Summer Tournement Finals

All neutral venues:

Cup final:

Gloucester v Sale

Gloucester Team

1. Beast
2. Adrian Strauss
3. Juan Figallo
4. Richie Gray
5. George Robson
6. Tom Croft
7. Pablo Matera
8. Jamie Heaslip
9. TJ Perenara
10. Danny Cipriani
11. Charlie Walker
12. Matt Toomua
13. T. Kudriani
14. Johnny May
15. Israel Foloa

16. Luke Cowan-Dickie 17. Nick Wood 18. Nicholas Mas 19. Ardie Savea 20. Elliott Stookes 21. Dan Robson 22. Israel Dagg 23. Ross Moriaty


Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Marcos Ayerza	09. Danny Care
02. Benjamin Kayser	10. Johnny Sexton
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. Brodie Retalick	11. Simon Zebo
05. Dave Attwood	12. Francois Steyn
06. Steven Luatua	13. Anthony Allen
07. Peter O'Mahony	14. Semesa Rokoduguni
08. Louis Picamoles	15. Willie Le Roux

16. Ross Harrison 17. Tommy Taylor 18. Rabah Slimani 19. Will Skelton 20. Matt Garvey 21. Kieran Marmion 22. Beauden Barrett 23. Kyle Eastmond3rd/4th place play off:

Bath v Wasps

Bath Rugby
Manager – inthefastlane

01. Cian Healy	09. Fourie Du Preez
02. Richard Hibbard	10. Charlie Hodgson
03. Ben Tameifuma
04. Graham Kitchener	11. George North
05. Sam Whitelock	12. Kurtley Beale
06. Liam Messam	13. Damien De Allende
07. Sean O'Brien	14. Christian Wade
08. James Haskell	15. Stuart Hogg

16. Mikey Haywood 17. Charlie Faumaunia 18. Jake Cooper Wollsey 19. Luke Romano 20. Siya Kolisi 21. Richard Wigglesworth 22. Christian Lealifano 23. Alex Goode


Wasps
Manager  Ozzy3213

01. Joe Marler	09. Aaron Smith
02. Bismarck du Plessis	10. Aaron Cruden
03. Dave Wilson
04. Romain Millo-Chluski	11. Bryan Habana
05. Alun-Wyn Jones	12. Ma'a Nonu
06. Jerome Kaino	13. Paul Jordaan
07. Steffon Armitage	14. Marland Yarde
08. Duane Vermeulen	15. Delon Armitage

16. Tom Youngs 17. Thomas du Toit 18. Frans Malherbe 19. Sebastien Vahaamahina 20. Fulgence Ouegraogo 21. Ben Youngs 22. Shane Geraghty 23. Tim Nanai-Williams

Tactics

• Standard tactics of a possession based game and looking to go through the phases with pace and intensity.
  
• Offloading in or just before the tackle to keep the ball alive and move the opposition defence around.
  
• Blitz defence with scrum half sweeping to cover.
  

Plate Final:

Newcastle v Harlequins

Newcastle Falcons team to play Harlequins

01. Soana Tonga'uhia	09. Nick Phipps
02. Rory Best	10. Owen Farrell
03. Carl Hayman
04. Ed Slater (c)	11. Max Evans
05. Geoff Parling	12. Luke Marshall
06. Dan Lydiate	13. John Davies
07. Chris Henry	14. Charlie Sharples
08. Dave Ewers	15. Rob Miller

16.Huia Edmonds 17.Matt Mullen 18.Luc Ducalon 19.Yoaan Maestri 20.Will Fraser 21.Dave Lewis 22.Andy Goode 23.Robbie Frueen


1. Steven Kitchoff
2. Tatafu Polata-Nau
3. Kieran Brookes
4. Jim Hamilton (c)
5. Pieter Steph Du Toit
6. Mamuka Gorgodze
7. Luke Braid
8. Damien Chouly
9. Karl Dickson
10. Quade Cooper
11. Joe Tomane
12. Juan Martin Hernandez
13. Aurelien Rougerie
14. Frank Halai
15. Jack Nowell

