Aviva Premiership Round 20 Preview
Saracens will look for a big win against Newcastle
©Emma Thurston
Round 20 is the round that no-one can afford to lose... it is a weekend filled with huge Aviva Premiership clashes that mean absolutely everything to the teams involved.
Last Friday Night Harlequins produced an extremely assured and impressive performance against the Sale Sharks up at the AJ Bell Stadium and they will need to replicate that and add a little more in order to put away Leicester Tigers. For both teams the securing four points, at least, is critical in terms of their playoff ambitions; Harlequins must win in order to have any hope of catching Bath in fourth whilst Leicester must win in order to continue to push for that precious home semi-final. For the visitors all eyes will be on a certain Niki Goneva and of course their centre partnership of Allen and Tuilagi whilst for the home team their England quartet and Nick Evans will be the driving force behind everything. Needless to say it will be a closely fought affair; will Leicester out muscle their opponents up front or will Harlequins front up and then outpace their visitors? Home advantage could be king but Leicester aren't afraid of traveling away and it will be a very close affair underneath the Friday Night Lights at The Stoop.
Bath Rugby certainly had their fair share of drama to deal with last weekend and will be hoping for a spot of normality to resume at The Rec in Round 20. This week Matt Garvey said that his team have earned the right to be serious title contenders and whilst that is a bold statement it does show that the belief remains in spite of their slightly slower past few rounds. Their opponents the Worcester Warriors will be a handful, Dean Ryan’s players are now just as steely and tenacious as their Director of Rugby and they won’t be daunted by a trip to The Rec. On paper Bath are the stronger side, their individual and collective wealth is greater with the likes of Ford, Abendanon, Garvey, Houston and more within their ranks however Worcester have a lot to lose and you know that they will put every bit of their hearts and souls into this fixture as they continue to fight for their Premiership lives
Exeter Chiefs' fans have experienced a fair amount of drama themselves this season due to their team’s undulating form and in Round 19 their nerves were tested again thanks to a resurgent Warriors side. Rob Baxter hailed their victory as one of their most critical however this weekend is just as important, if not more so, for his side who currently lie in 7th place just one point ahead of London Wasps. The European play off has added a huge amount of spice to the middle section of the table and their opponents Sale will certainly want to rain of the Chiefs' parade on Saturday afternoon. Last weekend Sale stuttered slightly and lacked energy however this should have been rectified by a slightly lighter week of training and a few words from the coaching team. If the Sharks do win this weekend then they will be guaranteed a place in Europe next year and that is a lot to play for!!
This weekend London Wasps have the honour of calling Twickenham Stadium home as The Stinger arrives in town! The match is a huge event for the club and over 35,000 people are expected at HQ to enjoy what will be an intense encounter between two clubs that know each other very well; this will their fourth encounter this season in all competitions. Both teams are vying for that 7th place finish and like so many others this weekend neither can afford to lose. London Wasps may be boosted by the return of Tom Varndell however that all hinges on a late fitness test although rumour has it that things are looking fairly positive on that front! I have absolutely no doubt that Gloucester’s discipline will be much improved this weekend and although we haven’t really seen them really open up this year when they do get it right they can make waves and really ask questions of their opposition. It is vital that Tindall, Trinder, May and Sharples get into the game and take advantage of the sizable Twickenham pitch. It will be interesting to see Dai Young’s squad selection after he made 6 changes in Round 19 that proved to be fairly successful performance wise and the question is will he stick with that starting XV or will he make a number of changes again for this critical encounter at Twickenham?
The Northampton Saints return to Franklin's Gardens with a job to do against London Irish, they have won just one of their last five matches in all competitions and have the Leicester Tigers, in third place, breathing down their necks. Their final fifteen minutes against Saracens illustrated their quality and fighting spirit and they will need to show this for the full eighty in order to drive for the necessary bonus point victory. Stephen Myler's expertise will provide a critical platform to drive off for the home side and the likes of Ben Foden and George North need to get their hands on the ball to making the Irish defense think. London Irish are a different prospect to Saracens and whilst their form has improved in recent weeks I think that they will be brushed aside against a frustrated Saints team. Irish notched up an impressive number of tries last weekend and certainly will wish to play at the same tempo at Franklin's Gardens. Due to injury they will be without James O'Connor however expect big bruising games from Blair Cowen, who has been a standout individual for them this season and of course captain George Skivington. The Saints know that points mean prizes and they must be careful not to force the game however with the experience of Foden, Dickson, Dowson, Myler, North and more within their ranks I can't really see this one going any other way than theirs.
The final game on Sunday afternoon is at Kingston Park where the Newcastle Falcons welcome Saracens to town. Looking at the visitors first, Mark McCall was extremely pleased with his side’s performance against Northampton concluding that it was 'as good as they'd played all season' and whilst Saracens did let Saints back into the match for 60 minutes at least they looked in total in control. McCall's men have their place in the Premiership Semi Finals secured already however don't expect them to take their foot off the gas just yet. They will employ their rotational policy this weekend so expect a few different starters however their level of intensity will remain the same. The Newcastle Falcons certainly have a task on their hands having lost their last thirteen Aviva Premiership matches in a row and last weekend didn't go according to plan for the full eighty minutes. Their first half was described by Dean Richards ‘the worst first half of rugby that he had seen ever' however he did praise their endeavor and effort in the second. Worcester are still battling to catch them so it is vital that they come away with at least a point from the fixture if not more... Sinoti and Cato need to produce some magic and collectively their forwards must be prepared for an onslaught of physicality from the Wolfpack and try to return it with equal measure.
