Bordeaux vs Harlequins - Sat 15:00

[Danno]

Quins inability to close the game down nearly cost them. It was open and end to end throughout. Quins had a good scrum and lineout/rolling maul there was things they could have done to take the pace out of the game a bit.

Hopefully nothing serious for Smith.

How do you close down The Electric Matchstick et al? Quins played it right.

Play for territory try to pin them down in their own half. Quins played a lot of ball in hand with a healthy lead. Might be a bit boring but pin the opposition back and give Evans licence the attack every ruck.

As a game it was great for a neutral but it must have been nerve shredding for Quins fans and coaches.

In the nicest possible way:

Is this the first Quins game you've watched since 2020?

[FKAS]

How do you close down The Electric Matchstick et al? Quins played it right.

Play for territory try to pin them down in their own half. Quins played a lot of ball in hand with a healthy lead. Might be a bit boring but pin the opposition back and give Evans licence the attack every ruck.

As a game it was great for a neutral but it must have been nerve shredding for Quins fans and coaches.

In the nicest possible way:

Is this the first Quins game you've watched since 2020?

No but there is an expectation they might learn and develop. Good coaches, no Danny Care and Marcus Smith is now 25 having played under Borthwick who would have definitely wanted his team to tighten up and offer little to Bordeaux who needed to take risks.

[Mellsblue]

Play for territory try to pin them down in their own half. Quins played a lot of ball in hand with a healthy lead. Might be a bit boring but pin the opposition back and give Evans licence the attack every ruck.

As a game it was great for a neutral but it must have been nerve shredding for Quins fans and coaches.

In the nicest possible way:

Is this the first Quins game you've watched since 2020?

No but there is an expectation they might learn and develop. Good coaches, no Danny Care and Marcus Smith is now 25 having played under Borthwick who would have definitely wanted his team to tighten up and offer little to Bordeaux who needed to take risks.

Do you not think that maybe the coaches are happy/want their team to continue to play that way regardless of the score line or do you think that Smith just defy’s their wishes match after match?

[Oakboy]

In the nicest possible way:

Is this the first Quins game you've watched since 2020?

No but there is an expectation they might learn and develop. Good coaches, no Danny Care and Marcus Smith is now 25 having played under Borthwick who would have definitely wanted his team to tighten up and offer little to Bordeaux who needed to take risks.

Do you not think that maybe the coaches are happy/want their team to continue to play that way regardless of the score line or do you think that Smith just defy’s their wishes match after match?

Maybe, in the long-term, simply allowing Smith to run the game his way is the best route to 'best-possible' team performances. I'd guess that all his colleagues in the back line would vote for that and I'd not be surprised if the forwards preferred it to kicking for territory.

[FKAS]

In the nicest possible way:

Is this the first Quins game you've watched since 2020?

No but there is an expectation they might learn and develop. Good coaches, no Danny Care and Marcus Smith is now 25 having played under Borthwick who would have definitely wanted his team to tighten up and offer little to Bordeaux who needed to take risks.

Do you not think that maybe the coaches are happy/want their team to continue to play that way regardless of the score line or do you think that Smith just defy’s their wishes match after match?

I think they'd like a balance. Quins will trust Marcus to make the call, if he sees something on then go for it. Nick Evans is sat there in the coaching staff and he was an excellent flyhalf at switching between pragmatism and attacking rugby though. Danny Wilson does like a high tempo game plan so perhaps he's pushing the "just keep playing' mentality.

Given the Quins scrum is good, the lineout pretty reliable and their rolling maul game strong you'd have thought they'd be fine slowing the game down with set piece in the opposition half. Pinning the opposition in does open the possibility of counter attacks through Smith and Green from the backfield as well.

[Puja]

Didn't Smith set up the position that eventually got the game-winning try with a 50:22?

Besides, I don't think anyone's beating that Bordeaux side away from home with careful management and lots of kicking. Their back three are too good and giving them the ball is a recipe for disaster - Quins had to keep attacking and scoring in 5s and 7s because Bordeaux were always going to bite back. The only thing I could criticise Smith for was his awful drop-goal attempt.

Puja

[Oakboy]

Didn't Smith set up the position that eventually got the game-winning try with a 50:22?

Besides, I don't think anyone's beating that Bordeaux side away from home with careful management and lots of kicking. Their back three are too good and giving them the ball is a recipe for disaster - Quins had to keep attacking and scoring in 5s and 7s because Bordeaux were always going to bite back. The only thing I could criticise Smith for was his awful drop-goal attempt.

Puja

Spot on.

