Questions to answer after Glaws are stung by Wasps
Tinds - try
By Cherry Picker
March 7 2010
Gloucester may well have improved recently, but they are still a work in progress and coach Bryan Redpath and his staff have as much work as the players to do if they are to turn the frustration of this season and last season into the sort of challenge for honours the people who pay their wages expect – that was amply demonstrated in the 24-19 defeat at Wasps on Sunday.
But let’s cut to the chase and ask the obvious question – if, as he has stated, Redpath believes Glaws should be aiming for the top four, why did he decide to experiment at half-back in such a vital game as this one?
It’s easy for the likes of us to be wise after the event, of course – touchline pundits don’t actually do the job, but think they should be doing it.
But coaches need to be wise BEFORE the event if they are to be successful.
Having set his squad that top-four target, why did Redpath put them at a disadvantage by asking Tim Taylor and Andy Williams, two players who lack senior experience, to operate together in two such important positions?
Neither could be blamed for what went wrong in the first half, when Glaws were punished by penalties they should not have conceded, but it was only when Rory Lawson and Nicky Robinson went on that Glaws looked good enough to get anything from the game.
So why didn’t they start the game? If Williams and Taylor need experience, surely it makes sense to give it to them as subs rather than put them under pressure by asking them to start vital matches?
Until Redpath comes up with an adequate explanation for this decision - and he didn’t before the game and we haven’t seen one after it yet – we reserve the right to blame him for the result.
Glaws were 16-6 down at half-time, Dave Walder scoring all the Wasps points, but Mike Tindall’s converted try and a penalty levelled the game, only for Akapusi Qera to be sin-binned and Dave Lemi going over for the clinching try.
The losing bonus point was probably as much as Glaws deserved and Redpath told the BBC: "I think I was more disappointed with the first-half performance than losing the game late on.
"Our discipline was average, our game poor because we coughed up possession, gifted them penalties and lacked impact.
"When you play away you have to be smart and adapt to the referee, which we failed to do. We gave away penalties in a row for similar offences."
If you have to be smart when playing away, why did the coach leave two experienced half-backs on the bench?
No matter how good Taylor and Williams are going to be, they are still learning – so is Redpath.
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Gloucester clearly took the ball back into the 22 and then kicked straight out, ignored, a minute later when taking a quick throw in which went forward wasps knocked down deliberately apparently a penalty agian a shocker, I imagine both sides were less than impressed by this referee's performance.
Our discipline was poor yellow card for Fury for Stamping apparently and at a scrum when both front rows were not even set god only knows what for. Gloucester penalised continually for offside in first half
decent game of rugby won by a bit of brilliance from Lemi almost matched in the last minute by JSD but for a match saving tackle from the much maligned Cipriani.
Fair result few kicks missed by both sides although score probbaly closer than it should have been....
Disappointed because I truly thought Wasps were there for the taking today, albeit by a very small margin.
Wood was lucky to avoid a yellow when flooring gizzy and the other yellow was for not allowing 10 metres... not before time
Small was a joke today and had very littee help from Maybank
who is as clueless as a assistant ref as he was as a ref.
On this occasion BR didn't.
Makes me wonder why he set the top four target.