RugbyRebels

HARLEQUINS: 15. Tyrone Green; 14. Louis Lynagh, 13. Joe Marchant, 12. Andre Esterhuizen, 11. Cadan Murley; 10. Marcus Smith, 9. Danny Care; 1. Joe Marler, 2. Scott Baldwin, 3. Wilco Louw, 4. Matt Symons, 5. Stephan Lewies (capt), 6. James Chisholm, 7. Jack Kenningham, 8. Alex Dombrandt. Reps: 16. Joe Gray, 17. Santiago Garcia Botta, 18. Will Collier, 19. Dino Lamb, 20. Tom Lawday, 21. Martin Landajo, 22. Ben Tapuai, 23. Luke Northmore.

EXETER: 15. Jack Nowell; 14 Alex Cuthbert, 13. Henry Slade, 12. Ollie Devoto, 11. Tom O’Flaherty; 10. Joe Simmonds (capt), 9. Jack Maunder; 1. Alec Hepburn, 2. Luke Cowan-Dickie, 3. Harry Williams, 4. Jonny Gray, 5. Jonny Hill, 6. Jannes Kirsten, 7. Richard Capstick, 8. Sam Simmonds. Reps: 16. Jack Yeandle, 17. Ben Moon, 18. Marcus Street, 19. Sean Lonsdale, 20. Don Armand, 21. Stu Townsend, 22. Harvey Skinner, 23. Stuart Hogg.

its just odd to play Nowell at 15 with Hogg on the bench- is Hogg about to leave, perchance. Scrum will be very interesting, and Esterhuizen back is important.
On another note Kenningham looked like he was knocked out twice last weekend. I hope he's been properly assessed.

Should be a cracker.

I have to say...our back line is looking really good now. I'm really impressed with the work of the coaches and I hope any new HC doesn't disrupt it too much.

Good to see little Chis starting, even though his level has dropped off since a couple of seasons back.

The quins backs are really good now. Chiefs pack looks pretty formidable though.

Esterhuizen back for Quins is a significant boost. Good individual match ups all over the pitch.

Fancy Exe but Quins have the game that can unsettle anyone.

I so badly want to believe we can win this … I just hope we didn’t play our final last week.

As other’s have already said, Andre’s return is huge. If he can get us some front foot ball and we don’t allow Exeter to settle in to their groove, you never know …

Not selecting Hogg is just weird. It's not just that Nowell has been picked ahead of him, it's also Cuthbert, O'Flaherty and Slade. Something must have happened or Baxter is sending some kind of message.

Banquo wrote:its just odd to play Nowell at 15 with Hogg on the bench- is Hogg about to leave, perchance. Scrum will be very interesting, and Esterhuizen back is important.
On another note Kenningham looked like he was knocked out twice last weekend. I hope he's been properly assessed.

Should be a cracker.

I missed these Kenningham incidents. Were either of them looked at at the time?

I’m confused about the Hogg thing too, like Baxter is choosing to screw with this Lions chances and put Nowell in the shop window, but I didn’t see the Sale game. Perhaps he was awful.

I really like this Quins teams. There’s a big drop off in some positions but this first XV looks very threatening. I definitely have Exeter as favourites but if we can get them out of their comfort zone then who knows.

Just realised there’s no Lang. Tapuai and Northmore are superior centres but don’t want either at flyhalf if Smith gets injured. A Landajo/Care pairing at halfback wouldn’t make me feel very comfortable either.

Mikey Brown wrote:

Banquo wrote:its just odd to play Nowell at 15 with Hogg on the bench- is Hogg about to leave, perchance. Scrum will be very interesting, and Esterhuizen back is important.
On another note Kenningham looked like he was knocked out twice last weekend. I hope he's been properly assessed.

Should be a cracker.

I missed these Kenningham incidents. Were either of them looked at at the time?

I’m confused about the Hogg thing too, like Baxter is choosing to screw with this Lions chances and put Nowell in the shop window, but I didn’t see the Sale game. Perhaps he was awful.

I really like this Quins teams. There’s a big drop off in some positions but this first XV looks very threatening. I definitely have Exeter as favourites but if we can get them out of their comfort zone then who knows.

Both were, but he was dazed both times imo; one was a pretty clear problem when he got his head the wrong side. Hope its the right call.