16. Rob Buchanan 17. Tony Woodcock 18. Martin Castrogiovani 19. George Kruis 20. Luke Braid 21. Eric Escande 22. Steven Myler 23. Jan Serfontein


3rd/4th place play off:

Saracens v Northampton

Saracens
Manager – Pooly

01. Xavier Chiocci	09. Morgan Parra
02. Keven Mealamu	10. Pat Lambie
03. Dan Cole
04. Brad Davies	11. Juan Imhoff
05. James Horwill	12. Scott Williams
06. Ben Mowen	13. Marcelo Bosch
07. Thierry Dusatoir	14. Chris Ashton
08. Dave Denton	15. Matt Tait

:-
16. Jamie George 17. Fabien Barcella 18. Jannie Du Plessis 19. Flip van der Mewre 20. Nathan Hughes 21. Francois Hougaard  22. Bernard Foley 23. Malakai Fekitoa

- can I get feedback on combo's pls


Northampton Saints

Manager - Dammit Chris

01. Mako Vunipola	09. Joe Simpson
02. Dylan Hartley(c)	10. Nick Evans(k)
03. Ramira Herrera
04. Lood de Jager	11. Jordan Williams
05. Courtney Lawes	12. Matt Giteau
06. Schalk Burger	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Chris Robshaw	14. Vereniki Gonoeva
08. Sergio Parisse	15. Ben Foden

16. Thomas Domingo 17. Rob Webber 18. Logi Mulipola 19. Joe Launchbury 20. Billy Vunipola 21. Nikola Matawulu 22. Weslie Fofana 23. James Simpson Daniel.

Shield Final

Leicester v Exeter

Leicester Tigers
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

01. Alex Corbisiero	09. Kahn Fotuali'i
02. Stephen Moore (c)	10. Freddie Burns (K)
03. Owen Franks
04. Nathan Hines	11. Alex Cuthbert
05. Victor Matfield	12. Billy Twelvetrees
06. Francois Louw	13. Mathieu Bastareaud
07. Jacques Burger	14. Napolioni Nalaga
08. JMF Lobbe	15. Mike Brown

16. Gethin Jenkins 17. Christopher Tolofua 18. Paul Doran-Jones 19. Kearnan Myall 20. Tom Johnson 21. Micky Young 22. Pat McCabe 23. Rene Ranger


Exeter Chiefs

Manager – Fluxy

01. Ryan Grant	09. Connor Murray
02. Sean Cronin	10. Toby Flood (k)
03. Jamie Johnston
04. Patrick Tuipulotu	11. Tom Varndell
05. Paul O'Connell (c)	12. Luther Burrell
06. Carl Fearns	13. Richard Kahui
07. Justin Tipuric	14. James O'Connor
08. Toby Faletau	15. Jean Marcel Buttin

16. Jack Yeandle 17. Richard Barrington 18. Phil Swainston 19. Calum Clark 20. Yannick Nyanga 21. Nic White 22. Ian Madigan 23. Adam Ashley-Cooper

3rd/4th place play off:

Irish v Welsh

01. JB Poux	09. Lee Dickson
02. Ken Owens	10. Dan Biggar
03. Henry Thomas
04. Dean Mumm (c)	11. JP Pietersen
05. Jacques Poigeiter	12. Luke McAlister
06. Jordan Taufua	13. Conrad Smith
07. Sam Warburton	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Ben Morgan	15. Rob Cook

16. Tom Lindsay 17. Tom Smallbone 18. Will Collier 19.  
Tom Savage 20. Scott Higginbotham 21. Rory Kockott 22. Owen Williams 23. Brice Dulin

Feedback on combos and bench please.
What style of play should I look at?

