BATH V SARACENS PREVIEW; post match related comment here

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2026:03:29:17:50:45 by Darraghgirl.

Taking into account returning internationals and injuries, think this could work;

1. Mawi
2. Dan
3. Street (Is he still injured?)
4. Tiz
5. Nick I
6. Theo Mac
7. JMG
8. Willis

9. IVZ
10. Burke

11. Roti
12. Hartley
13. Tommo
14. Elliot
15. Malins

16. Hadfield
17. Carre (No other choice)
18. Tiete?
19. Wilson
20. Christie
21. Simpson
22. Faz
23. Cinti

Probably on the money, maybe O’Driscoll on the bench instead of Carré like when we played Sharks, with Mawi on for 70 mins.

It's not like the team has been on holiday the last two months we should have a core group who have been playing together and within that an established pecking order and as the team above shows plenty of quality along with a few vulnerabilities.
I'd hope we back those en masse and leave all our Internationals to rest this week.

Hopefully the break will have done the players good in terms of freshness and also solidifying whatever our game plan is.

I'd guess Farrell either starts at 10 or 12. If so I'm looking forward to his game-management and leadership in what is undoubtedly a tough away fixture against a very good Bath outfit.

YouTube training video by Jim Hamilton shows both Riccioni and Street in full training
Charlie Bracken mentions he’s a couple of weeks away aswell

Surprisingly good news on Bracken! Thought his season was done from the way it was reported.

No place for Loz? Might back him above Cinti at least

Maro and Jamie confirmed as rested this week [www.rugbypass.com]

Quote:

MarkCol7
YouTube training video by Jim Hamilton shows both Riccioni and Street in full training
Charlie Bracken mentions he’s a couple of weeks away aswell

That's very good news.

I hope we rest the Internationals for the same game rather than mix and matching.
Good to hear Itoje and George are having a rest but it feels like if anyone needs a break after their 6 Nations shift it's Earl and backrow is the one area where we have great cover.

I’d imagine we’ll see Cinti on the wing along with Roti. Maybe Fergus at 10 with Faz and Tomkins centre? Maz fullback and Tobias on the bench. I suspect playing Sunday night rules Calouri out?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2026:03:17:18:28:36 by The Bard.

As they say it's the hope that kills you but even so I'm feeling relatively positive about our Prem return. We have had a decent period off for the majority of the squad to freshen up and gain some clarity in how we want to play.
There were quite a few of the dreaded "learnings" from the season prior to the gap that I hope we act on and as always the SM stuff looks very positive.

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The Bard
I’d imagine we’ll see Cinti on the wing along with Roti. Maybe Fergus at 10 with Faz and Tomkins centre? Maz fullback and Tobias on the bench. I suspect playing Sunday night rules Calouri out?

They have to keep backing Hartley at 12 going forward

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MarkCol7

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The Bard
I’d imagine we’ll see Cinti on the wing along with Roti. Maybe Fergus at 10 with Faz and Tomkins centre? Maz fullback and Tobias on the bench. I suspect playing Sunday night rules Calouri out?

They have to keep backing Hartley at 12 going forward

I'd like to see that too. Rotating with Tompkins who remains a quality option.
I'm hoping that other than in extremis Farrells role is either at 10 or covering there from the bench. I'm sure he still has plenty to offer there.

Quote:

MarkCol7

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The Bard
I’d imagine we’ll see Cinti on the wing along with Roti. Maybe Fergus at 10 with Faz and Tomkins centre? Maz fullback and Tobias on the bench. I suspect playing Sunday night rules Calouri out?

They have to keep backing Hartley at 12 going forward

💯 time to back the lad and build his experience.

Quote:

MarkCol7

Quote:

The Bard
I’d imagine we’ll see Cinti on the wing along with Roti. Maybe Fergus at 10 with Faz and Tomkins centre? Maz fullback and Tobias on the bench. I suspect playing Sunday night rules Calouri out?

They have to keep backing Hartley at 12 going forward

Completely agree.

With Tompkins/Cinti/Loz at 13 and Burke able to cover full back it also gives us a lot of flexibility for the outside backs on the bench.

