Yorkshire Carnegie
Coasting to the Title? Nope!
JD to start perhaps?
By Andy Brown
December 23 2008
With the most anticipated match of the season out of the way, Leeds taking the spoils in a bruising encounter against Exeter and so going eight points clear at the top of National 1, the next game could potentially come as something of a damp squib. But then again, it's Boxing Day, it's Otley, and if there's one thing in the universe it definitely won't be, then "damp squib" is that thing.
Matches against Otley are never damp squibs. Sure, Leeds have always come out on top, and often with a pretty impressive looking scoreline, but if I had only one word to describe the whole ethos of Otley rugby, their style of play, their fans, their whole rugby philosophy, that word would be "heart", and they will give their all for the cause on Friday. I expect them to come up short, but probably not without giving us a bit of a fright (or should that be fight?).
And of course, to add spice to it all, the traditional local derby match on Boxing Day is making a reappearance. After taking something of a sabbatical following the headlong rush into professionalism in the mid-nineties, the powers that set the league fixtures for National 1 over the last few years have recognised (rediscovered?) that your average rugby watching punter is only too keen to get out of the house after the festivities of the previous day, ready to enjoy a pint or two of Yorkshire's finest and watch the game that he loves, but without having to travel to the opposite end of the country to do it. And thus we have seen in our last two sojourns into National 1 a Boxing Day fixture against Otley.
Leeds have this season been pretty good neighbours to Otley, loaning several of their squad players to the Dales club for mutual benefit – Otley get some quality additions with fully professional training and conditioning, Leeds get their fringe players some good old fashioned game-time. However, that neighbourliness doesn't extend to this fixture – the likes of Adam Greendale, Luther Burrell, Pete Wackett et al will not be turning out against their employers, and thus the Otley team will be somewhat depleted in the back division.
Word on the street (or, in fact, on YouTube) has it that the Leeds side fielded on Friday will be vastly changed from the 22 named for the win over Exeter, and that has sent some alarm bells ringing around the place; remember what happened to Exeter when they played Esher? Take these so-called lesser teams for granted at your peril, and if this tactic is seen as arrogance by the Otley boys, then that will be all the motivational team talk they will ever need – "those big city boys coming over here thinking they could take us apart without breaking a sweat?"
That being said, in the pub the other day a bunch of us were trying to name a XV that hadn't started against Exeter. If you were to think of, for example McGee, Freer, Pala'amo, Lund, Denton, Dunbar, Myall, Boyde, White, Di Barnardo, Paul, Vickerman, Welding, Armstrong, Biggs, then I think you'd have to agree that, as a XV, that's not a bad side. With Backy's squad rotation system looking like it's doing the job, then a side like that should be able to take up the cudgels and keep the Leeds momentum going. I would expect the usual first half of front-eight attrition, followed by a second half of exploiting gaps in the back line and running tries in past a rapidly tiring defence. Leeds will of course have to watch their discipline – this nearly cost us the game against Exeter and Otley will be right there, in their faces, scraping and scrabbling for every advantage they can get. Anything less than a full five-pointer will be a moral victory for the Otley boys, even if an actual victory is perhaps beyond them.
But enough about the actual game - there is the small matter of the always excellent hospitality. To all who will be at the match, I'll see you there. To those of you who won't, Merry Christmas, and here's to a pulsating second-half of the season!
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23/12/2008 10:25
Pain is only temporary but victory is forever
Looking forward to my 1st visit to Cross Green
See you all then - sober or otherwise...
looking forward to the Premiership next Season already...!
Suffering on the Leeds and Yorkshire roller-coaster since 2001
