|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tuts' Audio Report | The John Brain Interview | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
One of the big games of the season was now upon us. We were about take on one of the giants of premiership rugby. A side our coaches seem to use as a yardstick for measuring players and supporters. "We need our supporters to be as hostile as they are at Kingsholm", "Our supporters need to be as one eyed as the shed", "The supporters at Gloucester really know their rugby" Well I think we have more than measured up. When have we ever booed our team off the field? When have we ever turned on the coaches? When have we ever stopped cheering even when losing from start to finish. When have we ever sworn and spat at visiting supporters. if that is what you want from supporters then count me out!! |
 |
We were there in our hundreds. By 12:30 we were filling the center line in the shed. No beer today guys this was serious stuff. There was some great camaraderie between fans and the scene was set for an epic encounter. Would the occasion be too much for some of the players and supporters alike. We had expectations! |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
As the team came
out to acclimatise to the ground the shed erupted with Warriorrrrs,
Warriorrrrs. Even big JB was seen to smile, did he now know that his club
was as committed as the club he left. We drowned them out totally at Sixways and
now we were making our presence heard and they were not going to stop. The
battle had begun in The Shed.
A David and Goliath meeting of 6,000 versus 600, 10:1. Did that worry us, did it phase the faithful supporters? No it didn't, we were going to give our players the best support we could and I hope they felt as proud as we did. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
With Gloucester
Cathedral resplendent in the background both teams came out to warm up
amidst rapturous cheering from both sets of supporters. the atmosphere
was electric. At the beginning of the season with a brand new team, still to even play together, we would have been overjoyed to come to Gloucester and stop them getting a bonus point. However as the coaches had melded the team together superbly, we had expectation of a losing bonus and a possible win. Gloucester had not been playing well and were there for the taking, if we were in the best form of the season so far. |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
Were we ready? The officials took their places, with Tony Spreadbury as referee we should be well served, we thought! The noise was deafening as Worcester, through James Brown got the game underway. |
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
In came the chasing Warrior forwards, thundering into the Gloucester players. the ball was knocked backwards and bouncing around. It was available who would secure it. Gloucester were there days in front of the Worcester forwards. The edge and capacity to win 50/50 ball had gone! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
From the very first
contact, it was obvious this was going to be a very combatitive game. Gloucester set up a maul to test out the resolve of the Worcester players and "feel" their power. It was very even as the maul stayed still as both sets of forwards competed for supremacy. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
The line was cleared to touch and the first lineout. A good take by Gillies set up 5 minutes of possession rugby from the Warriors. The ball was taken on by the supporting forwards or distributed wide through Mat Powell and James Brown. We had Giscard make a couple of runs at Setti Keoli who did not look a big tackler. Gloucester withstood these first few minutes and then turned it into there own counter when once again The Warriors dropped the ball at a key attacking point. This left them open to the counter as the ball was zipped out wide for the giant Samoan to have a run in space. Not a problem, Pieters just lined him up and took him down, with the supporting tacklers driving them into touch |
This time the line
out was dreadful as the jumper was on his way down as the ball came in.
First steal to Gloucester. Gloucester now put in some great surges, but the Worcester defence held firm as they tackled and drove the attacking forwards backwards forcing bad ball into their threequarter line. HP likes to come forward |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
However the speed,
the ferocity and the intensity of the Gloucester attacks are something we
would do well to emulate. They were starting to look very dangerous and my
headache from the previous nights mid season party was blossoming nicely! We then conceded two penalties, the second being rather strange. However this gave the impetus straight to Gloucester as well as the 6 points Gloucester 6 : 0 Worcester It was now backs the wall and work, work, work to keep out the Gloucester team now in full flight. This they did but were far to slow to react when the counter opportunity arose, where was this edge? |
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
An attacking move down the Gloucester left made great inroads into the Worcester defence, but it was holding. The ball was turned over, Hinshelwood made a great break, only to attempt a ludicrous layoff, straight to a Gloucester forward who immediately countered. The ball was moved sideways and the Gloucester player then clearly ran into his own player, rolling left he released Setti who scored. |
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
The forwards were very evenly matched in
the tight, the loose and the lineout. The difference was the backrow
support. Gloucester were bigger faster and a lot more physical. The second try followed an advantage to Worcester which Mr Spreadbury decided to forget as Gomersall charged down the kick |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
Worcester were far from done as they
fought back with some crunching darts from Andre Van Neikerk. But where are our big ball carriers to take it on. We would make the first gap then peter out to a slow ruck or maul where the game plan was then for Powell or Brown to kick for position. I suppose with little penetrative ability on the outside it was probably the only option available. We do not have the pace or the guile in the midfield to break down defences. It has to be through positional play and the forwards. At this stage it did not look as if Gloucester were going to be put under enough pressure to test out their defence |
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
With James Brown
converting two simple penalties and missing another, Worcester managed to
squeeze 6 points out of the first half. Ring rusty, slow, low intensity, low physicality describe the first half as the Warriors were dragged back into premiership action. the first game foe over 28 days and it showed. Would the second half go like it did at Welford Road or could the team re-discover what they had built up over the last 4 games in the ZP |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
