The short side: Brothers united and brothers in battle

David Skippers
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The short side returns to Planet Rugby as we study the major talking points ahead of this weekend’s action in the Premiership and PRO14.

Premiership game to watch – Bristol Bears v Bath

Although both sides have seen little action recently, Bath will head into this fixture at Ashton Gate brimming with confidence as they are in a rich vein of form and are sitting atop the Premiership table.

Pat Lam’s charges started the campaign on a low note when they suffered a narrow defeat against Wasps but they have shown steady improvement as the season has progressed and have subsequently won their next five matches against Worcester Warriors, Northampton Saints, Harlequins, Newcastle Falcons and Exeter Chiefs.

That victory over Exeter was particularly satisfying as it handed the champions their second successive loss – after their Round Five loss to Wasps – and put the Bears clear of the chasing pack at the top of the table.

By contrast, Bath’s campaign has not gone according to plan as they are currently languishing in ninth place in the standings with just two victories registered from six matches so far this season.

They made a disastrous start courtesy of back-to-back losses against Newcastle and Exeter but bounced back with an impressive away triumph at Worcester. Stuart Hooper’s troops could not build on that win, however, as their next match against London Irish was called off due to a Covid-19 outbreak in the Exiles squad, although Bath were awarded a win and four points.

Although they came away with a victory in that game, not being in action proved disruptive for Bath as they finished on the losing side to Leicester Tigers in their next game and they also lost to Wasps in a high scoring affair at the Rec.

They will be hoping to return to the victory trail this weekend but will have to deliver their best performance of the season as Bristol are the competition’s form team and always a handful on their home patch.

PRO14 game to watch – Scarlets v Leinster

The Scarlets were meant to welcome Leinster to Llanelli on November 29 but the match was rescheduled because the Welsh region had several coronavirus cases in the camp.

This is an important match for both sides in the bigger scheme of things in the PRO14. The home side can ill afford to slip up as they are currently in fourth place on the Conference B table, six points ahead of Edinburgh, who have a game in hand.

Meanwhile, Leinster are currently in second place – behind Ulster – in the Conference A standings and a win over their Welsh opponents will move them into pole position as they trail their fellow province by a point on the table.

Based on recent matches between the Scarlets and Leinster in Llanelli, this will be a tight battle and don’t be surprised if this game goes down to the wire.

The home side notched a hard-fought 23-21 victory at Parc y Scarlets in September 2018 which followed a 10-10 draw in March of the same year.

Both teams were involved in matches which ended 13-10 last weekend but, while the Scarlets suffered at home against Cardiff Blues, Leinster came out on top in their encounter at arch rivals Munster.

There is plenty of excitement in Leinster’s ranks as Ireland and British & Irish Lions prop Tadhg Furlong is expected to make his long-awaited return for his province after not playing for almost a year due to back, calf and hamstring problems.

Player(s) to watch – The Simmonds brothers (Exeter Chiefs)

After every England squad announcement, where the names Joe Simmonds and Sam Simmonds are not included on the list, there is the inevitable outcry from supporters of all teams as to why they haven’t been rewarded for their stunning club form.

It is a sign of both England’s depth and perhaps Eddie Jones’ stubbornness, with the Australian refusing to bow to the demands of the public, that the Simmonds duo cannot get a look in. Focus therefore drifts to Exeter’s next game and how the two will respond to that setback.

The Chiefs face Worcester Warriors on Saturday and no doubt the pressure has been increased on Rob Baxter’s men following successive defeats to Wasps and Bristol Bears. They were unusually poor in both games but the two-week break will have done them the world of good.

It has also allowed fly-half Joe to recover from the ankle injury sustained against Bristol and his presence, alongside Sam, should be enough to defeat strugglers Worcester this weekend. And once again, should they both excel at Sixways, the calls will grow louder for Jones to finally include them in his squad.

One-v-one battle to watch – Jasper Wiese (Leicester Tigers) v Cobus Wiese (Sale Sharks)

Yes, they may play in slightly different positions but no doubt there will be plenty of brother-on-brother collisions when the two face off on Friday.

Older sibling Jasper has been Leicester’s best player this season, making a number of barnstorming runs from number eight. He is an outstanding athlete and is a big reason as to why the Midlanders have made a solid start to the campaign.

They have an opportunity to go above an ambitious Sale Sharks side this weekend, a team that have set their sights on challenging the likes of Exeter Chiefs and Bristol Bears for the title.

The Sharks just missed out on the play-offs in 2019/20, but previous director of rugby Steve Diamond put together a squad good enough to beat the best in England. Following Diamond’s departure, Alex Sanderson is now the man at the helm and he will no doubt look to Cobus Wiese to set the tone physically.

Signing South Africans, including Wiese, has been part of their blueprint over the past few years, but they will be without the Du Preez twins, Jean-Luc and Dan, for Friday’s clash, which means that extra pressure will fall on the lock.

It will be a titanic battle between the two brothers, who will look to exert their influence on the game in their own inimitable way, and the winner of that duel could well play a huge part in deciding the contest.

Subplot to watch – New year, new coaches

There were a couple of surprising departures either side of the New Year, with Steve Diamond leaving Sale and Paul Gustard deciding to move on from Harlequins, which means there is plenty of intrigue around both of those clubs.

As mentioned above, Sanderson has taken over at the Sharks and, on the face of it, it appears to be an astute addition. A former player for the Greater Manchester outfit, he moved to Saracens in 2004 before being forced to retire soon after.

He duly took up coaching and became one of the most highly regarded operators in England, helping the Londoners to five Premiership triumphs and three Champions Cup titles. As a result, much is expected of Sale as they look to build on a good start to the season at Leicester on Friday.

The story is very different for Quins, however, who saw Paul Gustard leave after a frustrating couple of years under his stewardship. They struggled for consistency and ultimately it was agreed that a parting of the ways was the best option for both.

Gustard wasn’t out of a job for long, though, with the ex-England defence guru intriguingly signing a deal with winless PRO14 outfit Benetton. It would ordinarily seem like a backward move but, upon the news being announced, he released a statement which appeared to be a thinly-veiled barb at his previous club, stating: “I wanted to be part of a group where there was a clear vision, a deep level of trust and a dynamic environment driven towards high goals.”

Both Quins and Benetton are in action this weekend, facing Wasps and Munster respectively, and it will be interesting to see how they go.

Best of the rest

With Premiership Rugby reporting only one positive case in the latest round of the PCR COVID-19 screening programme, there is a full round of matches scheduled to take place for the first time since Round Three.

Friday sees Leicester facing Sale Sharks at Welford Road before Gloucester and Worcester host Northampton and Exeter respectively on Saturday.

The action continues on Sunday at the Brentford Community Stadium where London Irish take on Newcastle before Wasps and Harlequins bring the Premiership’s proceedings to a close at the Ricoh Arena.

 

Bath