Tigers v Exeter Match Preview
By ChrisC
September 24 2012
What the Beep...!? Cup of coffee in hand I was about to settle to write this when suddenly – BEEP! An electronic gismo was signalling its distress. BEEP! Now usually it’s those rascally smoke alarms that festoon the house like a serious case of plastic acne and who, while connected to the mains, also have batteries that wear out with such rapidity as to keep Duracell’s share price high. BEEP! I wandered through the hall ways and stairway but the pushy pustules were all winking contentedly as they dozed in the shade. BEEP!
BEEP! Back to the office; that mob in there are known troublemakers but no, again all was tranquillity, the modem was blinking self consciously as it chatted to some unseen pal, the computers assured me that all was well, with Mr Google prying into every aspect of my life, even the printer, a gangster in another existence who extorts vast sums to feed his ink cartridge habit, slept happily on with no paper jam or low ink in sight. BEEP!
BEEP! Into the bedroom where the new alarm sits smugly next to the bed. She’s only been with us a while but I’ve taken against her with her know all attitude that her “atomic clock” is never wrong. She just looked down her digits at me, shocked she could even be thought to misbehave. BEEP!
BEEP! Sitting room then. A forlorn hope as they’re a nice bunch in there. The Japanese HiFi blinked respectfully as I entered and confirmed all was well with him as did his compatriot the TV. And the Sky+ boxes only really get stroppy if we try to watch something too risqué when, the reincarnations of Mary Whitehouse they are, they turn themselves off and demand a PIN number. BEEP!
BEEP! There was nothing else I could do but go to the kitchen, glancing at the intruder alarm as I passed but knowing its fits of temper are usually more vociferous. And there they were; waiting; the Fifth Reich; regiments of AEG, Neff and Bosch all looked haughtily at me as they snapped to attention. They were immaculately turned out, cool, implacable and silent. Not a light flickered to betray them. BEEP!
BEEP! Surely it couldn’t be the fridge freezer, the only non Teuton present and a charming girl who, while born in Korea, had adapted well to her new American persona. I approached and, with a muttered apology, peered at her digital readouts that glowed companionably – assuring me that all was well in this outpost of the Land of the Free. BEEP!
BEEP! I was exhausted and before, Indiana Jones like, venturing into the domain of the boiler, who’s never liked me, I slumped onto a dining chair to gather myself. BURRP! Burrp? It was me! I reached into my back pocket and there she was; the tiny Finn, my mobile ‘phone, who’d promised faithfully to behave herself if I didn’t leave her with those rough types in the office. I liberated her from her unwelcome proximity to my right buttock. She winked happily and told me I had a text and, her job finally done, sank into silence.
“We have identified that you have £3000.00 in compensation waiting for you from the accident you had – just text C-L-A-I –M”. BEEP! (expletive deleted)
I must say I had a similar reaction when the score for the Exeter vs London Welsh match came though a couple of weeks back.
Last season’s fifth in the league had been beaten by the Premiership’s new boys by a solitary point and yet just a fortnight earlier the Chiefs had thumped Sale by 43 points to 6 points and they’d only lost by three unlucky points at Franklin’s Gardens.
How the BEEP did that happen?
Last week Rob Baxter’s team entertained Saracens at Sandy Park, a match for which I girded my loins, having already endured watching the “Men in Black” every weekend since the start of the season.
Little do you realise the torments and anguish I suffer to bring you these articles.
At least I watched this weekend’s matches of interest on ESPN rather than make matters worse by suffering the increasingly bizarre Sky coverage – how I’m going to miss ESPN when BT takes over, although to be rid of Sky’s Stuart Barnes and Miles Harrison will be a blessed relief – let’s hope BT are better at covering rugby than they are at everything else they touch!
Tigers were the first to appear and provided a display which saw BEEPing again on the agenda as I watched an inept display from Tigers and which, when compared to the high tempo Quins, looked somehow old fashioned and after the first quarter I already had the feeling that a home defeat was on the cards. Tigers were missing their alchemists in chief with Geordan Murphy, Tom Croft, Manu Tuilagi, Ben Youngs and Micky Young all injured, while Benjamin is also on the treatment table, with Bowden and Tait not quite yet ready for the fray but reportedly close thereto, meanwhile, inexplicably, Waldrom languished on the bench.
The soon to retire Mr Pearson was content to ignore a Quins’ defensive line that spent much of the match offside (unless of course it was peopled by a whole series of Usain Bolts in clever disguises), and he employed the now standard issue “randometer” when attending the scrum, which saw Johnson repeatedly bind illegally but rarely sanctioned and Quins repeatedly pulling down mauls with little more than a raised eyebrow from Pearson.