Saracens Men's team to play Bath Rugby:

1 Eroni Mawi

2 Theo Dan

3 Marcus Street

4 Nick Isiekwe

5 Hugh Tizard

6 Theo McFarland

7 Juan Martin Gonzalez

8 Tom Willis

9 Ivan Van Zyl (c)

10 Owen Farrell

11 Rotimi Segun

12 Nick Tompkins

13 Lucio Cinti

14 Tobias Elliott

15 Elliot Daly

Replacements:

16 James Hadfield

17 Alex O'Driscoll

18 Marco Riccioni

19 Andy Onyeama-Christie

20 Ben Earl

21 Gareth Simpson

22 Fergus Burke

23 Max Malins

Quote:

tpr's headmistress
Saracens Men's team to play Bath Rugby:
1 Eroni Mawi

2 Theo Dan

3 Marcus Street

4 Nick Isiekwe

5 Hugh Tizard

6 Theo McFarland

7 Juan Martin Gonzalez

8 Tom Willis

9 Ivan Van Zyl (c)

10 Owen Farrell

11 Rotimi Segun

12 Nick Tompkins

13 Lucio Cinti

14 Tobias Elliott

15 Elliot Daly

Replacements:

16 James Hadfield

17 Alex O'Driscoll

18 Marco Riccioni

19 Andy Onyeama-Christie

20 Ben Earl

21 Gareth Simpson

22 Fergus Burke

23 Max Malins

I hope I am wrong, but feeling a lot less confident now the team sheets are out. Bath seem to have gone full noise and we are in a weird hinterland of some rested some not.

That centre pairing has been torn apart repeatedly. Faz has looked off the pace in comparison to Burke. We have a young loosehead who will likely need to go 25/30 mins against potentially the best tighthead around.

Hopefully a solid training block will see us fresher and more cohesive than Bath, who have played twice since we have.

Very surprised to see Ben Earl, his tank must be running on fumes only. They’ve got an incredibly strong bench. Alex O’Driscoll will have Thomas the Tank to deal with.
Going to be a very tough ask for us.

Does anyone know if Olamide Sodeke and Kennedy Sylvester are injured? Why are we going into a game against Bath with no second row cover?

Their bench is extraordinary. Ours looks very very lightweight.

This will be a painful watch.

Also - I’m very disappointed with the way we’ve treated Burke. He was supposed to be our long term 10, and started the season really quite well I thought - I am not sure what he’s done to be dumped to the bench and frankly I’m not sure what Owen has done to merit a starting place.

Quote:

#wolfpack1
Does anyone know if Olamide Sodeke and Kennedy Sylvester are injured? Why are we going into a game against Bath with no second row cover?
Their bench is extraordinary. Ours looks very very lightweight.

This will be a painful watch.

Also - I’m very disappointed with the way we’ve treated Burke. He was supposed to be our long term 10, and started the season really quite well I thought - I am not sure what he’s done to be dumped to the bench and frankly I’m not sure what Owen has done to merit a starting place.

In Jim Hamilton's latest video Sodeke was on crutches.

Wilson looked fit so I am surprised he isnt involved. Theo will be covering second row which could leave us a bit lightweight there.

My sentiments exactly RE Burke.

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Sarrov

Quote:

#wolfpack1
Does anyone know if Olamide Sodeke and Kennedy Sylvester are injured? Why are we going into a game against Bath with no second row cover?
Their bench is extraordinary. Ours looks very very lightweight.

This will be a painful watch.

Also - I’m very disappointed with the way we’ve treated Burke. He was supposed to be our long term 10, and started the season really quite well I thought - I am not sure what he’s done to be dumped to the bench and frankly I’m not sure what Owen has done to merit a starting place.

In Jim Hamilton's latest video Sodeke was on crutches.

Wilson looked fit so I am surprised he isnt involved. Theo will be covering second row which could leave us a bit lightweight there.

My sentiments exactly RE Burke.

