Saints players need a long, hard look at themselves
“Despite being successful with England, a number of Saints need to look at their performances for the club”
Last weekend was a shocker for the Premiership clubs, losing all their games in the European elite competition for the first time in years. With England doing so well, it certainly needs some explaining.
Watching the Premiership and the Top 14 live over the last few weeks as I have, there is a marked difference – but what is the reason?
It is not about quality or even skill, I would say it is more of a mindset that seems to separate the two leagues. Players in the Premiership seem to be playing by numbers with very few (if any) coaches seeming to show any interest in getting players thinking about the game, or concern for their supporters.
It seems there is just one thought, which is to play ‘safe’ by playing a short pick and go game from virtually every breakdown. This results in an almost endless number of phases without either team making more that a few metres.
Meanwhile, the Top 14 seems to have moved on to a more open game using the outfield players to a greater degree. Yes, there is still pick and go, but not on the same scale as the Premiership and the players look to break out and move the ball wide at the first opportunity.
Admittedly, it is unlikely results will be as bad again in the next rounds and, with any luck, there will be a Premiership club in the final – but our clubs have got to start playing the game without the fear of losing.
It has to be said that losing is not something the players, coaches or owners would want but it is a fact that all teams prioritise to some extent. Just look at the results in the Challenge Cup last week and compare them to the elite contest and you can see the French teams have chosen to concentrate on their league performances rather than a cup competition that has little or no bearing on their season.
Our Premiership clubs choose to rest players and take a chance on results when the Anglo-Welsh Cup comes around, but for the them, Europe is different.
Results in Europe are definitive for Premiership clubs as it is the competition that represents their efforts to organise and run their own competition – a model that the owners would like to introduce across all competitions.
The shock of last weekend was the last nail in the coffin of Jim Mallinder who, despite having successfully led Northampton for ten years, was sacked after a poor run of results.
I must admit I am a bit surprised by the actions of the Northampton board as I think Jim is a first class coach and director of rugby. Mallinder would probably have been an England coach had he not given up his role with the RFU to take the Northampton job. Along with Dorian West, he steadied the Northampton ship and brought a level of success never before achieved by the club.
As director of rugby he had the responsibility for how the players play the game and the standards they achieve on a week-to-week basis and therefore has to take the blame for the poor results this season.
However, there are a number of his current squad who should take a long hard look at their performances for the club despite perhaps being successful with a buoyant England team.
There have been rumours circulating among supporters for the last few seasons that at least one high profile player at the club has not been pulling his weight and not appearing to perform at a level where he should not make match day squads, let alone the starting fifteen, were it not for his status in the England team.
Sometimes players can forget it is their club performance that gives them the base from which they achieve international status and think that playing well for your country is enough, but it isn’t.
Back in the amateur days we also had a few players who it seemed were guaranteed selection no matter how they played, but for the majority you had to prove on a weekly basis that you deserved the right to be an international. Virtually every week the opposition were either trying to prove they were better then you or knock lumps out of you.
Added to which we had to walk through the bar crowd with spectators from both teams who would let you know in no uncertain terms if they felt you played badly.
With the insular nature of modern day professional rugby, where players hardly have any contact with fans, the media profile of international players is so valuable to their clubs it would seem to make it virtually impossible for a club to discipline or dispose of players who fail to perform for their club team, as long they remain in the England squad.
In these professional days it seems (just like the amateur days) for certain players once chosen by England, they don’t have to prove anything and for a seemly unassailable few, club performance comes a poor second.