But in truth Tigers were just workmanlike while Quins looked in fine early season shape with just Lowe missing from an otherwise first choice starting line up however Conor O’Shea will now have to deal with a clutch of injuries, absentees on international duty and muddy days have yet to come. I wonder, if his first choice front row is required to continually play prolonged shifts at the rock face, how much gas will be left in their tanks come the end of the season. He’ll remember that in spite of growing a substantial points lead at the beginning of last season his team, in the end, squeezed into top spot from Tigers by just a solitary point. Early days indeed.
At Sandy Park the following afternoon, with the prospect of Saracens and bad weather, I wasn’t hoping for much and I wasn’t disappointed when, from the warmth of my sofa, I vicariously joined the 6141 brave souls who turned up in the goose-pimpled and dampened flesh.
There were plenty of opportunities to look at Sean Davey as he endlessly blew his whistle, largely for his “offence de jour”; tackler not rolling away. Pearson’s ridiculously harsh treatment of Tom Youngs for the same offence the previous day was surpassed by Mr Davey, who on one occasion, penalised Scaysbrook while Saracens’ Botha was holding the Exeter man down.
Saracens as usual seemed bent on kicking the casing off the ball and Exeter responded in kind although they did try to play some rugby and in the end it was while Chris Ashton was once again in the Sin Bin for yet another childish act of ill disciplined petulance, spotted by Ashley Rowden and confirmed by the TMO, that Exeter’s Sireli Naqelevuki finally found space out wide and, at last taking the ball at pace, scored a good try.
On Saturday meanwhile Tigers’ Castrogiovanni looked oddly out of sorts and the replacement combination of Cole and Mulipola made a noticeable difference, although by then the hard worked Quins’ front row had been softened up. Tom Youngs needs more work on the line out – much more. He is dynamic in the loose and he is good to watch but it’s the nuts and bolts that have to be spot on for a hooker and I can’t see how George Chuter can fail to start against the Chiefs while, the not entirely culpable, Youngs gathers himself and brings his impact play later on.
With Scottish international Craig Mitchell injured Exeter look likely to stick with the combination of the ever present Brett Sturgess and Chris Whitehead, who I thought went particularly well in tricky conditions as did Carl Rimmer making his Premiership starting debut. The Chiefs’ trio really took it to the vaunted Saracens’ front row and will be a significant threat to Tigers. Chuter must therefore be in a starting combination with Cole, who’s looking fierce at the breakdown as well as uncontrollable in the scrum, while Mulipola’s all round game must surely get him the nod against the hard scrummaging, but otherwise limited, Stankovitch. I think this combination would be strong enough to overcome the Exeter trio and that’s before the Tigers’ heavyweight reserves are deployed.
Tigers’ resources are still stretched at lock but aside from the fact that the big engine of Louis Deacon is missed at scrum time the all court play of Kitchener and intelligence of Geoff Parling make them a hard duo to gainsay but a better understanding with Youngs is needed at line out time and Crane’s work was far from slick last Saturday.
Tom Hayes continued his quite remarkable run, appearing in every single Premiership match that the Chiefs have played and, on all but one occasion, being in the starting line up. Solidity personified he, with the outstanding Scaysbrook, who has actually started every Premiership match since joining from Bath in time for the Chiefs’ inaugural season in the top flight, are the totems around which the team revolves and with either, the back from injury, Hanks or Ulsterman Aly Muldowney the visitors’ line out will demand a significant improvement from Tigers over their display against Quins, especially if thirty-three time capped Aussie Dean Mumm makes an appearance, as he’s now joined up with the Chiefs from the Waratahs, where he spent seven seasons, and is now in training down Devon way.
Julain Salvi was once again simply splendid on Saturday, although he did get on Pearson’s wrong side as the needle of the “randometer” swung in the Aussie’s direction, rather as if Pearson thought; “this bloke’s so in charge of the breakdown he must be cheating. I’ll ping him”. Salvi and Scaysbrook are both absolutely indomitable and the contest between them will be intriguing, the outcome of which could prove pivotal. A major loss for Exeter is the ruling out of the superb Tom Johnson through injury and while stand in James Phillips is a solid enough player the combination of Richard Baxter and Tom Johnson has greater dynamism and, providing Waldrom is reinstated, I think the home side could find more go forward than the visitors.
Steve Mafi was Salvi’s sorcerer’s apprentice and made an absolute pest of himself and the much celebrated Quins’ back row were put in the shade in the tight work. I must confess to being baffled at Jordan Crane’s selection at #8 ahead of Thomas Waldrom who’s started the season well and is feared by every Premiership defence. Crane is a good yeoman but where’s the alchemy that Waldrom brings to the most unlikely of base metal situations? Surely the Pork Pie Kiwi must be reinstated for the Exeter match.
