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Harlequins v Bath Rugby - Match Preview
By Worried of Whitton
October 2 2009
Still without a win this season Harlequins return to The Stoop this weekend to face Bath Rugby. The match is to be televised live by Sky and as such the kick off at The Stoop is at 6.05pm. Like Quins, Bath also suffered a miserable summer off the field, which was compounded by a poor start to the new season
Last weekend, whilst Quins fought back to draw their game at Newcastle last, Bath held on to a narrow win against Leicester at the Rec to record their first win of the season. Harlequins and Bath who have been labeled as the “bad boys” of English Rugby over the summer will be looking to both be on their best behaviour on Saturday evening in full glare of the Sky TV cameras. We could be watching the most polite rugby match ever played, “after you, no  no after you” as they seek to avoid any more damaging bad publicity and a repeat of the “Fracas in Fulham”, at the end of last season.. That however, should not deter from the fact that both teams will also be looking to take maximum points in Saturday night’s game, and Harlequins will be looking to extend their run of three consecutive wins over their visitors from the West Country. Quins have won the last three contests between the two sides, the most recent a 19-3 triumph down at The Rec in April  in which saw Harlequins win a memorable match and inflict the embarrassment of a pushover scrum on their hosts."There's definitely a sour taste from our defeat at home last season. They've had a bit of an edge over us in the last few fixtures we've played against them. We would like to put that right with a really good performance at The Stoop. said assistant coach Brad Davis earlier this week "Harlequins came back well against Newcastle in the second half last weekend, which shows they've got a lot of desire and a lot of heart, and they are probably not that far away from a win” indeed Quins nearly stole a win at the death.Davis doubts his players, who have not won back-to-back games on the road in the Premiership since the start of last season, will let the events of the summer cloud their preparations for the match. It was also reported last season that The Stoop was the ground that Bath players feared most, and with the opening of the new South Stand scheduled this weekend increasing the ground capacity to 14,000 then the atmosphere will be even less welcoming for the visitors.  Bath announced this week that Michael Classens is expected to be fit after picking up a dead leg against Leicester, and also the return of Matt Carraro following a kitchen injury to his thumb two weeks ago. Olly Barkley, however, is yet to fully recover from a broken leg and will not featureBath are all too aware that will need to improve their tactical kicking if they are to stand a chance of victory. Bath's wayward punts in the final quarter of the 20-20 draw against Leicester on Saturday let the Tigers back into the game.Harlequins will be desperate to get the first win of the season under their belt. After  seeing the half time score last Friday night I assumed that game was over and Quins were about to record their fourth straight loss. How delighted I was to see they had upped and improved their second half performance to fight back for a well deserved 17 all draw and two valuable points that lifted them off the bottom of the table. Interviewed after the game Skipped Will Skinner was pleased with the second half performance and suggested that the team had re-found the form that had kept them at the top last season. I think we can be satisfied with the draw; it may be greed to suggest that a late drop goal attempt should have gone over to seal a win for Quins. Harlequins had shown little attack in the first half, with just 3 points after five minutes as a reward for their endeavour. In the second half they doubled their tally and came surging back when Monye superbly finished off a sweeping backs move with a try n the corner. The Quins rally triggered indiscipline in the Newcastle ranks and Evans eagerly kicked home the penalties that leveled the score. This reversal of fortunes is just what the team needed and will have to work hard against Bath to produce a home win for the supporters at The Stoop and show the tv audience that the “madness” of the summer is now history and they are focusing hard on the future and what the season can bring. They have shown that they can work through adversity and produce results. On paper this should be a good game, and should manifest itself on the pitch. If Quins focus they can pull off the first home victory of the season. Harlequins need to have some more Premiership points in  the Table prior  to the start of their Heineken Cup campaign next weekend  Come On You Quins!   

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Harlequins v Bath Rugby - Match Preview
Posted by: ComeAllWithin.co.uk (IP Logged)
Date: 04/10/2009 14:07

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