[Mellsblue]

No but there is an expectation they might learn and develop. Good coaches, no Danny Care and Marcus Smith is now 25 having played under Borthwick who would have definitely wanted his team to tighten up and offer little to Bordeaux who needed to take risks.

Do you not think that maybe the coaches are happy/want their team to continue to play that way regardless of the score line or do you think that Smith just defy’s their wishes match after match?

I think they'd like a balance.

Based on what?

[Mikey Brown]

Huzzah!!!

[Puja]

Congratulations Mikey. Now let's cheer on an Exeter miracle so that you don't have to travel to France again!

Puja

[Mikey Brown]

I want to see Will Porter schooling DuPont.

[FKAS]

Do you not think that maybe the coaches are happy/want their team to continue to play that way regardless of the score line or do you think that Smith just defy’s their wishes match after match?

I think they'd like a balance.

Based on what?

Logic

[Mellsblue]

I think they'd like a balance.

Based on what?

Logic

So no inkling or insider knowledge of what the Quins coaches actually want. There’s no evidence from Quins since the season they won the title that their coaching team want anything other than ball in hand expansive rugby, as Danno alluded to, so I’m not sure it’s logical to say that the coaches want anything other than that.

[Banquo]

Didn't Smith set up the position that eventually got the game-winning try with a 50:22?

Besides, I don't think anyone's beating that Bordeaux side away from home with careful management and lots of kicking. Their back three are too good and giving them the ball is a recipe for disaster - Quins had to keep attacking and scoring in 5s and 7s because Bordeaux were always going to bite back. The only thing I could criticise Smith for was his awful drop-goal attempt.

Puja

indeed

[FKAS]

Didn't Smith set up the position that eventually got the game-winning try with a 50:22?

Besides, I don't think anyone's beating that Bordeaux side away from home with careful management and lots of kicking. Their back three are too good and giving them the ball is a recipe for disaster - Quins had to keep attacking and scoring in 5s and 7s because Bordeaux were always going to bite back. The only thing I could criticise Smith for was his awful drop-goal attempt.

Puja

So playing the percentages/pressure game when up on points against a team that likes to playing loose and who are chasing the game won't work apart from when Quins tried it and it did.

UBB like Quins are always likely to pose a threat but better to have them posing that threat from their 22 as opposed to the middle of the pitch.

It was a good Quins performance and just an observation that taking the pace out of the game when you've got points on the board and the opposition is so threatening doesn't hurt.

[Banquo]

Didnt Quins win?

[Puja]

Didn't Smith set up the position that eventually got the game-winning try with a 50:22?

Besides, I don't think anyone's beating that Bordeaux side away from home with careful management and lots of kicking. Their back three are too good and giving them the ball is a recipe for disaster - Quins had to keep attacking and scoring in 5s and 7s because Bordeaux were always going to bite back. The only thing I could criticise Smith for was his awful drop-goal attempt.

Puja

So playing the percentages/pressure game when up on points against a team that likes to playing loose and who are chasing the game won't work apart from when Quins tried it and it did.

UBB like Quins are always likely to pose a threat but better to have them posing that threat from their 22 as opposed to the middle of the pitch.

It was a good Quins performance and just an observation that taking the pace out of the game when you've got points on the board and the opposition is so threatening doesn't hurt.

Why exactly do you think UBB didn't have three players back anticipating the kick?

Puja

[TheNomad]

Really incredible result this. I can’t see them pulling it off vs Toulouse as well, but a great effort none the less.

No one have them a prayer

[Timbo]

In practice I can’t think how Quins would have been able to game manage their way through that second half. You can’t manufacture setpieces out of thin air & Bordeaux looked like they’d score a try with virtually every bit of possession. Quins tried going to the air but lost the aerial battle comprehensively.

Without getting off the ropes and throwing a few haymakers of their own that second half would have just been a Bordeaux procession imo.

[Puja]

In practice I can’t think how Quins would have been able to game manage their way through that second half. You can’t manufacture setpieces out of thin air & Bordeaux looked like they’d score a try with virtually every bit of possession. Quins tried going to the air but lost the aerial battle comprehensively.

Without getting off the ropes and throwing a few haymakers of their own that second half would have just been a Bordeaux procession imo.

cf. The second half of Toulouse vs Exeter.

Puja

[Oakboy]

In practice I can’t think how Quins would have been able to game manage their way through that second half. You can’t manufacture setpieces out of thin air & Bordeaux looked like they’d score a try with virtually every bit of possession. Quins tried going to the air but lost the aerial battle comprehensively.

Without getting off the ropes and throwing a few haymakers of their own that second half would have just been a Bordeaux procession imo.

This scenario, requiring both sides to play rugby rather than kicking it up in the air, is surely good for the game!