Northampton Saints
Thoughts from the Chron 26th March
By Chris Gleadell
March 27 2009
The writing may well have been on the wall re Sunday's result even before a ball was kicked. After the heroics of the Irish national side winning the Grand Slam on Saturday evening in Cardiff and the Madjeski stadium full of those celebrating St Patrick's Day could there ever have been a different outcome? Well yes in all honesty there probably could and should.
CHRIS GLEADELL'S
THOUGHTS FROM THE CHRON
26th MARCH 2008
The ironic thing was that in James Downey, Barry Everitt, Neil Best and Roger Wilson we had rather more folk from the Emerald Isle in the team called Northampton than there was in the one dubbed ‘Irish’. Unfortunately that is as far as the connection went and the luck of the Irish on the day stayed with the team from Reading. They may like us come from the four corners of the globe but they rode that Irish luck for all it was worth. Some may look at the penalty try (and indeed the reasoning behind it) as the deciding factor but by then we were already behind despite looking well on course for our second successive away victory just a quarter of an hour earlier.
I am sure we will look back on the game as an opportunity lost. We did appear to lose our heads a little going into the final quarter. Defending an eight point lead with twenty minutes left on the clock, three quick fire penalties from the Exiles new wunderkind Tom Homer in the space of nine frantic minutes not only wiped out that lead but it also had us on the back foot. That penalty try looked like the final twist of the knife to send us home with nothing for our efforts but a late Bruce penalty at least secured a losing bonus. It could have been all very different though. We certainly looked like we missed the calming influence and nous of Nacho Lobbe when it got down to the nitty gritty in that final quarter but all in all there was no disgrace in the performance or the effort put in.
As Jim Mallinder said earlier this week we are in some respects still learning our trade in the top flight but it shows how far we have come already this season in that we are slightly disappointed that we did win a game away at a top four team. The majority of the squad as a unit may still be in its infancy but I think in recent weeks there has been a marked improvement all round.
A bit of tinkering here and there and maybe the addition of a couple more players and we might make great strides next season back towards where we were when Wayne Smith left the club. Certainly in Big Jim and the other coaches and the support personnel we look to have the right off pitch set up now to take us forward and despite the defeat on Saturday the nucleus of a team to get Saints back to the top of the English and European game.
If the season finished now I would be more than happy with the outcome.
Not only has target number one, survival, been achieved but consolidation and progress have been seen in large doses too. However there is so much more we can get out the last eight weeks of the season. With just three Guinness Premiership games left seventh place, and possible Heineken Cup qualification through the league, looks like a slightly tall order. It is still attainable but with other clubs around us not only having games in hand but having to play each other (meaning Saints cannot prosper either way) then it might just slip from our grasp. This makes the two cup competitions all that more important in securing not only the silverware but the HC spot that goes with it.
In my mind, of the two, the European Challenge Cup looks our better route. Sunday’s game at Irish – or ‘the winners’ as some have been dubbing them since before this competition started - showed that on our day we have the beating of any other team in the competition. Given that if we can overcome Connacht at the Gardens on Easter weekend we would secure a home semi too, prospects look good however many chickens I may be counting.
That is taking nothing away from the EDF Cup in which we play Cardiff Blues in the semi final double header at Coventry City’s Ricoh Stadium on Saturday.
Despite being one game less to glory and all the spoils that come with that there are two unknown quantities in the Blues and Ospreys plus one of England’s most consistent sides Gloucester to overcome.
As for our unknown quantity on Saturday, Cardiff, they appear to be one of the hardest sides to fathom. Despite sitting in the lower half of the Magners League they went great guns in the pool stage of the Heineken Cup this year, indeed on the day we play Connacht they take on the might of Toulouse at the Millennium Stadium at the quarter final stage. It may be clutching at straws but I am hoping Cardiff have half an eye on this game as their main objective and mentality they might have taken their eye momentarily off the ball for Saturday’s game. Blues coach Dai Young says his side may be rusty after not having played too many games recently and you may have to factor in the state, physical and otherwise, of the returning Welsh squad members. All in all many ponderables to consider but I am still at a loss to which Cardiff might turn up. That said, on recent form, I think we may have the beating of them either way and on the day it may well be a case of we need it more. With Coventry being so close I am sure there will be a big Saints presence at the Ricoh and with us all getting behind the team who knows on Saturday night we might just all be planning another trip to Twickenham.
SIX NATIONS
A big well done to Ireland in securing their first Grand Slam in sixty odd years.
Certainly they were the best side in the competition by some stretch and though they looked like stuttering on a couple of occasions they always came back to seal the win. Whilst the achievement will live long in Irish minds the other five countries had campaigns they might want to forget.
Italy, who under Nick Mallet were expected to show some progress this year, didn’t. Indeed if anything they took somewhat of a sizable backwards step and only really shone in the narrow defeat by Wales.
