News: LV= Exeter Chiefs v Northampton Saints - Match Preview

By Daventry Saint
January 31 2013

Northampton Saints travel South-West this weekend looking to secure a place in the semi-finals of the LV= Cup. To do that they will have to defeat Exeter Chiefs down at Sandy Park. Regular COYSDC contributor, Daventry Saint, takes a look ahead to the game...

EXETER CHIEFS vs. NORTHAMPTON SAINTS

LV= Cup: Saturday, 2nd February 2013 - 6.30pm

SANDY PARK, EXETER

MATCH PREVIEW

This week Northampton head to Exeter for the second time this year needing a win to secure their place in the LV=3D Cup Semi-Finals. If they qualify it will be the fourth time in five years that the Saints have made it to the last four of the competition - a testament to the value that Jim Mallinder sees in the cup.

The LV is seen by many clubs (particularly the Welsh regions) as an opportunity to aid the development of the younger players within their squads - however this is not the main focus of Jim Mallinder's Northampton. Although a handful of young and predominantly second-string players are given the opportunity to play in the LV= Cup, Mallinder does tend to stick with a large number of his preferred first team players. In previous years there have been differing reasons for sticking with the tried and tested first teamers, whether it be they need game-time or injuries dictate team selection, or otherwise - however this season the reasons behind his selection are reasonably clear - the Saints need to start winning at all costs. The competition the wins come in is irrelevant. It could be argued that the performances don't even need to be all that great. The team simply needs a string of winning performances to get some positivity back flowing through the veins of the club. You only need to look on this message-board to see that all is not well in the world of the Northampton Saints.

Positivity often breeds success, but success is a key to positivity - it seems it is a vicious cycle that we find ourselves within. However positivity is not the only reason that Northampton need a win this weekend. On current form it is hard to see the Saints sustaining a push for the Aviva Premiership play-offs - perhaps a top six finish may prove to be a tough ask. Therefore, the LV= Cup could well provide an alternative route into the Heineken Cup - plus some extra cash for the stadium expansion kitty.

Last week saw an improved performance from Northampton. Not a performance that would see us challenging for top honours come seasons end, but a better performance nonetheless. With Christian Day back from his injury we may well see some confidence and leadership return to the side. With an out and out second row in the side, the Northampton pack always seems to have more balance and direction. It has been a source of much frustration to many fans to see Daisy injured for so long, as well as Mallinder's persistence in playing both Courtney Lawes and Samu Manoa in the same side. Both Lawes and Manoa are fine athletes, but they are just that - athletes. Neither is a master of the arts at the line-out, nor do they do the bits and pieces of rucking and mauling as well as the likes of Day and Sorenson. With Christian back in the side, we will almost certainly see our lineout improve, as well as our scrum start to move forwards more often and our ball retention improve. That is not to say that Manoa will not be required this weekend - his ball-carrying and tackle count are vital to the Saints game-plan.

Christian Day was not the only player to make a difference last week. Luther Burrell returned to the 12 shirt that he held at the start of the season to great effect. Burrell offers something no other of our centres can - sheer bulk. When Burrell comes onto the ball flat and at pace, there are few defenders in Europe that can stop him dead - 9 times out of 10 he will break the gain-line when utilised in this way. This is something that the Saints have been lacking in their back play recently. Over the last 4 years here at Northampton we have been used to the comfort blanket of James Downey who, when things were going a little pear-shaped, could always be relied on to crash the ball up and set a platform. Through no fault of his own, Dom Waldouck has been unable to replicate this - it is not his game, nor will it ever be. However Burrell can offer this, and on Saturday we may well see him do it again.

Last week against Bath, Exeter fielded a largely second-string side. However no matter what kind of side turns out for Exeter on Saturday, the Saints will face a tough challenge. The Chiefs rarely lose on their own patch - something which Lewis Moody pointed out earlier this week as he predicted a bonus-point victory for Exeter. What Mr Moody may have forgotten is that Northampton have beaten the Chiefs on their last two visits to Sandy Park - the most recent victory coming in the first week of 2013. That is no mean feat. But that is not to say that a win for the Saints is in the bag this weekend. Exeter are likely to bring back a few of their more established players in order to exact some revenge on Jim Mallinder's side and to ensure that their hope record is kept respectable.

Now for a more personal approach.

To be brutally honest, I'm not all that concerned with actually winning the LV= Cup. The seemingly endless list of permutations of how we qualify and how many points we need to get to top the group ahead of Bath is irrelevant. What I want to see (or rather hear about as I won't be travelling to Sandy Park, and it isn't on telly) is a controlled and disciplined performance from the Saints. I want to hear that the pack dominated the set-piece and battled hard on the floor. I'd like to hear that our centres got us over the gain-line and gave us a platform to attack from. I'd like to see the backs play with a bit of confidence, and not get white-line fever every time they have the ball in the 22. I'd like to see James Craig and Christian Day get another game under their belts and I would, if possible, like to see us score some tries. If that is enough to bag us a win and a semi-final in the cup, then so be it.

Although for the some of the fans and particularly the pundits, a win is the be all and end all for the Saints, it isn't for me. If we lose it is a massive opportunity missed, no doubt. But if we lose playing good rugby and our backs don't look like rabbits in the headlights, then I will be equally as happy. The trouble is, I don't know what is more important to us at the moment - getting a win at all costs, or improving our precision and accuracy and playing better rugby. It's a dilemma that we have got ourselves into. You would like to think that increased precision and accuracy would be enough to secure the win, but Exeter are a very good side, particularly at home.

In reality, I'd take a win. I think.

Sat 2 Feb, 6:30pm Exeter Chiefs

DaventrySaint’s Predicted Team:

15 Ben Foden

14 James Wilson

13 George Pisi

12 Luther Burrell

11 Jamie Elliott

10 Stephen Myler

9 Lee Dickson

1 Alex Waller

2 Mikey Haywood

3 Tom Mercey

4 Samu Manoa

5 Christian Day

6 James Craig

7 Phil Dowson

8 Rhys Oakley

Replacements:

16 Ross McMillan

17 Soane Tonga'uiha

18 Ethan Waller

19 Mark Sorenson

20 Ben Nutley

21 Martin Roberts

22 Ryan Lamb

23 Dominic Waldouck

News: LV= Exeter Chiefs v Northampton Saints - Match Preview

Posted by: ComeOnYouSaints.com (IP Logged)

Date: 31/01/2013 13:55

What do you think? You can have your say by posting below.
If you do not already have an account Click here to Register.