Gaskell on a mission to make up for defeat

WASPS’ second-row James Gaskell is aiming to ‘right some wrongs’ against Ulster in the Champions Cup at the Ricoh tomorrow.

His side suffered a disappointing last-gasp defeat to Harlequins last week, which effectively dumped them out of the competition.

Boss Dai Young has though fielded a strong side for tomorrow’s showdown with the Belfast side, who emerged as 19-9 victors in the reverse fixture in October.

And Gaskell, who played 70 minutes at The Stoop, wants his teammates to bounce back from the disappointment straight away.

“We were very disappointed after last weekend,” the 27-year-old said, “I think that’s the most gutted I’ve seen the lads since the Premiership Final last year.

“As a group of players we have a lot to prove. it hurt a lot and it’s a chance to get back on the pitch and right a few wrongs.

“The boys put their hands up and admitted to their mistakes and said next time they’ll get it right. “We’ll do that on the training pitch. “It was nothing down to how the coaches prepared us, it was down to us, the XV and 23 that were on the pitch last weekend making bad decisions at crucial times.”

Wasps can still qualify for the quarter-finals, a stage they have reached for three successive seasons, but Gaskell said his side are just focused on getting a win.

“Mathematically, there’s still the opportunity to go through,” he added, “but first, we have to win the game of rugby and try to play some good stuff.

“The first thing for us is making sure we get a performance. Second thing is a win and then if there’s the opportunity to chase bonus-points then do that.

“We have to get to half-time, and make sure we’re either in the game or just in front.

“Then the first 20 minutes after half-time is a critical point.

“One team traditionally kicks on in that period and if you’re the team that does it, you can go into the last 20 and decide whether you kick at goal or have the freedom to go to the corner.”

The black-and-golds will be reunited with former player Charles Piutau, who inspired his team to October’s win, but Gaskell insisted Ulster will have threats all over the pitch.

“Charles is a great boy, a great player. We have a lot of respect for him, we’ve seen at first-hand what he can do for teams,” he said.

“They’re a strong Irish team, you look at all the provinces at the minute, they’re playing some great stuff.

“They’re causing a lot of problems elsewhere so we know the challenges ahead. You look at some of the big boys in that pack, like Iain Henderson, and Rory Best is obviously an inspirational leader for them, while the backline is also full of threats.

“We know that if we perform as well as we want to, we’re going to cause problems and let’s hope it’s enough problems on the day.”