g0708m2

FORTY MINUTES of good rugby from Gloucester was just enough to take the points at Watford and a second successive Premiership bonus-point win.
The trouble is, we all know that the duration of a match is eighty minutes in total.
For twenty minutes at the end of the first half and a second twenty minutes spell in the second period, Gloucester provided some decent rugby. The other periods were pretty dire.
The Cherry and Whites got the first points on the board through a Ryan Lamb penalty but for the next twenty minutes their play was dreadful. Gloucester turned over far too much ball, too many first up tackles were missed and once again needless penalties were conceded at regular intervals which enabled a strong Saracens side to dominate proceedings and keep their score ticking along.
The subsequent re-starts were a disaster area for Gloucester, as were the line-outs, with the first four being lost on their own throw.
At least the defensive effort under sustained pressure, thanks in particular to hard tacklin by Hazell and Strokosch was reasonable but quite how Gloucester were still in contention shipping only fourteen points remains a mystery.
The much travelled Gordon Ross kicked his penalties and set up the first Saracens’ try but missed the conversion as the home side were unable to capitalise on the advantage of territory and possession .
Andy Hazell was sin-binned for a late tackle on Ross and the prospects for Gloucester looked ominous but Lamb kicked a penalty as the visitors began to rouse themselves.
Although a man down, the Cherry and Whites began to secure more possession and began to move the ball around with greater purpose.
A good move between Balshaw and Vainikolo saw the ball worked to Lamb who breached the Sarries’ defence before Lamb and Simpson-Daniel launched superb passes for Anthony Allen to cross in the corner. Lamb converted to make the score to 14-16 and added another penalty kick to finish the half with an unbelievable surprise lead.
Sarries started the second period with renewed vigour and soon got on top as centre Kevin Sorrell got their second try. Ross converted but broke Sarries’ hearts when a soft pass inside the Gloucester 22 was seized by Ryan Lamb and he raced away to score by the posts and converted his own try.26-21
Ollie Azam was introduced to add some necessary extra power up front but Gloucester then lost their powerhouse wing ‘Big Les’ who was forced to leave the field with a neck injury to be replaced by Olly Morgan.
Anthony Allen made a searing mid-field break before number eight Luke Narraway was on hand to cross beneath the posts. Lamb’s conversion took the score to 33-21.
Sarries hit back with their third try when replacement Ed Thrower powered through Ryan Lamb for a converted try.
However Gloucester were not finished as Olly Morgan finished off some sharp passing by Prendergast, Walker and Lloyd for the bonus point try.
Gloucester appeared to ease up and Sarries secured the consolation of a losing bonus point with a late penalty kick but the Cherry and Whites had just about done enough to secure the win which appeared unlikely at on time.
For Gloucester two youngsters in particular, Anthony Allen and Ryan Lamb caught the eye.
Anthony Allen may not be an out and out speedster but he has a great eye for the slightest gap and deceptive pace.
Ryan Lamb is an enigma. His opportunism, his flair and his ability to see chances plus his general distribution of the ball are clear for all to see but at times he is let down by uncertainty and poor decision making. Added to this is the fact that his channel now appears to be a target for big, hard running forwards which can cause problems but to his credit he never flinches a challenging tackle.
What a shame everybody can't tackle like Andy Hazell. I don't know how he does it week in, week out - just brilliant!
T.H 24/9/2007