There is a fine line between supreme self-confidence and
arrogance. The best sides in the World
are all supremely confident – the current All Black side, Martin Johnson’s 2003
England side and even the Leinster team of recent years. That confidence is also commonly
misinterpreted as arrogance by jealous people – but there is a difference. To be confident is the mental acceptance of
the fact that you are good, and the realisation that your superior ability
should win you games. Arrogance is
exactly the same, but without the on-field ability to back that confidence up. Think of your average office co-worker after
a couple of beers in a karaoke bar, and you’ll know the mentality.
Two sides that certainly do have supreme levels of
confidence (or at least did, going into last Friday’s game at the Rec) are Bath
and Saracens. The hosts for Friday’s
pulsating encounter between 3rd and 2nd hadn’t lost a
home game all season, and have been applauded this season for the vibrancy of
their young backline and their attacking mentality. A win against the Londoners would not only go
a fair way to securing a playoff spot, but would also throw their name into the
mix for a home playoff spot as well. What
perhaps didn’t bode as well for the West Country boys was the fact that Sarries
were also very confident – sitting comfortably in the top 2, they were the last
side to win at the Rec in the league, and did so with an easy 22 – 0 victory back
in December 2012. It is a deep routed
confidence borne from victories, and a confidence that couldn’t be shaken even
after the withdrawal of veteran fly half Charlie Hodgson due to illness moments
before kick off, forcing regular fullback Alex Goode into action in the 10
shirt.
Goode, of course, is himself an intelligent footballer even
if he has his detractors over the attacking threat he offers from fullback, and
demonstrated his very handy skillset by orchestrating some smooth Saracens
attacks in a hectic opening 10 minutes.
Despite the damp conditions and the slippy surface, there was a
refreshing ambition from both sides to try and exploit the wide spaces and get
around the aggressive midfield defences.
It was high pressure stuff which yielded a first penalty attempt of the
night for young England fly-half-to-be George Ford, but his attempt was so
sliced it could have quite comfortably been served with cream.
Luckily for the hosts, Ford has shown that he is a much more
mature and reliable player off the tee this year, and knocked over a
straightforward penalty after 19 minutes to give Bath a 3-0 lead. That advantage was short lived, however, as
Matt Banahan was bundled into touch following the restart and Paul James was
penalised for collapsing the ensuing lineout maul. Goode stepped up to demonstrate his
all-rounder credentials once again with a fine kick to bring things level. But Bath were looking marginally the more
dangerous side in the opening period, and it seemed that they had got their
reward when a quick throw in from the quick thinking Stringer allowed Banahan
to coast in round the posts. The touch
judge, however, correctly adjudged that the throw was forward, and Bath were
left frustrated and still level.
To make matters worse, the visitors were beginning to
dominate the breakdown. Despite
thunderous defence from Dave Attwood – who left Steve Borthwick eating turf
with one particularly memorable hit – the likes of Ernst Joubert and especially
Jacques Burger were hitting rucks with greater intensity, even keeping the
likes of Francois Louw quiet. It allowed
the Londoners to slowly work their way back into the game, and they took full
control in an explosive final 10 minutes of the half.
Firstly, a smart half-break and offload from Joel Tomkins
gave Duncan Taylor the chance to give a scoring pass to Chris Wyles, allowing
the American to coast in for the game’s opening score, converted by Goode. Bath then attempted to strike straight back
and claim a try just before halftime, but were dealt a sporting version of a
kick in the crown jewels when Saracens turned the ball over and Taylor hacked
the ball ahead, forcing Banahan to fumble and allowing Brad Barritt – not known
for his cultured boot – to plant a delightful kick into space for David
Strettle to run onto, gather and score.
It was a fitting score for the England winger on his 100th
appearance for Saracens, and was made sweeter by Goode’s conversion, giving the
visitors a 17 – 3 lead at half time.
It was an odd feeling at half time. It felt like Bath had been in control of
possession and territory for most of that half, but they had never really
looked like scoring, whilst Sarries had been defending for the majority of the
game but were looking ruthless when presented with opportunities. And opportunities just weren’t forthcoming
for the hosts, despite their best endeavours.
Time and again, the Bath backline tried to generate some
go-forward ball, with Kyle Eastmond looking dangerous, but Saracens were just
so dominant in the tackle area, with Burger wreaking havoc. The Zimbabwean always plays ‘on the line’
though, and was lucky not to see yellow for a bone-juddering late hit on Dobby’s
uglier cousin, Peter Stringer, forcing the scrum half from the field. Goode compounded the sense of injustice for
the West Country outfit by smashing over a wonderful drop goal just minutes
later.
Eventually, Burger’s luck did run out, and the flanker was
yellow carded in the 66th minute for a horrible looking swinging arm
in a tackle on Anthony Watson. The extra
man gave Bath the chance to lay siege to the visitors line, but they came up
short time and again, with Leroy Houston appearing to have driven over, only
for a web of Saracens arms to get between the ball and the ground. Finally, their pack got their reward for
their hard battle with their Saracens counterparts, driving a scrum over for a
penalty try, but by now the game felt out of reach – a feeling compounded as
they were forced to watch Goode slot another penalty just moments after the
restart, to leave the score at 23 – 10.
There was still time for Wyles to see yellow for a no-arms
hit on Rokagaduni as the big winger went for the corner, but the hope and spark
had petered out for the hosts. The
swashbuckling confidence that was surging through the team had dissipated and,
when the final whistle went, they were left to reflect on a game in which they
just didn’t look dangerous for the first time this season, and on the fact that
a place in the top two may well be out of their grasp for now.
For Sarries, well – a win against one of the form teams,
away from home, with your fly half dropping out minutes before kickoff. And a convincing win at that. I think they’ve earned the right to be a bit arrogant
confident.
Exeter Chiefs 18 – 0 London
Irish: The out-of-form Chiefs
claimed a comfortable win over the in-form Irish thanks to tries from Phil
Dollman and Ian Whitten.
Harlequins 21 – 20 Worcester
Warriors: Quins handed out more
heartbreak to Dean Ryan’s Worcester by coming from behind to sneak a narrow
win. Tries for the hosts by Sam Smith
and Harry Sloan were cancelled out by Warriors’ scores from David Lemi and
Chris Pennell.
London Wasps 17 – 21 Sale
Sharks: The Sharks kept up their
great run of form with an impressive win in Wycombe. The hosts crossed through Joe Simpson but
were outscored as Sale scored two tries through Daniel Braid and Johnny Leota.
Northampton Saints 39
– 13 Gloucester: A dominant second
half display after a tense opening period saw the hosts ease to victory and
maintain top spot. Saints scored tries
through Ken Pisi, Calum Clark, Tom Stephenson, Alex Waller and Will Hooley,
with Henry Trinder claiming the Cherry and Whites’ only 5 pointer.
Newcastle Falcons 18 –
41 Leicester Tigers: An impressive
second half and a decent run out from Manu Tuilagi helped Leicester find some
form and ease to victory in the North East.
Despite scoring tries through Noah Cato and Scott Lawson, Tigers picked
up a bonus point with Niki Goneva (2), Thomas Waldrom and Pablo Matera all
crossing.
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