Post by Jamie Crawford on Oct 30, 2018 12:37:14 GMT
Coventry in the Championship Cup
sponsored by Porsche Centre Sheffield (www.porschesheffield.co.uk)
Game One; Pool Stage; Castle Park Saturday 10th November 2018.
To recap, “The current competition format is a group stage followed by a knockout stage. The group stage consists of three (roughly) regional groups of four teams each playing home and away matches. Group matches run for six consecutive weeks through November to December following a break in the RFU Championship league campaign. The top two sides in each group, plus the two best third placed teams, progress to the knockout stage, with the best ranked sides getting home advantage in the quarter-finals. The four winning quarter-finalists progress to the semi-finals with the winners playing in the final in May.” (Wikipedia)
The other three teams in our “(roughly) regional” group are: Coventry (H), Nottingham (A), Carnegie (A) in the order that we first play them. Then it’s Carnegie (H), Coventry (A), Nottingham (H). Our next Championship game is on Saturday 29th Dec, 2018 - 02:30pm when we play Carnegie again. So we play Carnegie three times in five weeks but the Carnegie team we play in the Championship could have a different look to it. Carnegie will hope to improve on their Championship form (one win in nine games) in the Cup and then transfer that form back to the Championship.
It appears that only four teams in the Championship won’t reach the knock-out stages and results are the key to getting home advantage.
The Championship form book is irrelevant in Cup games because teams will often try new players, new player combinations, new moves, new calls etc. Sometimes these pay off and lead to try-scoring and are used in future matches. Sometimes they fail dismally and lead to tries being conceded. Mainly they may lead to a loss of possession or territory and so won’t be used again.
Two of Coventry’s Back Row are ex-Knights; Latuuuu (crowd chant) Makaafi and Jack Ram. Ex-Knight Andy Bulamakau is now Wing/Centre for Coventry and his brother Junior is a Wing/Full Back. All four players are South Sea Islanders and dangerous in attack.
Don’t forget that a new tackle height law is being trialled in the Championship Cup.
World Rugby is working in partnership with the RFU to make amendments to Law 9.13 during the new cup competition in the second tier.
The law will make alterations to the definition of a high tackle from above the line of the shoulders to above the armpit line.
The new law amendment for the 2018/19 Championship Cup Law 9.13 will now read:
‘A player must not tackle an opponent early, late or dangerously. Dangerous tackling includes, but is not limited to, tackling or attempting to tackle an opponent above the armpit line even if the tackle starts below the armpit line.’
Coventry DoR Rowland Winter welcomes the new law and included, “…Reducing the height of the tackle will have an effect on the attack and the defence, and it will be interesting to see whether we see more offloads and a quicker game, as there will be less chance to wrap the ball up.” (Coventry Telegraph)
“Coventry Rugby back-rower selected alongside Beauden Barrett in Sky Sports’ team of the week
Posted on 30th October 201830th October 2018 by Paul Smith
Sky Sports named their team-of-the-week, and following their live coverage of Coventry Rugby v Leeds Carnegie, and Michael Cantillon’s piece included a blue-and-white name…
Dan Evans (Ospreys)
Ben Smith (New Zealand)
Israel Folau (Australia)
Robbie Henshaw (Leinster)
Rieko Ioane (New Zealand)
Beauden Barrett (New Zealand)
Piet van Zyl (Stade Francais)
Joe Moody (New Zealand)
Oliviero Fabiani (Zebre)
Vadim Cobilas (Bordeaux Begles)
David Sisi (Zebre)
Leone Nakarawa (Racing 92)
Peter O’Mahony (Munster)
Adam Peters (Coventry)
Selevasio Tolofua (Toulouse)
Commenting on Peters’ performance, Cantillon wrote:
Coventry registered a valuable 20-15 win over Leeds Carnegie in front of the Sky Sports cameras on Saturday, with flanker Peters named man of the match.
Though he played on the blindside during the Championship clash, we have shifted him to the openside in order to get him into our side, and with O’Mahony able to pick up some of the breakdown slack.
Peters made 15 carries, 10 tackles and – like O’Mahony for Munster – stole two lineouts in a well-rounded display.
The whole piece is available on the Sky Sports website where you can also vote for Adam as your top performer of the weekend in their online poll.
www.skysports.com/rugby-union/news/12321/11538221/team-of-the-week-all-blacks-dominate-alongside-pro14-top-14-and-championship-standouts”
(Coventry RFC website)
Hi praise indeed to be selected amongst All Blacks. If I understand it correctly, Peters was chosen over the All Black blindside Flanker (plus all others). We’ve got to be accurate with our lineouts, watch for Peters breaking the line before off-loading and be ready for Peters to not miss his tackles.
The other pool game is: Carnegie v Nottingham @ Emerald Headingley Stadium.
COYK
DONNY, DONNY, DONNY…