London Welsh

01. Nathan Catt	09. Tawera Kerr-Barlowe
02. Matthew Rees	10. Francois Trinh-Duc
03. Sepoke Kepu
04. George Skivington (c)	11. Nemani Nadolo
05. Sepoki Timani	12. Kyle Godwin
06. Tom Guest	13. Michelle Campagnaro
07. John Barclay	14. Jesse Mogg
08. Victor Vito	15. Chris Pennell

16. Dave Ward 17. David Kilcoyne 18. BJ Botha 19.  
Mouritz Botha 20. Ashley Johnson 21. Luke Wallace 22. Ben Spencer 23. Aseili Tikoirituima

Any rules you want sje

Newcastle Falcons team to play Harlequins

01. Soana Tonga'uhia	09. Nick Phipps
02. Rory Best	10. Owen Farrell
03. Carl Hayman
04. Ed Slater (c)	11. Max Evans
05. Geoff Parling	12. Luke Marshall
06. Dan Lydiate	13. John Davies
07. Chris Henry	14. Charlie Sharples
08. Dave Ewers	15. Rob Miller

16.Huia Edmonds 17.Matt Mullen 18.Luc Ducalon 19.Yoaan Maestri 20.Will Fraser 21.Dave Lewis 22.Andy Goode 23.Robbie Frueen

1. Steven Kitchoff
2. Tatafu Polata-Nau
3. Kieran Brookes
4. Jim Hamilton (c)
5. Pieter Steph Du Toit
6. Mamuka Gorgodze
7. Luke Braid
8. Damien Chouly
9. Karl Dickson
10. Quade Cooper
11. Joe Tomane
12. Juan Martin Hernandez
13. Aurelien Rougerie
14. Frank Halai
15. Jack Nowell

16. Rob Buchanan 17. Tony Woodcock 18. Martin Castrogiovani 19. George Kruis 20. Luke Braid 21. Eric Escande 22. Steven Myler 23. Jan Serfontein

Hernandez went well at 12 Steve yesterday.

Gives me an option I didn't expect.

Had no expectations of him being and option at 12 when I got him.

I'd seen him play there before , good players can play anywhere to be honest.

Still a decent option in the wet

Driver wrote: I'd seen him play there before , good players can play anywhere to be honest.

Nick Mallet thought that when he tried bergamasco at 9  

Driver wrote:Hernandez went well at 12 Steve yesterday.

I don't think he played did he Driver? It was Iglasias in the reports

I'm sure it was him who played?

He pulled out early apparently, probably why you thought he played well!

Any rules, prop?

Leicester Tigers
Manager – LukeLovesLuka

01. Alex Corbisiero	09. Kahn Fotuali'i
02. Stephen Moore (c)	10. Freddie Burns (K)
03. Owen Franks
04. Nathan Hines	11. Alex Cuthbert
05. Victor Matfield	12. Billy Twelvetrees
06. Francois Louw	13. Mathieu Bastareaud
07. Jacques Burger	14. Napolioni Nalaga
08. JMF Lobbe	15. Mike Brown

16. Gethin Jenkins 17. Christopher Tolofua 18. Paul Doran-Jones 19. Kearnan Myall 20. Tom Johnson 21. Micky Young 22. Pat McCabe 23. Rene Ranger

That's a nice looking pack Luke

Northampton Saints
Manager - Dammit Chris

01. Mako Vunipola	09. Joe Simpson
02. Dylan Hartley(c)	10. Nick Evans(k)
03. Ramira Herrera
04. Lood de Jager	11. Jordan Williams
05. Courtney Lawes	12. Matt Giteau
06. Schalk Burger	13. Manu Tuilagi
07. Chris Robshaw	14. Vereniki Gonoeva
08. Sergio Parisse	15. Ben Foden

16. Thomas Domingo 17. Rob Webber 18. Logi Mulipola 19. Joe Launchbury 20. Billy Vunipola 21. Nikola Matawulu 22. Weslie Fofana 23. James Simpson Daniel.