Scotland again trod water for another year. Whilst they have a couple of Saintsmen in their ranks they never look a settled side to me. The players show loyalty to Frank Hadden but you do have to wonder what the likes of Jake white could do with a country who do have a wealth of talent at its disposal.
France, were well France! Sublime one game, abject the next. Again coach Marc Lièvremont changed his team more times than he changed his socks. That may be with an eye to the future but it looks like French revolution after revolution than any evolution at times.
Wales. Well the bubble burst in the principalities eyes but in all truth they were not that far off the pace. They may have narrowly avoided the banana skin in Italy but otherwise despite their fourth place in the table they looked the more composed and consistent of the also-rans.
And lastly England. Somehow England ended as runners-up to Ireland and a look at the table tells you not only were they the joint highest point scorers but they also had the most watertight defence. I’m still not 100% convinced though. For me the jury is still out on the Johnson reign. We certainly caught France on the hop and only lost narrowly to both Wales and Ireland the two teams battling it out for the title on the last day. However with an eye on the World Cup in 2011 some selections raised eyebrows. When you would expect some youngsters to be given their head the old guard was recalled and we look to be just looking game to game and a result at any cost rather than progression.
I may be wrong (I usually am) but are we really any better off going forward than we were a year ago?
I am sure we will look back on the game as an opportunity lost. We did appear to lose our heads a little going into the final quarter. Defending an eight point lead with twenty minutes left on the clock, three quick fire penalties from the Exiles new wunderkind Tom Homer in the space of nine frantic minutes not only wiped out that lead but it also had us on the back foot. That penalty try looked like the final twist of the knife to send us home with nothing for our efforts but a late Bruce penalty at least secured a losing bonus. It could have been all very different though. We certainly looked like we missed the calming influence and nous of Nacho Lobbe when it got down to the nitty gritty in that final quarter but all in all there was no disgrace in the performance or the effort put in.
As Jim Mallinder said earlier this week we are in some respects still learning our trade in the top flight but it shows how far we have come already this season in that we are slightly disappointed that we did win a game away at a top four team. The majority of the squad as a unit may still be in its infancy but I think in recent weeks there has been a marked improvement all round.
A bit of tinkering here and there and maybe the addition of a couple more players and we might make great strides next season back towards where we were when Wayne Smith left the club. Certainly in Big Jim and the other coaches and the support personnel we look to have the right off pitch set up now to take us forward and despite the defeat on Saturday the nucleus of a team to get Saints back to the top of the English and European game.
If the season finished now I would be more than happy with the outcome.
Not only has target number one, survival, been achieved but consolidation and progress have been seen in large doses too. However there is so much more we can get out the last eight weeks of the season. With just three Guinness Premiership games left seventh place, and possible Heineken Cup qualification through the league, looks like a slightly tall order. It is still attainable but with other clubs around us not only having games in hand but having to play each other (meaning Saints cannot prosper either way) then it might just slip from our grasp. This makes the two cup competitions all that more important in securing not only the silverware but the HC spot that goes with it.
In my mind, of the two, the European Challenge Cup looks our better route. Sunday’s game at Irish – or ‘the winners’ as some have been dubbing them since before this competition started - showed that on our day we have the beating of any other team in the competition. Given that if we can overcome Connacht at the Gardens on Easter weekend we would secure a home semi too, prospects look good however many chickens I may be counting.
That is taking nothing away from the EDF Cup in which we play Cardiff Blues in the semi final double header at Coventry City’s Ricoh Stadium on Saturday.
Despite being one game less to glory and all the spoils that come with that there are two unknown quantities in the Blues and Ospreys plus one of England’s most consistent sides Gloucester to overcome.
As for our unknown quantity on Saturday, Cardiff, they appear to be one of the hardest sides to fathom. Despite sitting in the lower half of the Magners League they went great guns in the pool stage of the Heineken Cup this year, indeed on the day we play Connacht they take on the might of Toulouse at the Millennium Stadium at the quarter final stage. It may be clutching at straws but I am hoping Cardiff have half an eye on this game as their main objective and mentality they might have taken their eye momentarily off the ball for Saturday’s game. Blues coach Dai Young says his side may be rusty after not having played too many games recently and you may have to factor in the state, physical and otherwise, of the returning Welsh squad members. All in all many ponderables to consider but I am still at a loss to which Cardiff might turn up. That said, on recent form, I think we may have the beating of them either way and on the day it may well be a case of we need it more. With Coventry being so close I am sure there will be a big Saints presence at the Ricoh and with us all getting behind the team who knows on Saturday night we might just all be planning another trip to Twickenham.
SIX NATIONS
A big well done to Ireland in securing their first Grand Slam in sixty odd years.
Certainly they were the best side in the competition by some stretch and though they looked like stuttering on a couple of occasions they always came back to seal the win. Whilst the achievement will live long in Irish minds the other five countries had campaigns they might want to forget.
