mayhem’ is my view. Don’t waste him beating three defenders 60-80 metres out! Generally he’s looked dangerous, has worked hard and contributed well. He was unfortunate to be stretchered off when proving a most unlikely goal-kicking hero as the injury jinx struck again late season. Sometimes I wonder whether Steve is a little too much ‘cock of the walk’ without earning his stripes (oh not another mixed metaphor!) but his showman’s instincts have been kept in check this term and his performances have improved accordingly. With this new found sense of responsibility he should do well next year – he has always had the talent. Not a bad year from the ‘narthern lad’: 8/10
Geordan Murphy:
Certainly one of my players of the season and I know most of you will agree. His return from going under the knife brought us some much needed guile and unpredictability to a back line bereft, in Austin’s absence, of any. Unfortunately even Geordan’s lavish skills couldn’t single-handedly redeem the plodding mediocrity of our one dimensional back division. Perhaps with Austin to provide another spark and source of inspiration things might have been different but slow ball crashed up ad infinitum until a mistake produced the turn-over were the main fare even in Geordan’s presence. Much has been said this season about Geordan at full-back this year. There has been discussion of whether he is best utilised at 15 or on the flanks. Clearly the Ireland management have felt that he should be playing at fullie and his 6N performances are considered by many to bear this out. I remain less convinced. He did quite well at 15 though I thought some of the rave reviews were excessive – perhaps some correspondents were simply surprised to see that which we are treated to week in week out! I did feel however that he was generally playing against poor defences and was able to exploit the gaps created by the double teaming against BOD. Against a superior England team, who rather shackled the Irish skipper, he was less effective. I am fairly sanguine about where he plays, though I have a marginal preference to see him on the wing. As long as he gets plenty of ball on the wide-out I’m happy. My concerns with him at full-back are rather that his most potent weapon – his unpredictability – can somewhat confuse those around him when a more deliberate approach may draw more from his team-mates. There are also some occasions when defending deep, his normally excellent kicking game can let him down. I see no especial profit from using him at full-back and would prefer to see him given a roaming wingers role allowing him the freedom to crop-up wherever he so deems fit. It is at these times when he is at his most dangerous as evidenced by his performance in the centres against Australia. Anyway, not quite the perfect season from our favourite Celt – should he ever produce such a year it will be something to behold – but a very good one all the same. One rather wishes he had been available from September to [the end of] May. Still for endeavour, chutzpah and brio as much as for standing out as a beacon of individual brilliance in a desert of uninspired mediocrity he gets a comfortable 9/10.
Tim Stimpson:
Now where to begin with Tim? Should we concentrate on his mysterious mid-season absence, on his hesitant confidence-short later season form, the improved showing in the play-offs or his coruscating early season? Seldom can one player have gone through such a variation of form, confidence and mood in one season! I think we’d have to admit that this year was not Tim’s best and the rumours of his being ‘unsettled’ can only have undermined his confidence further. That said at the beginning of the year he was his usual high performing self and it was only Geordan’s return and Dean’s apparent preference for using the two of them in what this correspondent and (I suspect) Tim himself consider the wrong positions that seemed to stall his season. Now some will suggest that Tim as a senior player and leading performer should have been able to deal with that more productively, and indeed I give that view some credence; however, I also understand that he was injured in this period which can only have had a deleterious effect on his dented confidence. He must feel quite aggrieved because prior to his mid-season woes he had forced himself back into England contention and despite having spent a good deal of the pre-Christmas period extracting the splinters from his arse, had stepped up to land a difficult conversion after just about everybody (apparently excepting Johnno and the front row) had had a go against those new whipping boys of world-rugby South Africa! So a see-saw season ended with a still hesitant kicking Tim but one apparently resurgent with the ball in hand from full-back. His hard yards and solid defensive displays in the last few weeks of the year should be taken as encouragement for next year when I hope to see him starting at fullie in a back three of himself Boothy and Freddie prior to the end of the World cup and himself, Geordan and either of the other two after. His recovery in the death throes of the year allied to his fine early season save his marking this year and he just squeezes 8/10.
John Holtby:
Another impressive youngster; quick and strong, with a good lazy running style John looked confident and assertive in all his outings for the first XV this term and bodes well for the future. He should get plentiful opportunities in World Cup year! Very much like Will Skinner I feel he showed all the right attitudes and instincts and grabbed his chances with both hands. I was particularly impressed with his defensive efforts in the play-off final where he shackled the dangerous 7s specialist Richard Haughton for all of the 110 high pressure minutes. Haughton’s try coming from a broken field situation where Tigers’ defensive pattern was disrupted and John was effectively out of the game. If I were to be critical I’d like to see him take a leaf out of the big Saint’s winger’s book and go looking for work more. I suspect that this is an experience issue allied to a matter of confidence in playing with the ‘big boys’ but it was noticeable, especially in a year when getting good quality ball to the flanks was more a matter of infrequent accident rather than of recurrent design, that he spent a lot of the time looking almost redundant out in the wide open spaces. It’s a ’learning point’ for him to take forward perhaps. All in all though, again on limited opportunity John acquitted himself well: 7/10
Gareth Raynor:
Now what can we say about the supposed new Billy the Whiz? Well not a lot. I do not intend this as a criticism – we simply did not see enough of him to criticise! It always seemed that his heart wasn’t in it and his return north only serves to confirm that impression. I guess that’s unfortunate because on the few times we saw him run with the ball he looked to have some promise. His tendency to run sideways could have been coached out of him. Still, my abiding memory of him will be packing down on the flank to supplement a seven man scrummage, and that, I suspect, says it all about this injury plagued ‘experiment’. C’est la vie: 6/10
A small handful of other chaps (mostly youfs) contributed this term and are worthy of mention:
Danny Hipkiss: a couple of outings and real signs of promise. Some work to be done, but a nice running style, a good step and swivel of the hips and physically solid. I’d like to see more – I suspect we will!
Joe Naufafau: Accepting that Joe was brought over as cover for an injury crisis I can’t help feel we could have got more out of a pretty useful player. He was quick, strong and had plenty of experience to offer. I was quite impressed by what I saw and have to wonder what might have been – unfortunate when one considers what followed.
Peter Cook: Difficult for me to say because I didn’t see his performance against Big Jase at the Stoop but by all accounts he didn’t let himself down – unlike some of his more experienced tem-mates! That was no mean feet and when one considers his U21 efforts looks very promising.
James Buckland: I’m genuinely looking forward to seeing more of young master Buckland (ok so I apologise for making him sound like a hobbit!) he looks solid in the tight and has a genuine turn of pace in the loose as confirmed by his performance in the Barbarians game. The next generation of the ABC Club appears to be coming along quite nicely!
Ben Gerry: Another youngster, but sadly gone because of the ludicrously stringent new salary cap (now don’t get me started), who looked ok in his early season efforts. I hate to see the young ‘uns go. It seems such a waste of invested effort and opportunity. Anyway Ben had plenty to work on but by the same token had plenty work with and was, I thought, doing pretty well. Unfortunate to be off!
And that’s it! It’s all over and now I can turn my attention to Lancashire. Hope I’ve not missed anyone out – if I have I apologise. I also hope I’ve not bored you all daft. If you don’t agree I’ll be happy to discuss. If you do – mines a pint.
Cheers.