Saracens
Manager – Pooly

01. Xavier Chiocci	09. Morgan Parra
02. Keven Mealamu	10. Pat Lambie
03. Dan Cole
04. Brad Davies	11. Juan Imhoff
05. James Horwill	12. Scott Williams
06. Ben Mowen	13. Marcelo Bosch
07. Thierry Dusatoir	14. Chris Ashton
08. Dave Denton	15. Matt Tait

:-
16. Jamie George 17. Fabien Barcella 18. Jannie Du Plessis 19. Flip van der Mewre 20. Nathan Hughes 21. Francois Hougaard  22. Bernard Foley 23. Malakai Fekitoa

- can I get feedback on combo's pls

London Welsh

01. Nathan Catt	09. Tawera Kerr-Barlowe
02. Matthew Rees	10. Francois Trinh-Duc
03. Sepoke Kepu
04. George Skivington (c)	11. Nemani Nadolo
05. Sepoki Timani	12. Kyle Godwin
06. Tom Guest	13. Michelle Campagnaro
07. John Barclay	14. Jesse Mogg
08. Victor Vito	15. Chris Pennell

16. Dave Ward 17. David Kilcoyne 18. BJ Botha 19.  
Mouritz Botha 20. Ashley Johnson 21. Luke Wallace 22. Ben Spencer 23. Aseili Tikoirituima

Wasps
Manager  Ozzy3213

01. Joe Marler	09. Aaron Smith
02. Bismarck du Plessis	10. Aaron Cruden
03. Dave Wilson
04. Romain Millo-Chluski	11. Bryan Habana
05. Alun-Wyn Jones	12. Ma'a Nonu
06. Jerome Kaino	13. Paul Jordaan
07. Steffon Armitage	14. Marland Yarde
08. Duane Vermeulen	15. Delon Armitage

16. Tom Youngs 17. Thomas du Toit 18. Frans Malherbe 19. Sebastien Vahaamahina 20. Fulgence Ouegraogo 21. Ben Youngs 22. Shane Geraghty 23. Tim Nanai-Williams

Tactics

• Standard tactics of a possession based game and looking to go through the phases with pace and intensity.
  
• Offloading in or just before the tackle to keep the ball alive and move the opposition defence around.
  
• Blitz defence with scrum half sweeping to cover.
  

Exeter Chiefs 

Manager – Fluxy

01. Ryan Grant	09. Connor Murray
02. Sean Cronin	10. Toby Flood (k)
03. Jamie Johnston
04. Patrick Tuipulotu	11. Tom Varndell
05. Paul O'Connell (c)	12. Luther Burrell
06. Carl Fearns	13. Richard Kahui
07. Justin Tipuric	14. James O'Connor
08. Toby Faletau	15. Jean Marcel Buttin

16. Jack Yeandle 17. Richard Barrington 18. Phil Swainston 19. Calum Clark 20. Yannick Nyanga 21. Nic White 22. Ian Madigan 23. Adam Ashley-Cooper

Gloucester Team

1. Beast
2. Adrian Strauss
3. Juan Figallo
4. Richie Gray
5. George Robson
6. Tom Croft
7. Pablo Matera
8. Jamie Heaslip
9. TJ Perenara
10. Danny Cipriani
11. Charlie Walker
12. Matt Toomua
13. T. Kudriani
14. Johnny May
15. Israel Foloa

16. Luke Cowan-Dickie 17. Nick Wood 18. Nicholas Mas 19. Ardie Savea 20. Elliott Stookes 21. Dan Robson 22. Israel Dagg 23. Ross Moriaty.

You two sharing teams now? ;-)

Bath Rugby
Manager – inthefastlane

01. Cian Healy	09. Fourie Du Preez
02. Richard Hibbard	10. Charlie Hodgson
03. Ben Tameifuma
04. Graham Kitchener	11. George North
05. Sam Whitelock	12. Kurtley Beale
06. Liam Messam	13. Damien De Allende
07. Sean O'Brien	14. Christian Wade
08. James Haskell	15. Stuart Hogg

16. Mikey Haywood 17. Charlie Faumaunia 18. Jake Cooper Wollsey 19. Luke Romano 20. Siya Kolisi 21. Richard Wigglesworth 22. Christian Lealifano 23. Alex Goode

I always knew Matt & Chris were the same person!

