Burns - first cap

By Cherry Picker
November 28 2012

The progress Gloucester have made this season and the strength in depth in the squad will be put to a severe test on Sunday when they travel to Watford for a Premiership game against Saracens that will have a major impact on the season's honours.

It’s second top v third top, with both on 28 points, and the home team will be desperate to bounce back after a surprise defeat at Worcester last weekend. But Glaws are on a roll and even allowing for international calls – including the first England call for Freddie Burns – they have no reason to believe they can’t get a result.

Much of what has happened this season has been based on the form of Burns, but it’s by no means a one-man show, with Billy Twelvetrees proving a perfect outside partner for the fly-half and, inside him, Jimmy Cowan settling into European club rugby well.

But the scrum has been a revelation, with coach Nigel Davies delighted with the strength of his front row and the game-breaking form of the back row.

After far too long as also-rans, the fans are starting to believe that Glaws really are back as a force and Davies told the Citizen: "There's a long way to go but we're pleased with where we are. There's a traditional hierarchy but we'd like to think we can challenge that.

"But there's a lot of work to do to make that happen.

"It's a massive test for us against Saracens, and that's the kind of game we need to take points from if we are going to challenge the established powers in the way we want to.

"So we're not going to make big pronouncements about what we're going to do, but hopefully we can just quietly tick along and keep improving."

Davies has made it clear many times that he is not one for making rash prediction or promises that he can’t keep, but it’s just as obvious that he is delighted with the way things have gone.

Both teams will be without key players, and that will happen again and again during the season – it’s a test of the squad’s strength in depth, and so far the evidence suggests Glaws are well off in this respect. Sunday's game should tell us more.

Can Glaws still thrive without Burns?

Discussion started by Shedloads (IP Logged), 28/11/2012 11:10

Shedloads
28/11/2012 11:10

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