Italy, who under Nick Mallet were expected to show some progress this year, didn’t. Indeed if anything they took somewhat of a sizable backwards step and only really shone in the narrow defeat by Wales.
Scotland again trod water for another year. Whilst they have a couple of Saintsmen in their ranks they never look a settled side to me. The players show loyalty to Frank Hadden but you do have to wonder what the likes of Jake white could do with a country who do have a wealth of talent at its disposal.
France, were well France! Sublime one game, abject the next. Again coach Marc Lièvremont changed his team more times than he changed his socks. That may be with an eye to the future but it looks like French revolution after revolution than any evolution at times.
Wales. Well the bubble burst in the principalities eyes but in all truth they were not that far off the pace. They may have narrowly avoided the banana skin in Italy but otherwise despite their fourth place in the table they looked the more composed and consistent of the also-rans.
And lastly England. Somehow England ended as runners-up to Ireland and a look at the table tells you not only were they the joint highest point scorers but they also had the most watertight defence. I’m still not 100% convinced though. For me the jury is still out on the Johnson reign. We certainly caught France on the hop and only lost narrowly to both Wales and Ireland the two teams battling it out for the title on the last day. However with an eye on the World Cup in 2011 some selections raised eyebrows. When you would expect some youngsters to be given their head the old guard was recalled and we look to be just looking game to game and a result at any cost rather than progression.
I may be wrong (I usually am) but are we really any better off going forward than we were a year ago?
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StumbleuponThoughts from the Chron 26th March
Discussion started by ComeOnYouSaints.com , 27/03/2009 00:48
ComeOnYouSaints.com
27/03/2009 00:48
27/03/2009 00:48
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As I recall, there is only one Cardiff Blues. a quality squad with good players all over. Their position in the Magners is not worth a mention, there are good reasons why they are where they are and its not the team's consistency. Other than the derbies, the big games for the Welsh regions are the games against Munster and Leinster. Unfortunately these games are refereed by Scots who just do not have the experience to handle such competitive games. They outplayed Leinster both home and away but only managed a loss and a draw with crucial poor decisions at the end of the game going against them. Local Welsh derbies were played 3 in a week over Xmas so there was a bit of luck attached to the strength of the opposition (i.e. whether they put out their best or their squad team) and who got 2 home games. During international periods, if its your year then you play Connaught or one of the Scottish teams at home.
A squad that can beat Gloucester in the dry and in the wet, getting 9 points to Gloucester's 1 are no mugs. I accept that lack of game time as a squad may be a disadvantage but to proclaim that the Saints should beat the Blues playing at their best is a bit of a stretch. Incidentally, there are 2 Welsh teams there on Saturday and despite the East v West thing, I suspect the Welsh fans will be all supporting each other.
dej
A squad that can beat Gloucester in the dry and in the wet, getting 9 points to Gloucester's 1 are no mugs. I accept that lack of game time as a squad may be a disadvantage but to proclaim that the Saints should beat the Blues playing at their best is a bit of a stretch. Incidentally, there are 2 Welsh teams there on Saturday and despite the East v West thing, I suspect the Welsh fans will be all supporting each other.
dej
Quote:eif
if its your year then you play Connaught or one of the Scottish teams at home.
This of course is the league which is not Vastly inferior?
You are, just sometimes Eif, a complete @rse.
So, it is partly down to poor Scottish referee's as to why Cardiff Blues are in a "false" position in the Magners league.
Also, you state...."but to proclaim that the Saints should beat the Blues playing at their best is a bit of a stretch."
Read the piece again.
Chris writes
"That said, on recent form, I think we may have the beating of them......"
I know this has been asked of you in a previous thread but, as usual, you declined to answer, so i will ask again.
Which side will you be supporting on Saturday?
I find it such a shame that some of your posts are actually
well constructed and well thought out, but the majority spoil it for the minority.
Also, you state...."but to proclaim that the Saints should beat the Blues playing at their best is a bit of a stretch."
Read the piece again.
Chris writes
"That said, on recent form, I think we may have the beating of them......"
I know this has been asked of you in a previous thread but, as usual, you declined to answer, so i will ask again.
Which side will you be supporting on Saturday?
I find it such a shame that some of your posts are actually
well constructed and well thought out, but the majority spoil it for the minority.
Thoughtful and reflective as ever Chris - good stuff!
Im a bit confused by Eifs posting - I thoght he said we werent supposed to criticise referees?
Im a bit confused by Eifs posting - I thoght he said we werent supposed to criticise referees?
Sorry David of course how silly of me! I havent enough coffee this morning!
Actually I totally agree with Eif, just like the Blues Saints are in a position in the Guinness Premiership that is purely down to bad refereeing, we should be top, thats why we'll beat em!
"Their position in the Magners is not worth a mention, there are good reasons why they are where they are and its not the team's consistency."
Blimey, Bristol must be the best team in Europe at the moment then...
Blimey, Bristol must be the best team in Europe at the moment then...
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