Ha, not quite - Mat asked me to submit his team this week as he wont be around for a few days.

Just waiting on Johnny & Prop

01. JB Poux (if signed)	09. Lee Dickson
02. Ken Owens	10. Dan Biggar
03. Henry Thomas
04. Dean Mumm (c)	11. JP Pietersen
05. Jacques Poigeiter	12. Luke McAlister
06. Jordan Taufua	13. Conrad Smith
07. Sam Warburton	14. Adam Thompstone
08. Ben Morgan	15. Rob Cook

16. Tom Lindsay 17. Tom Smallbone 18. Will Collier 19.  
Tom Savage 20. Scott Higginbotham 21. Rory Kockott 22. Owen Williams 23. Brice Dulin

Feedback on combos and bench please.
What style of play should I look at?

Predo's open

I've stuck a team in for Johnny, I'll change if he gets on.

Sale Sharks
Manager – SJE

01. Marcos Ayerza	09. Danny Care
02. Benjamin Kayser	10. Johnny Sexton
03. Davit Zirakishvilli
04. Brodie Retalick	11. Simon Zebo
05. Dave Attwood	12. Francois Steyn
06. Steven Luatua	13. Anthony Allen
07. Peter O'Mahony	14. Semesa Rokoduguni
08. Louis Picamoles	15. Willie Le Roux

16. Ross Harrison 17. Tommy Taylor 18. Rabah Slimani 19. Will Skelton 20. Matt Garvey 21. Kieran Marmion 22. Beauden Barrett 23. Kyle Eastmond

Bath 27-27 Wasps

Two good front rows, Wasps have a little more at hooker that would give them a small edge. Bath a small edge around the park in the engine room but can see them dominating the line out with no real leader/option for Wasps. Not much difference on the flanks but prefer Wasps at 8, Haskell better option at 6 CJB.

Good half back battle with 9's close to call, Cruden a level up on Hodgson though and will dictate better. I like the Bath combo and they edge the centres, good balance for Wasps but Jordaan perhaps not quite at this level, Nonu/Beale a good match up though. Cracking back 3 battle, Bath really match up well. Really close contest with very little across the board. Wasps line out could be a problem and I think this evens up the couple of weaker positions for them.

Newcastle 26-21 Quins

A small edge in the front row for Falcons and similar in the engine room. Falcons just on top in both set pieces. Good back row units, bit more for Quins but it'll be a good contest.

Falcons have more control in the halfbacks with a bit of an edge in both positions and both players in good form. Not convinced with the Quins centres as not seen much of JMH at centre, nice midfield for Falcons with JD the class act on show. Not much in the back 3's, Quins agood physical unit and falcons a bit more pacey. Falcons have a bit more with Steve going in a bit weaker.

Leicester 29-25 Exeter

I really like Tigers front row unit, Franks works really well with a strong LH and he's the best TH in world in loose. Saying that Corbs needs some good form as he struggled a little when he came back last season. Exeter steady but not amazing, Grant is another LH who struggled with the new laws last season. V Good engine rooms, little more for Tigers maybe and the line out tussle would be incredible. Tigers backrow a little stronger but two good units.

1 a piece in the half backs but Flood started well in France and could be a better player there for Flux with not such a focus on every week form. Big Burns fan, he'll be great for Tigers. Tigers get the centres with Kahui very hard to rate but a class act if he comes back and Tigers a little more in the back 3 although 2 good units. Tiger a bit more class.

Irish 23-22 Welsh

Welsh just shade the front row with Thomas a little bit of a weakness, Poux a very solid option for Prop though. Engine room is close for both and line outs similar. I think Irish get a bit of an edge in the backrow which will allow them to just get on top in the pack.

Welsh shade 9 but 10's pretty even and Irish just get the edge in the centres, Welsh could maybe do with a physicasl option in the poor conditions during winter. Not a huge fan of Cook at this level but prefer the Irish wings. A close affair with little between the combination, Irish just have a little more.

