Drunken Wasps Gird Up For Parma.

Toilet Paper?!
By KevinTheB
October 8 2002

After a hard game and a loss at Northampton, just how much does the Parker Pen Shield mean to Wasps? Will we do better in Italia that last year?

Last season’s venturers to the Italian shores might have felt a little short changed with the performance of Wasps in Treviso. Admittedly, we were slap bang in the middle of the worst injury crisis I have known at the Club, but even so, the talent available should have seen off Benetton Treviso. I put this point to someone who should know recently, and they answered that they could fully understand why Nigel put out a weakened team - Wasps had no realistic chance of qualifying, so why go and risk players getting injured for a lost cause, when there was still the best part of two thirds of the Championship still to go.

We continued this with a question of how seriously the Club is approaching Europe this season. I can confirm to you Waspies out there that the team will be seeing how the first couple of games go and then making a realistic assessment of our chances, and taking it from there. The ZP is the most important competition for Wasps this season, but if we get a run in the Shield we will definitely give that a go to qualify for Europe. Heineken Cup qualification is Warren’s first priority this season.

When the team is announced for Italy, don’t be surprised if Warren will be resting a few players for the away trip to Parma and putting out a strong side at home in preparation for Gloucester. With so many games in the season he is quick to point out that it is difficult to play your top 15 every week. The intensity of the rugby is such that they all need a rest every so often.

Using a football (yuk!) analogy, it's like the Worthington Cup - Arsenal etc. put out their youth team for the opening rounds until they have been knocked out of all other UEFA Cup qualifying tournaments / placings, and suddenly find themselves taking it seriously, so someone suddenly takes the field to find Viera, Henry, Campbell etc. against them instead of a bunch of spotty kids. Who knows - Quins have nothing else to go for this year, so we might indeed see them beat Stade (if Stade are having a good league season) and come up against them in the Quarter Final. I suspect if we get two games away from a Cup, we'll suddenly find additional inspiration, not to mention perspiration!

Oh, and the Stains result?

Who is the only team to get a win away from home over the last two weeks? Things aren’t a gloomy as they might seem on a Sunday evening.

So what of Parma? What kind of opposition can we expect?

Coached by Cape Town-born former full back Dawie Snyman, a quick run through of their squad shows 28 Italians (including one, Nicola Fini, the blind back rower (see picture)), one Jock, one former Bath player, 3 South Africans, a Kiwi and a Samoan. None of them are household names – well, no disrespect intended, but even though there is the Italian lifestyle, and getting out of Bath is in itself an attraction, Parma isn’t exactly where rugby fires are set alight every weekend.

So far this season, they have lost two but won last weekend against Roma Olimpic, also in the PPS, but ranked below Parma by three spots. Looking at the rankings, Overmach are the 4th ranked Italian side, and sit seventh in their Serie A of 10 teams.

Going on form, then, we should comfortably have the beating of them. But pride comes before a fall – particularly if it is London Pride, and one of the Drunken Wasps is drinking it. Overmach will probably see this as their chance of glory this year – if not us, then Alcobendas Madrid in the plate competition.

Mind you, Madrid next stop, or Bordeaux. Somewhat of a puzzle, methinks. If we didn’t go through this round, how many of the U19s would go out to Spain? With Trevor in charge? It’d be spot-the-rugby-player-by-the-trail-of-vomit time. Now there’s a Drunken Wasps Tour!