Just seen Sylvester is turning out for Ampthill

Glad he’s back fit, was in a leg brace on a recent SM video

How does Cinti keep getting selected in the centre
He’s not put a good performance in all season and has been a turnstile in defence
Up against Ojomoh and Lawrence who have got a huge point to prove
If Hartley isn’t injured it’s ridiculous how he isn’t in the 23
Baffled by the Earl selection aswell, he’ll now likely miss the European game
Think we have to play it like England did in France last week and try and get 4 tries for a point because that Bath back line will tear us to shreds

Quote:

TommyKentish

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MarkCol7

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The Bard
I’d imagine we’ll see Cinti on the wing along with Roti. Maybe Fergus at 10 with Faz and Tomkins centre? Maz fullback and Tobias on the bench. I suspect playing Sunday night rules Calouri out?

They have to keep backing Hartley at 12 going forward

💯 time to back the lad and build his experience.

Or not 😂

Burke is not going to be hanging around long if this continues. I think we have looked our best this season when him and Farrell start together

The starting pack looks strong. You'd hope for parity at scrum and possibly the edge at lineout.
I'm glad we've gone with relatively pacey wingers.
A little hard to work out with some other calls which are based on availability over anything else.
Like others I'm surprised that Earl is on the bench.

Not the 10 or FullBack I'd have started but it is what it is.
Hopefully we don't see Farrell at 12 if Burke is given any minutes.

I suspect with Maro and Jamie absent Owen was always going to be starting this one.

Bath Team:-
TEAM
Bath Rugby: 1 Beno Obano, 2 Tom Dunn, 3 Archie Griffin, 4 Quinn Roux, 5 Charlie Ewels, 6 Josh Bayliss, 7 Miles Reid, 8 Alfie Barbeary, 9 Ben Spencer (c), 10 Finn Russell, 11 Will Muir, 12 Max Ojomoh, 13 Ollie Lawrence, 14 Henry Arundell, 15 Tom de Glanville

Replacements: 16 Kepu Tuipulotu, 17 Francois van Wyk, 18 Archie Griffin, 19 Ted Hill, 20 Guy Pepper, 21 Bernard van der Linde, 22 Santi Carreras, 23 Sam Underhill

We should probably take it as a complement!

Cant believe Archie Griffin is named twice ( 3 and 18 ) !

Sadly 18 is Thomas du Toit

Would have liked to have seen Ferg at 10 and Olly at 12, after all that was who we played against Toulouse. Great to have Tobias back and let’s hope Roti continues his fine form and stays injury free. Faz should be on bench, agree completely we have treated Ferg v poorly.

I cant tell if it is my red tinted specs but so far this is a farce.

1st try last pass clearly forward and he was standing still so no momentum coming in to play.

2nd try the most blatant pen by Reid ignored and leading to a 50/22.

3rd try Roti on the ball and Carley says he is second man in the breakdown when he clearly isn't

First up defence still costing us
At least the attack has seen a big improvement

If Faz was picked for leadership with Maro and Jamie out then it hasn't worked. Discipline is atrocious again, giving away needless pens and handing them field position

Not the worst half ever.

Doing some nice things. Both tries were nice. Theo Dan playing as well as he’s done all season.

Shame about the Arundell interception: Farrell must have been the only man in Bath not to see that coming.

Their forwards making far too many yards far too easily. Tizard a particular culprit when it comes to lame tackling. I fear for the second half with their bench. They’ll be better; not sure we will be.

Some bloody awful reffing in that half but not 31 points worth. Some soft as @#$%& tries being scored. Venter desperately needs to makes us hard to beat again.

I would presume Adam Powell won’t be part of Venters coaching team next season

I think we are falling off too many tackles and ill discipline is playing a part. I agree we look more of an attacking threat. We are really missing that punchy centre and Cinti doesn't seem to cut through like Lawrence for Bath can.

The look on Willis' face after that intercept try said it all.

Quote:

Sarrov
The look on Willis' face after that intercept try said it all.

“Not much more of this rubbish.”

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#wolfpack1

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Sarrov
The look on Willis' face after that intercept try said it all.

“Not much more of this rubbish.”

Combined with "why do we bother".

What on earth has happened to Max?

We are completely out on our feet again after 60 minutes

The weird thing about tonight is I don’t think we’ve been that bad, but we are actually really really bad.

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#wolfpack1
The weird thing about tonight is I don’t think we’ve been that bad, but we are actually really really bad.

Conceding 50 after 65 mins, when we have it in us to play so much worse.

