By Quins4life
October 28 2015

So next up in the Premiership is an away fixture to last seasons runners-up, Bath. Quickly I just wanted to reflect on the Leicester game last weekend. Despite the result, I was very encouraged by the performance against a side that will be up there competing with us for a top 6 position. On another day we would have come away with a well-deserved win but if you had offered me a losing bonus point and good performance before the match then I would have taken it. Also considering only two teams have won both of their two games so far, it shows how tight this season will be and the away games against the likes of Leicester wont define our season and the point we did get could be crucial. 

Anyway, on to next weekend and we have a very tough trip to Bath. Bath last season had their best season in years after missing out on a top 4 finish in the 2013/14 after the memorable (if you support Quins) final day defeat against the Quins at the Stoop. Last season they broke the strangle hold of the traditional top 4 of recent years and made it to the final where they lost against a very good Saracens side. They also reached a Champions Cup quarterfinal where they lost to Leinster, in a game they could have, and perhaps should have, won. So although the Bath fans may be disappointed with how the season ended, it must definitely be considered a successful one. 

This season Bath are considered as the favourites by many pundits to be the champions come May and it is hard to disagree with them. The facts seem to point to them as the champions for the last few seasons, since Quins won the Premiership, have all lost in the final the season before they won it. So if you’re someone who likes trends then Bath seem the safe bet to win the league. Their squad also looks one of the strongest, if not the strongest, in the league. They have a strong, experienced pack and a very exciting backline, marshalled by their new flying Fijian scrum half Matawalu and England’s George Ford. The mix of both of these aspects makes Bath a formidable unit and very hard to stop when they are in full flow. A saving grace for Quins is that South African flanker and absolute beast Francois Louw is not back yet. 

Last season Bath won all of the fixtures against Quins (two in premiership and won in the LV Cup) and Quins have not won at the Rec since the Premiership winning season back in 2011/12. The game at the Rec last season was a disaster for Quins as they were absolutely battered by a Bath pack, which dominated every scrum leading to a mountain of penalties as well as several yellow cards against the name of the Quins props. I doubt Head Coach John Kingston will have forgotten this and he’ll be eager to show the Quins pack have improved this season. If not, Quins could be in for another long, painful afternoon in the West Country. 

Despite all of this there is hope for Quins. After the first two games Bath do not seem quite at the races yet. They scrapped through against Exeter on the opening day of the season with a one-point win and it was probably a game they should have lost. Last weekend they lost at the Ricoh against Wasps but they managed to get a losing bonus point. The match turned into the dogfight due to awful playing conditions but Wasps found themselves 16-3 up with about 15 minutes to play, but two late Ford penalties just secured them a point. These two games must give Quins confidence of producing an upset. Quins must show the same tenacity in defence as they have shown in the first two games and at least find parity up front at set piece time. If they manage this, Quins can unleash a backline that is looking a lot more threatening this season and could potentially push Bath very close. Quins have to remember all the pressure and expectancy is on Bath so hopefully it will give the Quins players freedom to play and attack Bath. 

Team Selections 
For Quins, it is time to give the big guns a start. I think it probably did cost us slightly not starting the England players last weekend but then hindsight is a wonderful thing. So I expect Brown to continue at full back, whilst Care, Marler and Easter should come in for Dickson, Lambert and Luamanu respectively. Luamanu is a difficult decision because he has started the season well, but you cannot ignore the impact of the veteran Easter and he has to start. I think Visser should be thrown in and given a chance from the start to combat Bath’s wingers’ size and power, whilst Robshaw will likely be used off the bench. Wallace and Clifford have started the season well and deserve to stay in on merit. Evans did hobble off last weekend but only due to cramp so should be available. 

My Predicted Quins XV- Marler, Ward, Jones, Twomey, Horwill, Clifford, Wallace, Easter; Care(c), Evans, Visser, Sloan, Lowe, Yarde, Brown. 

With Bath I don’t expect many changes to the side that played against Wasps last weekend. I have a feeling Watson will move to fullback and Banahan will start, meaning ex-London Irish Tom Homer will drop out. I suspect Burgess will come back into the side as well after being rested last weekend. This means they’ll be more or less at full strength just without the injured Joseph and Louw. 

My Predicted Bath XV- Auterac, Batty, Thomas, Hooper, Attwood, Burgess, Fa’osiliva, Houston; Matawalu, Ford, Banahan, Eastmond, Devoto, Rokoduguni, Watson. 

Before writing this I have to admit I was not feeling confident that Quins had much hope in this game. Bath are correctly considered to be one of the firm favourites for the top 4 and the title this year, and a strong home record too makes it an incredibly difficult task for a Quins side still developing. However, after looking at how Quins have started the season and actually comparing the two sides, there isn’t as much in it at the moment as I thought. Bath have a very physical pack and a dangerous backline so Quins will have to defend even better and probably for longer than they have had to in recent weeks. Both teams will want a response after last week’s losses so I think it will be an intriguing battle. 

For the preview, I have to go with my head rather than my heart and say Bath will win but the margin of victory will be close. A bonus point will be a good return for Quins but my heart say on the basis of the first two games I wouldn’t be surprised if Quins perform well enough to manage to just sneak it and get a shock win. Whatever the result though, it is going to be close. 

My Prediction; Bath 26 Quins 22 


Bath Rugby v Harlequins (Recreation Ground, 1.30pm) 
Referee: Matthew Carly (34th Premiership game). 
Assistant Referees: Andrew Pearce & Roy Maybank. 
TMO: David Sainsbury.