The RT Report: Tigers 8 Oct 2005

The Unbouncing of Tigger

            “In fact, “ said Rabbit, “Tigger’s getting so Bouncy nowadays that it’s time we taught him a lesson.  Don’t you think so Piglet?”

            Piglet said that Tigger was very Bouncy, and that if they could think of a way of unbouncing him, it would be a Very Good Idea…

            “But how shall we do it?” asked Piglet.  “What sort of a lesson, Rabbit?”

            “That’s the point,” said Rabbit.

********

Never mind Castle Grim, Welford Road is a pretty scary arena in which to play, especially when there is only a handful of Warriors’ supporters amidst thousands of passionate Tigers’ fans.  This is the ground where 8,000 turn out on a Monday night to watch the A Team!

Our team was not to be intimidated.  No matter that the previous Saturday was a game to forget in a hurry; no matter that we had so many injuries that there were Academy players on the bench and an unfamiliar starting XV; no matter that the Leicester team was full of English Internationals; no matter that many expected a cricket score.  Oh ye of little faith! The Warriors do not give in that easily.

Right from the kick-off our lads were ready to compete.  Conditions were very difficult with steady rain and an awkward swirling wind, but the Warriors weren’t going to be pinned back in their own twenty-two this week.

Despite the final score, there were lots of positives to take from this match. We had young players who were not overawed by the opposition – even at Welford Road.  Our scrum worked very well, despite our front row facing Messrs Rowntree, Chuter and White.  After some initial wobbles, our lineout functioned efficiently, even though wholesale changes had been made to it.  The Warriors managed to stop rolling mauls and made some good breaks in mid-field which would have produced scores against lesser opposition.  Even the Tigers were forced into killing the ball near their line and conceding easy penalties.

At half-time, we were only four points adrift and, after the break, Tigers brought on Andy Goode and then Harry Ellis to strengthen an already impressive line up.  Unfortunately, errors on our part led to a couple of Leicester tries in the second half. The Warriors were tiring and did not have the experienced bench that the opposition could call upon. Leicester’s final try was one of sheer brilliance as Leon Lloyd and Geordan Murphy were able to set up the fresh legs of Tom Varndell in a sparkling show of handling and speed.

Despite this, the afternoon was a shot in the arm for the supporters after the lack-lustre performance last week.  Ben provided good leadership on the pitch; Gommars and Shine worked well together, showing a further step towards their expected form. The pack was outstanding (Pat Howard conceded as much); Kai Horstman showed well and Johnny T proved his speed. TC was committed for 80 minutes and must ignore Eddie Butler’s personal remarks about his thighs. (Hopefully the knock on the neck that he received will not prove serious.)  The young full-back who came on as no.22 impressed everyone with his composure under pressure.  As someone has already said, the match showed that we now have a squad, not just fifteen players.

As far as we were concerned, it was a sociable occasion.  One Tigers’ fan stopped to say how much he’d enjoyed his visit to Sixways last season and praised our set-up there.  Another gentleman said, “Hang on in there.  You deserve to be in the Premiership”.  Lewis Moody (what shoulders he has!)  passed us and said, “Good to see you”. Peter Wheeler shook us by the hand, as did Alex Moreno who was all smiles for Worcester supporters.  We appreciated Andy Gomarsall’s thanks to us for coming to support.

It was also gratifying to read Peter Tom’s tribute to Cecil in the programme:

            Finally I am delighted to welcome Worcester: a club which has

            benefited tremendously from the vision and support of their

            chairman Cecil Duckworth.  Cecil has put so much into creating

            a genuine Premiership side at Sixways and I think most of the rugby

            community were delighted that they managed to escape relegation

            at the end of last season.

            It says a lot about Cecil that on his last visit to Welford Road he

            preferred to sit in the stands among his fellow away supporters

            rather than sit in the directors box with the rest of the club

            officials.

We left Welford Road feeling bloody but unbowed!  It comforted us to think that when Worcester has been in the top flight as long as Leicester, we too will be able to put on that level of performance as consistently as the Tigers do.

**************                                                                     RT 

So they went.  At first Pooh and Rabbit and Piglet walked together, and Tigger ran round them in circles, and then, when the path got narrower, Rabbit, Piglet and Pooh walked one after another, and Tigger ran round them in oblongs, and by-and-by, when the gorse got very prickly on each side of the path, Tigger ran up and down in front of them, and sometimes he bounced into Rabbit and sometimes he didn’t.  And as they got higher, the mist got thicker, so that Tigger kept disappearing, and then when you thought he wasn’t there, there he was again, saying, “I say, come on,” and before you could say anything, there he wasn’t.

House at Pooh Corner,  A A Milne