We dont deserve this. Every 50/50 decision/play falls against us. Was Theo's offence really worth a yellow card?

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#wolfpack1
What on earth has happened to Max?

Surgery

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Stumpy7780

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#wolfpack1
What on earth has happened to Max?

Surgery

Would explain a lack of pace. Not an inability to catch or tackle.

Quote:

Stumpy7780

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#wolfpack1
What on earth has happened to Max?

Surgery

Looking like a pretty awful bit of recruitment , especially with all the back 3 players coming through
He won’t be cheap

They are clearly the better side but Carley is a joke

Think there will need to be another ‘crisis’ meeting next week or the season will be over

Plus points are actually many: Theo Dan hasnt missed a throw, IVZ has given quick service, we have broken the gain line regularly, McFarlane has been slmost back to his best and Barbeary is coming to replace Willis

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MarkCol7
Think there will need to be another ‘crisis’ meeting next week or the season will be over

i dont think this is a crisis, this just needs to be the sane but sharper

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siNBin
Plus points are actually many: Theo Dan hasnt missed a throw, IVZ has given quick service, we have broken the gain line regularly, McFarlane has been slmost back to his best and Barbeary is coming to replace Willis

I was thinking we weren’t too bad too, but what a side we’ve become if we get hosed by 50 points and go “hmm, could have been worse actually.”

What have we been doing for the last few weeks? Every time we turn the ball over or get in the 22 we look clueless.

Compare that to Bath who get the ball wide quickly and straight away reorganise in to attacking shape.

I wonder if McCall will even see the season out, he looked visibly distressed in the interview with TNT after the game

Far too many times in the past few seasons we have capitulated like that and shipped over 50. We’re so soft now. It’s just not acceptable with the squad we have. Bath were excellent and way too physical for us, Carley was terrible but we have got some soul searching to be done. I don’t know if a clear out of some players is needed or fresh voices from the coaching group but something needs to change. Maybe just Venter will freshen things up but considering he’s an advisor already it does seem like a continuation.

Quote:

MarkCol7
I wonder if McCall will even see the season out, he looked visibly distressed in the interview with TNT after the game

He was pretty much in tears in his interview. Poor guy, given everything to the club.

The good news is Bath finished bottom 4 seasons ago, 8th the season after and then 2nd and 1st after a few smart signings.

We have a core of players good enough to turn things around, it just isnt going to happen this season.

Quote:

MarkCol7
I wonder if McCall will even see the season out, he looked visibly distressed in the interview with TNT after the game

I hope he’ll do whatever is best for him at this point. Nothing more for him to prove. “We need people who are up for the fight next weekend” I think that is pretty damning indictment of what we saw tonight.

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TommyKentish

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MarkCol7
I wonder if McCall will even see the season out, he looked visibly distressed in the interview with TNT after the game

I hope he’ll do whatever is best for him at this point. Nothing more for him to prove. “We need people who are up for the fight next weekend” I think that is pretty damning indictment of what we saw tonight.

Agreed

He is the closest yhing to a Ferguson, UK rugby has had. The sport us so fast evolving it spits out coaches on a regular basis.

Trying to get some positives from tonight…

Little Theo was very good with his darts, hooking, tackling and go forward. Also great to see Tobias back and scoring. And we didn’t get mullered in the scrum.

This season is over, which is hard to take after so many years of being in the shake-up at the end. We are recruiting pretty well for next season, but we still need to find a centre and decide if we back Ferg. Currently pondering whether I want to traipse up to Spurs next Saturday for another heavy loss.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2026:03:20:22:31:27 by PaulHerox.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2026:03:20:22:31:46 by PaulHerox.

biggest single problem tonight was being unable to look after the ball. We tried some very chancy flip passes off the deck - several of which went astray & led to tries - but our back row was too slow to the breakdown too often to stop Bath turning us over - which they did very well (even if marginally illegally once or twice). As soon as we lost the ball we were very slow to regroup which meant Bath were 30 yards downfield in the blink of an eye.

Quote:

Strangelove
Trying to get some positives from tonight…
Little Theo was very good with his darts, hooking, tackling and go forward. Also great to see Tobias back and scoring. And we didn’t get mullered in the scrum.