Johnny/Pete, not sure when you want to keep these open till???

I won't be able to do results after 0800hrs today and seems little point with only one predo in.

I think with the bank holiday weekend people may have been busy with other stuff. Can leave them open until tomorrow evening and I'll total up then.

I'll be posting this afternoon sorry

I
Will
Post mine later today. Been hectic and not been home

Glos 23-24 Sale
Good front row match up and with Ayerza's recent form Figallo could struggle (when he gets game time I really rate Figallo). Not a lot in the back 5 but think I slightly prefer Sale's backrow but not loads in it. Both sets of half backs hitting good form  at the moment. Centres just go to Glos. Back three again pretty close. Tough game to call here but, I think it just goes to Sale with a small advantage up front.

Bath 22-24 Wasps
Not much in the front row, edge to Wasps in 2nd row. Tough call in backrow but think Wasps just  edge it. Cruden in great form at the moment and takes  the half back battle. Like the centres of both teams and think that Bath takes the back 3 battle. Like the impact bench from Wasps and think they sneak home here.

Falcons 24-21 Quins
Close battle here up front until you get to the back row where I feel that Quins bring more to the match. Falcons take the halfbacks and really like their centre pairing here. Not a lot in it out wide. Bit more  here from the Quins bench but I think that the Falcons backline will cause too much damage for Quins to get back in.

Sarries 24-24 Saints
I'd annoyingly typed reactions here and the computer deleted it! Basically it's too close to call and I'm a fan of both packs and the centre partnerships on show are top from both teams. Pooly, I like your combinations and the use of Fekitoa off the bench will be top class. Think Ashton needs a bit of a good few games to get back on form for me personally. Chris, I'm being won over of Giteau at 10 after reading the recent reviews. Going to have to sit on the fence here sorry.

Tigers 28-24 Chiefs
Like the Chiefs front row but Tigers a step up here, same in the back row with a nice balance from Tigers which will cause damage, like the balance of Chiefs back row but will need Tips on top form. Flood doing well in France helps Chiefs steady the ship a little but a nice pairing from Tigers. Tigers also take the centres and both have good back 3's with Brown the standout. Quins have a bit too much here for Chiefs.

Gloucester NA Sale
As I put in the team for Gloucester, don't think I should predict on this one. Really like SJE's team, will be around the top 4 for the duration of the season, just needs a bit more balance in the 12/13 and they will be tough to beat.

Bath 23 - 25 Wasps
Only difference between the two sides for me is the no8 shirt, if Bath can get in a top no8 then it transforms there entire team and gives them a better platform - could change if Haskell gets moved to no8 by Wasps but would look at someone like Copeland at Munster. Would also target Hodgson and Beale defensively. Best thing you can say about Pete's team is you want to play them during the RC!

Falcons 27 - 29 Quins
Prefer the balance of Quins team overall, bit stronger in the front five and Hamilton makes a big difference. Not sure the Falcons backrow works, throw in McCaw and it changes completely though. Lot of creativity in both backlines, Falcons have a better combination 10-12 but Quins will get a bit more ball and have players to score tries.

Tigers 25 - 22 Chiefs
So much power in the Tigers team, are going to be a massive handful for any team, especially in the wet. If Burns hits form at Tigers then he could transform the TIgers backline and get them some really good go forward. Chiefs look so much better than last season, so big hats off to Fluxy, if a few more impact subs can be found then will be a really strong team.

Irish 28 - 28 Welsh
Can't split this one, so even throughout and both managers have done cracking jobs improving their teams over the summer months - so am going to sit very firmly on the fence. Irish have more in the backrow, while Welsh have more in the backthree. Home advantage would be the thing that sways it.

Bath 22-24 wasps 

Wasps impact bench and half backs take this.
Like the bath back 3 and this is a real ding dong battle up front.
Wasps are a big game side and have enough to see them home

Leicester 44-39 chiefs


Leicester front row have great potential but corbs needs games. Can get away with franks if corbs firing 


Leicester take back two and pack overall. Leicester need some form at halfbacks desperately and I have worries over both sets of wings defensively but there will be tries galore.