It was at half back where things again really went wrong for Tigers. Richard Cockerill stuck with the badly misfiring combination of Harrison and Flood, the latter looking so out of sorts as to be unrecognisable from the player he can be and has been.
The sparkiness that Harrison showed when he first appeared has long since departed and he now burns and flickers like one of those dreadful energy saving light bulbs instead of the 100w of yore and this is impacting on Flood but it’s not making his tactical kicking as dire as it is. It was again painful to watch and all the more baffling as another alchemist; George Ford, was again kicking his heels, but nothing else, on the bench, without even a brief pipe opener. Maybe Cockerill is waiting for Bowden to be fully fit, which he reportedly now is, so that an injury to Ford and the likely disappearance of Flood on England duty does not empty the fly-half cupboard. I can think of no other explanation why Ford is not getting a chance.
Phibbs knows Exeter well and is very experienced so I’d start him alongside Ford with Flood and Harrison in reserve.
Exeter welcomed back Brummie Haydn Thomas from injury at scrum half and he was very influential and busy until he was replaced early in the second half by Ex Falcon Will Chudley, who looks to have been another good signing by the ever astute Rob Baxter. The Chiefs’ scrum halves showed good pace and awareness against deKock and England’s Wigglesworth so this could be a problem area for Tigers if their pack don’t get on top and they don’t have a half back pairing that clicks, especially as Mieres is in good form and now has the giant 123kgs Naqelevuki to unleash.
Tigers’ malady at half back impacts on the ability of Tony Allen to get over the gain line as he rarely sees the ball without an opposition defender already attached to it so his duties are lately mainly defensive and he acquits himself well in their execution but what a waste of a fine attacking force.
Naqelevuki will be coming down Allen’s channel so it could be another hard defensive day at the office for the Tigers’ man. Oddly though, against Saracens, the Fijian rarely took the ball at pace and was largely engaged as a target man for the Exeter forwards, a role which, with his enormous strength and leg drive, he fulfilled well.
Manu Tuilagi is reportedly expected to be fit for the visit of the Chiefs so it’s to be hoped that Richard Cockerill doesn’t instead select the lady that washes the team’s shirts at outside centre.
My guess is that Naqelevuki will be in harness with the newly arrived from Ulster, Ian Whitten who, due to the conditions and the nature of the opposition on Sunday, had a quiet afternoon and may find he has it all to do if Manu Tuilagi is indeed restored as I hope will be the case.
Niall Morris and Niki Goneva might as well have brought library books to read for all the ball they got against Quins. Perhaps that fine book that Richard Cockerill will surely soon write; “Tales of the Inexplicable” would fit the bill in future?
On the odd occasion that Morris saw the ball, which he must now rank alongside hens’ teeth so rare was it to be seen, he looked good, quick and intelligent but he and Goneva were also mainly occupied in manning the redoubt against the waves of Quins’ attackers urged on by Care and Evans.
With Samoan international Josh Tatupu presumably injured Phil Dollman moved from centre to the wing and looked very safe under Saracens’ aerial bombardment, making some good yardage as did Matt Jess, a top scorer in this year’s Premiership and who looks a real threat whenever he gets the ball, as does Goneva in Tigers’ colours.
Hamilton was typically solid at full back, no alchemy there either, while for Exeter Luke Arscott looked dangerous with ball in hand.
It would be interesting to see Morris in the #15 shirt with Thompstone on the wing, while Hamilton could cover both from the bench.
But any such changes will be for naught if the half back situation is not remedied and quickly.
Tigers have to win next Saturday if the benefit of back to back home matches, which should generate at least eight points, is not to be entirely squandered and they next have trips to Manchester and Toulouse, so acts urgently need to be got together.
The Chiefs got the taste of victory at Welford Road in the opening match of last season. I bet they can still remember it and are anxious for seconds but if Tigers don’t prevail over Exeter this time there’ll be a lot of “What the Beep” coming from the terraces not to mention the Tigers’ boardroom.
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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2012:10:01:22:23:46 by Tiggs.
But.. Craig Mitchell a Scottish international? He won't like that lol... He is of course from the land of the valleys
Really looking forward to this contest - will have to do the Tomahawk Chop from Exeter on this occasion. Would just like to say, my wife and I thoroughly enjoyed our visit to the home of English Club Rugby last season and not just because of the result. The Tigers fans around us made us feel very welcome and appeared to accept that them folks from Devon probably always stick feathers in their hair, war paint on their cheeks and chant like Red Indians – well only at the weekend. Good luck Tigers – may the best team win.