This season is over, which is hard to take after so many years of being in the shake-up at the end. We are recruiting pretty well for next season, but we still need to find a centre and decide if we back Ferg. Currently pondering whether I want to traipse up to Spurs next Saturday for another heavy loss.

Agree Theo was good, even the yellow I could see what he was trying to do and frankly nothing else was working. Tobias was very good, not sure why we kept crashing him up first phase after it was read the first 5 times. I’m not sure a change at 10 makes a difference considering the mullering we got up front.

Not looking forward to the next two weeks.

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TommyKentish

Quote:

Strangelove
Trying to get some positives from tonight…
Little Theo was very good with his darts, hooking, tackling and go forward. Also great to see Tobias back and scoring. And we didn’t get mullered in the scrum.

This season is over, which is hard to take after so many years of being in the shake-up at the end. We are recruiting pretty well for next season, but we still need to find a centre and decide if we back Ferg. Currently pondering whether I want to traipse up to Spurs next Saturday for another heavy loss.

Agree Theo was good, even the yellow I could see what he was trying to do and frankly nothing else was working. Tobias was very good, not sure why we kept crashing him up first phase after it was read the first 5 times. I’m not sure a change at 10 makes a difference considering the mullering we got up front.

I didn't think we got mullered in the forwards at all. Scrum and lineout went okay, our carriers caused them a lot of problems as well. Difference was they had the ability to change the point of attack and we didn't. There is only so many brick walls Tom, Theo et al can run in to

Faz is looking increasingly like Goode in his last season or so, a man who still knows what he wants to do but just cant quite pull it off any more.

I agree re the set piece, I was more thinking that in the second half especially their pack absolutely bullied ours with their defence and break down work, we had no answer to their physicality. I was wincing at the hits going in and we couldn’t match it when they had the ball.

Result was a given if I’m honest. No surprises. I think two weeks time will be even worse.

I agree with the above.

McCall is the best thing we’ve ever had and his interview was a very uncomfortable watch. Hope he’s ok.

Willis' expression said it all. We gave up watching after the intercept try. Wasn't expecting quite such a pasting though.

I feel for McCall but the slightly frustrating thing is he does keep picking the same team and making the same substitutions and seems surprised when there is the same result.

Yesterday we definitely tried to play a bit more than we have done previously so that is a change at least

Quote:

TommyKentish
I agree re the set piece, I was more thinking that in the second half especially their pack absolutely bullied ours with their defence and break down work, we had no answer to their physicality. I was wincing at the hits going in and we couldn’t match it when they had the ball.

Yeah, they definitely gained more of an edge in the tackle as the game wore on. I think that was a lot to do with the overall strength of the benches and the motivation pummeling a team on the scoreboard gives you. It is also made easier when your opponents offer nothing but route 1 carries.

The breakdown i agree- they were so much smarter about playing to how Carley was reffing and without Maro and JMG subbed we were incredibly slow to secure the ruck.

Cinti is not a Prem 13... said it many times but hes a turnstile in defense
As always minus Maro our esteemed 4 and 5 were invisible and not worth renting about anymore.
Our youth movement is the biggest fallacy since Brexit as we roll the same failed partnerships oit every week yet are surprised when it fails.
Our coaching staff is inadequate as they simply have zero gameplay past 1st stage ball. If BV doesn't move some of them on we have failed.
£400 spent for tickets and hotels to watch that dross last night amd im sick of the tropes we roll out post game. This team and coaching staff are soft and inadequate simple as that.

On the other hand it’s staggering how Bath can put a performance like that together with 1 training session since the six nations
They are very similar to what we were 10 years ago but with a sharper attack
It’s clear they’ve got everyone working in the same direction

I might have missed it but I didn't see Cinti being at fault for much in defense last night. He and Tompkins are also our only senior centres who can hit a line and go through a gap with some pace.

Agree on the repeated mistakes in selection, it is baffling and this result could be seen coming a mile off.

For next week I would hope to see

10. Burke
12. Hartley
13. Tompkins
Wings a choice between Roti, Tobias and Noah

And a 5/3 bench with the winger who doesn't start included to add some pace later in the game.