He did go off for an HIA and passed it. Hopefully he hasn’t had any concussion symptoms.

Looking at both sides my initial take is I don't much like either side, injuries of course are influential here

Oh dear, a negative reaction from Digby. Call it off.

switchskier wrote:Not selecting Hogg is just weird. It's not just that Nowell has been picked ahead of him, it's also Cuthbert, O'Flaherty and Slade. Something must have happened or Baxter is sending some kind of message.

Baxter has said Hogg offered the least Vs Sale in the last league game. Nowell started at 15 last weekend and was excellent then so Baxter called it well then. Might help Hogg be a little fresher for the Lions but also desperate to make a difference when he comes on.

FKAS wrote:

switchskier wrote:Not selecting Hogg is just weird. It's not just that Nowell has been picked ahead of him, it's also Cuthbert, O'Flaherty and Slade. Something must have happened or Baxter is sending some kind of message.

Baxter has said Hogg offered the least Vs Sale in the last league game. Nowell started at 15 last weekend and was excellent then so Baxter called it well then. Might help Hogg be a little fresher for the Lions but also desperate to make a difference when he comes on.

Wouldn't be surprised to see Hogg subbed on early with Nowell moving to wing.

Mikey Brown wrote:Oh dear, a negative reaction from Digby. Call it off.

It's about time

Banquo wrote:its just odd to play Nowell at 15 with Hogg on the bench- is Hogg about to leave, perchance. Scrum will be very interesting, and Esterhuizen back is important.
On another note Kenningham looked like he was knocked out twice last weekend. I hope he's been properly assessed.

Should be a cracker.

It amazes me that Capstick is fit to play after the Tuilagi incident. He was all over the place. How can he be ok one week later? Im no neuro surgeon but it does puzzle me. Same with Kirsten 2 weeks previous, he was out cold at one point. Player welfare is very poor imo.

The best thing about this game I think is that no matter how far a margin one team gets, there’s great belief either side that it can be clawed back. Looking forward to a cracker.

Spiffy wrote:

FKAS wrote:

switchskier wrote:Not selecting Hogg is just weird. It's not just that Nowell has been picked ahead of him, it's also Cuthbert, O'Flaherty and Slade. Something must have happened or Baxter is sending some kind of message.

Baxter has said Hogg offered the least Vs Sale in the last league game. Nowell started at 15 last weekend and was excellent then so Baxter called it well then. Might help Hogg be a little fresher for the Lions but also desperate to make a difference when he comes on.

Wouldn't be surprised to see Hogg subbed on early with Nowell moving to wing.

On the 50 minute mark looking pretty angry and with a point to prove hopefully. Just to add some spice to the second half.

FKAS wrote:

Spiffy wrote:

FKAS wrote:
Baxter has said Hogg offered the least Vs Sale in the last league game. Nowell started at 15 last weekend and was excellent then so Baxter called it well then. Might help Hogg be a little fresher for the Lions but also desperate to make a difference when he comes on.

Wouldn't be surprised to see Hogg subbed on early with Nowell moving to wing.

On the 50 minute mark looking pretty angry and with a point to prove hopefully. Just to add some spice to the second half.

This is set up so perfectly for a late howler from Hogg.

Mikey Brown wrote:

FKAS wrote:

Spiffy wrote:
Wouldn't be surprised to see Hogg subbed on early with Nowell moving to wing.

On the 50 minute mark looking pretty angry and with a point to prove hopefully. Just to add some spice to the second half.

This is set up so perfectly for a late howler from Hogg.

Lol.

Is he the most howler prone current test player?

Lol. Jonny “I’m a lion” Hill. Stupid Penalty. Kicked to cover. Brings down maul, penalty try and yellow card. 4 minutes in.

How exactly is Jonny hill in the lions squad? Given the talent available if might be the biggest selection howler.

Stom wrote:

Mikey Brown wrote:

FKAS wrote:
On the 50 minute mark looking pretty angry and with a point to prove hopefully. Just to add some spice to the second half.

This is set up so perfectly for a late howler from Hogg.

Lol.

Is he the most howler prone current test player?

Jonny Hill

Hell of a kick to the corner from Smith before the penalty try. Could have been any one of two or three Chiefs forwards to get the yellow card.

End to end game. Fantastic.