Saints vs Bristol, Sunday, March 21st (3pm KO)

[jimKRFC]

Bristol Bears team to face Northampton Saints at Franklin’s Gardens on Sunday, March 21st (3pm KO):

15. Henry Purdy; 14. Niyi Adeolokun, 13. Piers O’Conor, 12. Alapati Leiua, 11. Siva Naulago; 10. Tiff Eden, 9. Andy Uren; 1. Yann Thomas, 2. Bryan Byrne, 3. John Afoa, 4. Joe Joyce, 5. Chris Vui, 6. Steven Luatua (c), 7. Dan Thomas, 8. Nathan Hughes.

Subs: 16. Will Capon, 17. Jake Woolmore, 18. Max Lahiff, 19. Ed Holmes, 20. Jake Heenan, 21. Tom Kessell, 22. Sam Bedlow, 23. Luke Morahan.

Unavailable: Harry Thacker, Kyle Sinckler, Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, Dave Attwood, Ben Earl, James Dun, Harry Randall, Chris Cook, Max Malins, Ioan Lloyd, Callum Sheedy, Semi Radradra, Siale Piutau, Charles Piutau.

Saints:
15 George Furbank, 14 Matt Proctor, 13 Fraser Dingwall, 12 Rory Hutchinson, 11 Tommy Freeman, 10 James Grayson, 9 Tom James
1 Alex Waller (c), 2 Sam Matavesi, 3 Paul Hill, 4 Alex Coles, 5 Api Ratuniyarawa, 6 Nick Isiekwe, 7 Tom Wood, 8 Teimana Harrison

Replacements:
16 Mike Haywood, 17 Nick Auterac, 18 Ehren Painter, 19 Alex Moon, 20 JJ Tonks, 21 Henry Taylor, 22 Piers Francis, 23 Harry Mallinder

Unavailable:
Shaun Adendorff (knee), Owen Franks (foot), Danny Hobbs-Awoyemi (achilles), Courtney Lawes (pectoral), Lewis Ludlam (concussion), and Kayde Sylvester (achilles). International: Dan Biggar (Wales), Alex Mitchell (England), and David Ribbans (England).

Should be a good game with both sides looking to run the ball. After a pessimistic approach to the last few games my initial reaction is FFS C.P & Attwood are now out.....

Saints to win by 5.

[Banquo]

Great to see Saints giving Dingwall and Coles a good run. They'll miss ludlam.

[Adam_P]

Looking forward to this - hard to feel overly confident as a Saints fan considering how Bristol have been playing though. Should be entertaining at least.

I'm quite surprised Sleightholme isn't included, I think he is real quality and really quick. I'd also be a lot comfier to see Francis at 12 with either Hutch or Dingwall at 13.

[Banquo]

Looking forward to this - hard to feel overly confident as a Saints fan considering how Bristol have been playing though. Should be entertaining at least.

I'm quite surprised Sleightholme isn't included, I think he is real quality and really quick. I'd also be a lot comfier to see Francis at 12 with either Hutch or Dingwall at 13.

Yes. Francis is a better 12 than Hutchinson imo, though he looked a bit crocked at the end of the last game, and Fraser was excellent at 13 last time out- he's a better defender than Hutchinson. I'd rather see Freeman at 15 and Sleightholme on the wing, harsh as that maybe on Furbank. Sleightholme should at least be on the bench for Mallinder.

[Digby]

Is that 6 English (read EQP) starters from Brizzle with one of those being the emergency cover at 10?

Saints, well you can't knock them for picking English players, almost as many in their starting XV as the Brizzle XXIII, and that bench for Saints is I think all English.

[Banquo]

Is that 6 English (read EQP) starters from Brizzle with one of those being the emergency cover at 10?

Saints, well you can't knock them for picking English players, almost as many in their starting XV as the Brizzle XXIII, and that bench for Saints is I think all English.

Their (Saints) starting XV was all EQP last week iirc.

[jimKRFC]

Is that 6 English (read EQP) starters from Brizzle with one of those being the emergency cover at 10?

No. 9 EQP starters and 15 in the squad, and Tiff Eden has been at Bristol for 3 seasons...

[Scrumhead]

Also worth noting that 9 of Bristol’s injured players are EQ (well actually English) too.

[Digby]

The good news is Brizzle have a lot of room for improvement on the EQP front

[Puja]

The good news is Brizzle have a lot of room for improvement on the EQP front

Improvement beyond 9/15 and 15/23, while also having 4 players away with the EPS? Seems ambitious, but okay.

Puja

[Banquo]

The good news is Brizzle have a lot of room for improvement on the EQP front

Improvement beyond 9/15 and 15/23, while also having 4 players away with the EPS? Seems ambitious, but okay.

Puja

Diggers is nothing if not ambiguous.

[Digby]

The good news is Brizzle have a lot of room for improvement on the EQP front

Improvement beyond 9/15 and 15/23, while also having 4 players away with the EPS? Seems ambitious, but okay.

Puja

Diggers is nothing if not ambiguous.

Not trying to be ambiguous, their number (and fwiw often level) of EQP sucks

[Puja]

Improvement beyond 9/15 and 15/23, while also having 4 players away with the EPS? Seems ambitious, but okay.

Puja

Diggers is nothing if not ambiguous.

Not trying to be ambiguous, their number (and fwiw often level) of EQP sucks

You've made this point on a previous Bristol thread, were pointed to their massive list of unavailable English players and the fact that their first XV is 10 or 11 English (11 or 12 if you want to count the Welsh poach of Sheedy) and then left it alone, so it's a little strange that you'd come back to it this week when they've actually got a pretty good number of EQP even with their missing players. It's a funny hobby horse to have when there's so many other Sales and Leicesters to castigate for their general lack of EQP.

Puja

[Scrumhead]

Agreed ... Bristol aren’t the ones to pick on ...

I also have some sympathy for clubs that are on the border (or very close in Bristol’s case) when there’s a fair bit of Welsh talent in their academies. The likes of Lloyd and LRZ might be Welsh, but why wouldn’t you want them in your academy?

[Banquo]

Improvement beyond 9/15 and 15/23, while also having 4 players away with the EPS? Seems ambitious, but okay.

Puja

Diggers is nothing if not ambiguous.

Not trying to be ambiguous, their number (and fwiw often level) of EQP sucks

It was a mild joke.

[twitchy]

Purdy is quality when he turns it on.

[Banquo]

Saints absolutely shooting themselves in the foot

[Banquo]

great comeback so far

[Adam_P]

Seems like being dropped for a few weeks has done wonders for Grayson, has been really good this week and last

[Banquo]

bizarre, grayson was bossing it and bring mallinder on, who misses a sitter

[Banquo]

Seems like being dropped for a few weeks has done wonders for Grayson, has been really good this week and last

wasnt he unavailable

[Adam_P]

No just wasn't being selected. Agreed that it seems bonkers to take him off for Mallinder

[Banquo]

furbank has gone well

[Banquo]

No just wasn't being selected. Agreed that it seems bonkers to take him off for Mallinder

thought he was covided, ah well. Played v well

[Scrumhead]

bizarre, grayson was bossing it and bring mallinder on, who misses a sitter

Mallinder’s 5 touches of the ball have included the missed kick at goal, a rubbish forward pass and a kick out on the full. Nice.