Mr Dean's Gloucester Match Preview
By Steven Dean
January 27 2006
Travelling from Reading you can take the M4 to J15 Swindon, the A419 to Cirencester, and the A417 to Gloucester. All fast roads. But if you can, stop 5 miles short of Gloucester to savour the panoramic view at Birdlip. It is one of the finest sights in Southern England.
Here at the edge of the Cotwolds next to Crickley Hill, you see the Severn valley plain with the M5 linking Worcester down to Bristol, the Malvern Hills, the Black Mountains, and your first view of Gloucester. Gloucester cathedral can be seen, and Kingsholm located by the naked eye. I've played golf at nearby Painswick, value at £50 for 4 players. You'll never forget the round if you have any soul for that game. It's an area that doesn't need the adornment of the proposed GCHQ golf balls to ruin the view.
In a similar way a visit to Kingsholm to see Gloucester play in a competitive match feeds the rugby soul. The passion found here is among the greatest in rugby union, and the atmosphere generated by the Shed is raucous. Informed, intemperate, intimidating, it's not a place to be In if you're a faint-hearted away fan. I can only hope that when we visit next year that the new Grandstand will afford more space for visiting fans, generating more revenue for the home club. But that it retains that gladiatorial atmosphere that the Shed can generates.
Gloucester in 4th entertain 5th placed London Irish at 3pm Saturday, a fixture which will tell us a lot about HC qualification. If we manage an away win we'll still be 5th but handily placed to leapfrog our rivals later in the season, lose and we'll be scrapping around with the mid-table pack. For the next match we entertain Newcastle, and Gloucester host Leicester Tigers. It is not unreasonable to expect that with a little endeavour and luck we can get above them in the table.
Kingsholm isn't an easy place to win, last season we lost in September rain of 04 after being 10 points up, having lost in the April 04 showers. The forecast for Saturday is cold dry and breezy. We did manage a win there in the Powergen, but I watched that on the BBC. I've seen us lose at home by a single point on last years St Patrick’s fixture due to Marcel Garvey’s late try. I've also witnessed the recent home win, which was surprisingly easy. I'd honestly expected a single point win for us, but the Gloucester players on that day seemed out of sorts, with only the replacement Pete Richards having energy. So after seeing these recent fixtures, the only thing missing for me is to travel and triumph. This year I think we have a squad and a team spirit so I travel in expectation as much as hope.
Some of that expectation is down to the fact that Gloucester are sadly weakened by injuries and the absence of key players. I'd prefer to play and beat their best, in truth. Status Quo fan Phil Vickery, capped 47 times for England, will be under the surgeon's knife for a 3rd back operation as the match kicks off. Lets hope he's soon back and Ruckin All Over the World. Openside flanker Andy Hazell has a head injury and will be missing.
Gloucester also have a crisis at scrum-half, Simon Amor is away on England 7's duty, and first-choice Haydn Thomas has a broken collar bone. One of the few bones I've broken, and annoyingly painful. It looks like Peter Richards will come back from England duty to start. He was the most energetic player on the pitch when he came on as a substitute at the Madejski, and scored a charge-down try from a Barry Everett clearance. But it leaves little back up on the bench should anything untoward happen to the scrappy Richards during the course of the game.
In addition to the injuries are the disruptions to Gloucester coach Dean Ryan's preparations caused by call-ups to international training sessions. Hooker Mefin Davies with Wales, Mike Tindall, James Simpson-Daniel, Peter Richards, Jamie Forrester and Alex Brown for England. "These weeks are tough," Ryan said "We're playing a side which has no disruption. We haven't only got England players away, there Under-21s and Sevens away and that's given us basically one day to prepare for a big Premiership game, which is not ideal. But that's life and that's how it's going to be for the next two or three months. We're pleased we can play them with a near compliment of squad players to select from and I think it will be different this time because of that."
The London Irish team is up, and it is mightily impressive. We are going to have a lot of possession from this pack, and what we have we'll hold. Brian Smith has kept Nils Mordt and Topsy Ojo and I applaud this move. Topsy is a confidence player, and has improved from his first start against Cardiff. I've watched his defence at Sunbury as well as his lighting runs. Having extended time in the first team is helping him reach his potential. Delon made the step up in grade at this time last year, it seems hard to believe now, playing with flair, and now he is a permanent fixture. We look to the Academy conveyor belt to provide the bulk of our future success. The blooding of the your players such as Shane Geraghty, Ross Laidlaw, Topsy Ojo this year follows on from Nick Kennedy, Delon, and Nils. I look forward to seeing Matt Banahan next year. Brian Smith is shrewdly selecting these players depending on the importance of the fixture, so the confidence he has shown in Topsy is an honour. I'll be watching his composure during the game, as he matches up against Marcel Garvey and Simpson-Daniel.
Team:
15. Michael Horak
14. Delon Armitage
13. Nils Mordt
12. Mike Catt* (capt)
11. Topsy Ojo
10. Riki Flutey
9. Paul Hodgson
1. Neal Hatley
2. Danie Coetzee
3. Faan Rautenbach
4. Bob Casey
5. Nick Kennedy
6. Kieran Roche
7. Olivier Magne
8. Juan Manuel Leguizamon
Replacements:
16. Michael Collins
17. David Paice
18. Paul Gustard
19. Kieron Dawson
20. Sailosi Tagicikiabu
21. Ben Willis
22. Barry Everitt
That is our strongest most competitive pack, a pack to win ball and hold on to it. We have Riki who is still getting better and the lightening speed of Delon and Topsy. We can put Sigh-low-see Thakee-thakee-bo on late to use his attacking speed and strength. I can't see any Gloucester team announcement yet; it was 4pm last Friday before the team for Bayonne leaked out. I don't think I'll wait. I would have loved to write about the various match-ups at line-outs, scrum and breakdown and the science of how we'll jump higher, shove harder, scrap and scrag every loose ball. But our 8 are a disciplined match. Unit skills at line-out and scrum have been developed by Toby Booth for us to win quality possession, and I can think over no-one I'd like to see around the tackle area than Magne and Leguizamon. These are fit motivated skilful runners and handlers. In the backs Gloucester may name Mike Tindall and James Simpson-Daniel, or former Natal Sharks Rudi Kiel could start, having only played one 'A' team fixture since arriving at the start of the season. James Forrester at No8 should play, and I'll be judging how he looks next to Juan Manuel Leguizomon. Alex Brown at lock may feature; the comparison between Brown and Kennedy could help the England claims of each. Jake Boer unfortunately limped off with an ankle injury at the Madejski, but is very strong with a high work rate. I thought the reorganisation caused by his substitution slowed and weakened them on that day.
So, in conclusion will we win? Yes. Maybe we were fortunate to meet them when the autumn internationals weakened them, and there are similar factors here. But we will have the strength and composure to record a famous victory. About time.
With confidence I believe Gloucester will be this years Saracens, we'll beat them in the league and in the cup.
Now where's the nearest bookies....