Pressure on Redpath as Glaws chase revival
BR - pressure
By Cherry Picker
September 23 2009
There’s a theory doing the rounds that a win over Saracens in Watford this weekend will put Gloucester’s Guinness Premiership season “back on track.” Let’s not mince words or beat about the bush here – that is a pile of cobblers. Gloucester not only need to beat Sarries, they need to beat them by a big margin, and then they need to win a few other games as well.
The points from a win might make the league table look better after two consecutive defeats, but the manner of those defeats have suggested that all is not well in the Kingsholm camp and there’s a lot more wrong than a single win can repair.
After Sarries, Glaws are away to Leeds, who are desperate for points after a bad start to the season, then the Heineken Cup campaign starts at a time when coach Bryan Redpath would have hoped his team would be firing on all cylinders.
The fact that they aren’t is obviously worrying BR, and the three-week ban slapped on joint skipper Gareth Delve (right) isn’t going to help matters.
As has already been said, it’s not so much the results that are worrying, but more the manner of them.
Being hammered at London Irish was bad, but losing at home to Northampton was worse because that was a game Glaws could and should have won with better form from some individuals and better discipline from the team as a whole.
Glaws have at times played like a bit of a ragbag rather than as a team.
Sunday at Sarries is the place to put that right, otherwise the team – and new coach Redpath, just four games into his tenure – will be under huge pressure with the season in its infancy.
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Just a thought.
It also seems to me that the tactical adjustments to Glaws' gameplan are taking too long to bed in with some players (particularly amongst the forwards) and as a result Glaws look totally disjointed and disorganised.
Whilst there is still time this season, the penny needs to drop with players as of now and there can't be anymore shambolic performances as witnessed in the previous two games.....