Serious Leicester pack and chiefs have a decent pack and much better halfbacks

Quins 24-24 falcons 

Can't split either way. Front 5s even. Big advantage in backrow to Steve.

Falcons halfbacks better and hard to seperate rest of backs.

Falcons will ship a lot with that back 3. Quins back 3 a bit one dimensional and Halai and tomane lack form.

A good game

Irish 27-26 welsh

Irish backrow on top welsh shade the half backs and everywhere else pretty even.

Think Irish have more carriers and that tiny bit more class that sees them sneak it.

Gloucester Rugby 26 - 32 Sale Sharks


Two decent front rows up front, but with form on side of Sharks and they get a slight edge with the power from the locks. This in turn allows Sharks back row to get through a ton of work and put the glos back row under pressure. Both have cracking sets of backs. Sharks with the front foot ball have better attacking platform to get the ball to Roko, Le Roux and Zebo. Glos half backs and back three can conjure up some magic to keep them in the game, but they just can stop the momentum of the Sharks forwards building. 

Bath Rugby 24 - 26 London Wasps


Great forward contest, as there is nothing really to split either side in the set-piece and around the park. Similar story in the back five. I think the only thing for Bath would be to swap Messam and Haskell, but that is only a minor switch. The Wasps spine of the the midfield can control the game, and slowly build up some momentum, but with the possesion the Bath forward can provide and the distribution of Beale to his back three they can really put the scarers on the Wasps defence. Really close game late on, and it will be a Cruden penalty to claim the tightest of wins. 

Newcastle Falcons 25 - 23 Harlequins


Good tight battle up front, with two good hard working packs. For me at the moment there is a bit more balance in the Quins back row. Tough game outwide as well, Falcons edging the half back battle with a little more control, but out wide a little susceptible in defence to the ability for Cooper and JMH to put their back three in to spaces and holes in the defensive line. 
Just feel there is a slightly better impact off the Falcons bench to allow Faz to kick a winning penalty. (Also Steve you have Braid named twice).

Saracens 30 - 34 Northampton Saints


Decent packs here on show, with not much to call in terms of the set piece and the loose play. I like the Pooly has turned his side around and has some real quality throughout now. Saints packs can be just classed as dynamic, much like an AB pack for me. Parra to allow Lambie to play and control the game which is great for their forwards and back line. Temptation to start both Foley and Fekitoa at the moment for Sarries as both are in top form. However defensively they can be got at, through their wingers. Saints can be got at with Simpson and the wings not the best positionally but small tweaks to a great side. with both benches making big impacts to the game, Saints just have the slight edge to take the game from Sarries. 

London Welsh 23 - 28 London Irish

Two close packs with Irish making an edge here with the power and quality in their back row telling in such a closely fought area. Morgan's running will provide some much needed momentum to allow Dickson to pace the game. Both halfbacks combo's are good and I think the Kerr-Barlow/Tin-Duck combo will be a revelation as they provide the spark in this Welsh side. Welsh with a real attacking back line which would scare most defences in the league, although they lack defencive intelligence and size in the midfield. Irish are good in ball in hand with the ball out wide and good in most departments. The boot of Biggar to guide Irish home.

Gloucester 30 - 29 Sale
Bath 25 - 25 Wasps
Saracens 23 - 22 Saints
Leicester 31 - 28 Exeter
Irish 27 - 26 Welsh

RESULTS:

Gloucester Rugby 27-29 Sale Sharks
Bath Rugby 24-27 London Wasps
Newcastle Falcons 27-24 Harlequins
Saracens 26-27 Northampton Saints
Leicester Tigers 34-28 Exeter Chiefs
London Irish 29-26 London Welsh

BONUS:

Full: Fluxy, Matt, Prop, Chris & Pooly
Score: Steve

Think you've mixed up Fluxy's scores mate, by my maths I should lose

Good spot CJ!