Quins Headlingley right direction
By KevT
April 3 2003
NEC Harlequins take on the Leeds Tykes at Headingley on Friday 4th April (kick off 8.00pm). Quins will be hoping to take a win which would guarantee Premier League Rugby next year and push themselves towards a play off place.
Quins make three changes to the team that beat London Irish away. Ace Tiatia replaces Tani Fuga at hooker. Jason Leonard replaces Jon Dawson at tight head prop and Tony Diprose takes Ace’s place in the back row.
Quins second row Simon Miall was pleased with the result against London Irish. “There’s been a lot of comment on that match. Everybody was very pleased with the result and from a personal point of view it was good to get a start. I tried to block out the noise and take the atmosphere out of the equation but from what I remember the Quins supporters were louder than the London Irish crowd.”
“I’ve tried to make the most of my chance although I didn’t think I played that well against London Irish.” I asked if Stuart Barnes was Simon’s new best friend as he made Simon Man of the Match for the London Irish game and against Natal Sharks. Simon said “Not quite, but you take whatever is given to you.”
Turning to the Leeds game I asked Simon how he felt about playing against Tom Palmer. “A lot of people are talking about Tom Palmer, he’s obviously a good line out jumper. It gives me a good chance to mark myself against a player who is known and seen as good at his position. Leeds haven’t got a really expansive game but have a lot of very good solid players. They like to turn over ball and really play as a team. Obviously our coaches know how they play and we have been working on a game plan to combat their style.”
Leeds have a full squad available to play Quins on Friday night. Chris Hall and Dan Hyde have recovered from injuries. Dan Scarborough is a potent threat at Full Back as Quins supporters will remember from Leeds visit to The Stoop at the beginning of the season. He is quick, has a good boot and knows when to join the line. In Harder and Albanese, Leeds have two solid wings who know how to come off their wing and link up with all phases of play. In the centre, Braam Van Straaten has been excellent for Leeds this season. It looks like he may return to South Africa at the end of the season which will be a real blow for Leeds as his kicking and ability to break the gain line have been instrumental in Leeds rise in the table this season. At half back Leeds have Alan Dickens and Gordon Ross. Ross has played particularly well this season. He kicks well and his solid all round game has earned him caps for Scotland this season.
Leeds have put together a very solid pack. Their front row has been strong all season and their line out (especially through the excellent Palmer) has produced good clean possession all season. The Leeds back row has been a revelation this season. It has turned over a lot of ball and caused the top sides a lot of problems.
Quins have tried to put together a faster style of play. The Quins back row is very strong and the Quins second rows can really get around the park and turn over ball. The concern will be the line out and scrum. The inexperienced pairing of Davison and Miall will be up against a strong Leeds line out pairing. There must also be a worry that Ace’s line out throwing will not be as strong as Tani Fuga’s. Quins have also had problems in the front row when Ace has played as he is tall compared to his props. Leeds have a very good scrum and have pushed a number of teams around the park this season. The Quins backs defended better against London Irish and have demonstrated that they can play with more pace. Quins will need cutting edge as no team has scored more than two tries at Headingley against Leeds.
This is a very tough match for Quins. Leeds have played very well at home this season and should have a big crowd on Friday night. The key to the game will be the ability of the Quins back row to turn over Leeds possession. Leeds like to play a multi phase game of Rugby. They play similarly to London Irish but have a lot more penetration. If Quins can slow down or turn over their possession then this could be the key to the game. Quins will also need to ensure that they do not give away too many penalties. Van Straaten is a kicking machine.
Quins know the way to beat Leeds, they have to play strong mistake free rugby and slow down or turnover Leeds ball. Leeds have lost their last two league games in a row whilst Quins will be on a high from their victory over London Irish. The away defeat monkey is now off Quins back and their improved League position may give Quins the freedom to play a bit more fluently than we have seen recently. I think this will be a closer game than the two teams league positions suggest and take Quins to just have the edge.
NEC Harlequins: 15. Nathan Williams 14. Dan Luger 13. Will Greenwood 12. Mel Deane 11. Ben Gollings 10. Paul Burke 9. Billy Fulton 1. Ceri Jones 2. Ace Tiatia 3. Jason Leonard 4. Bill Davison 5. Simon Miall 6. Roy Winters 7. Andre Vos (Capt.) 8. Tony Diprose
Replacements:16. Tani Fuga, 17. Jon Dawson, 18. Karl Rudzki, 19. Luke Sherriff, 20. Scott Bemand
21. Viliame Satala, 22. Ugo Monye
Leeds Tykes: 15. Dan Scarborough, 14. George Harder, 13. Tristan Davies, 12. Braam van Straaten, 11. Diego Albanese, 10. Gordon Ross, 9. Alan Dickens, 1. Mike Shelley, 2. Matt Holt, 3. Gavin Kerr, 4. Chris Murphy, 5. Tom Palmer, 6. Cameron Mather, 7. Dan Hyde, 8. Isaac Fea'unati.