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MarkCol7
On the other hand it’s staggering how Bath can put a performance like that together with 1 training session since the six nations
They are very similar to what we were 10 years ago but with a sharper attack
It’s clear they’ve got everyone working in the same direction

Consistency in selection. That backline has played together time after time. Any Bath fan could name their best team, if you asked 10 Sarries fans you would probably end up with 10 different teams.

They also played an extra cup game and a friendly whilst we haven't had a run out for 3 weeks.

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#wolfpack1
I feel for McCall but the slightly frustrating thing is he does keep picking the same team and making the same substitutions and seems surprised when there is the same result

Bringing Farrell back early after his failure in France then saddling the club with an enhanced contract next season and promotion to the coaching ranks beyond has been a terrible call.
It's been damaging in terms of the development of the squad and hugely divisive in camp and much of the faith in the wider coaching team is gone after the last clear the air meeting after which within 48 hours many could see it was performative nonsense rather than an genuine intention to take on team sentiment.

It makes me weep looking at the misuse of some of the talent we have and sidelining of others because they aren't the players that delivered us past glory.
Player needs to be backed for a period but that doesn't happen in this "all animals are equal" set up. Even good performances are resulting on recalls for the old guard.

Yesterdays game was an example of a first rate team expertly assembled under a very good DoR where the whole club is obviously going the same direction with a plan they understand and embrace.
To complement their best players they have a host of "club level" players who none the less because of a cogent plan, competition for their places and commitment deliver at and above the levels we see from some of our similar players and even a few "stars"

Both McCall and Farrell have been absolute stars for this club for over a decade and no one would or should forget that. That shouldn't blind us to the issues both have created for the club currently and the risk of further regression going forward.
What would the likes of JVG and Dowson make of the current team we have.
Would we be bumbling around lower mid table. Somehow I doubt it.

Will things change under Venter. Let's hope so because this has been a seasons long issue with little sign of the downward momentum being arrested.

While I agree with a lot of that is there any evidence of Farrell’s return being hugely decisive in camp and clear the air meeting? I don’t remember seeing or hearing anything about it but my memory isn’t great at the moment due to meds.

Quote:

TommyKentish
While I agree with a lot of that is there any evidence of Farrell’s return being hugely decisive in camp and clear the air meeting? I don’t remember seeing or hearing anything about it but my memory isn’t great at the moment due to meds.

No evidence but there’s been whispers around from certain pundits/podcasts
I have noticed ‘dirtybertie’ has stopped posting over the last month, I wonder whether the club has asked him to stop as he seemed to have a lot of inside knowledge

Which podcasts? I listen to quite a few and I’ve not heard anything. If it’s Andy Goode then I wouldn’t believe much of what comes out of his mouth, he’s especially desperate to constantly paint Faz in a bad light. DB usually posts about transfer rumours and I think we’re largely done in that department apart from maybe one lower profile signing from Ampthill.

Speaking with a few players and one of the wider coaching team you pretty soon get a sense of the current situation.
No team is going to be full of beans when they've been losing most of the season and I'm also not claiming that this is the majority view but neither is it an isolated one anymore and hasn't been for a while.

Also not really seeing where Cinti had a howler in defence.
He did well with a couple of our trys though. Nothing super flash but just basics, a pullback pass and a good line them committing his man before the pass for a try.
We obviously all have different views but saying someone isn't a club level 13 when they're a proven one at International level is a take.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2026:03:21:11:45:35 by PaulHerox.

In more positive news, Ampthill won last night.

Oscar Wilson and Va'enuku, the centre we are apparently signing, both scored a brace. West got the other. Davidson kicked 7 points.

Cinti is an example of one of the frustrations of the current set up.

He’s clearly a very good player.

But I wouldn’t have said he’s got better since joining us, we really don’t know how best to use him, we aren’t even really sure of his best position. I appreciate he was injured for all of last season, but we really ought to have a clearer idea what to do with him and how to improve him by now.

Cinti is a talented player but not at 13 at the side of an undersized 12 as they both get targeted.

As I have said many times out recruitment for the last 3 years has been abject. We can keep saying its coaches etc but some of this crop are not at it enough and we resemble the old Barf...overpaid, privileged and no pain when we get our asses handed week in week out when playing anyone decent.