Gallagher Premiership Review 2018-19

Exeter Chiefs – 1^st

My Prediction – 2^nd

 

Review: Once again it’s been a fantastic season for Exeter who will return to Twickenham for the season finale. Just like last year they topped the table by eight points and then capitalised on their home semi-final advantage to take apart a visiting side and set up a showdown with Saracens. Besides from being top of the table Rob Baxter’s men have also crossed the whitewash eighty-nine times, twelve more than any other and amassed the highest points tally since Saracens in the 2013/14 season. Exeter constantly put their faith in their forward pack which would grind down their opposition with their physicality before allowing their dynamic backs to play with delightful fluidity that sliced weary defences open for fun. No side can do the simple things like Exeter, their ‘backs to the wall’ defence and ability to build pressure wreaked havoc throughout the campaign. A fundamental building block for the Chiefs success was their ability to back themselves for five points at almost every opportunity, a penalty in their opponent’s half was seen as a chance for seven points rather than a guaranteed three. Ultimately though Exeter’s season will be judged by their performance on the big stage and perhaps surprisingly, first place has not made them the favourites in everyone’s eyes against the newly crowned European champions.


Player of the season: Matt Kvesic

Highlight: Making it four Premiership appearances in four years and topping the table once more.

Lowlight: Three away defeats on the bounce to Harlequins, Northampton and Gloucester. The brilliant Santi Cordero leaving too will be a big miss.

 

 

Saracens – 2^nd

My Prediction – 1^st

 

Review: Stacked with mercurial talent and internationals Saracens once again eased into the top four. Their early season form saw them rack up nine consecutive wins before they were beaten by Exeter just before Christmas, a top four finish looked set in stone even then though. The second half of the season saw the North London side struggle to replicate their earlier form although the platform built saw Mike McCall rotate a lot as they juggled a European campaign. The strength in depth of Saracens is one of the many reasons they have been such a force in recent years and the opportunities to play the second string without pressure is testament to the dominance of the frontline players in the league. Saracens conceded just two more points than Exeter but their defence of the five pointer has been standout, just forty-four, seven fewer than their nearest rival sees them top that particular column. This season also sees Saracens make a fifth Premiership final in six years and there’s no sign of the black and red juggernaut slowing down. All in all, Saracens won’t be too concerned with their final league position, a dominating win against Gloucester highlights just how strong they are in knockout rugby situations with their first fifteen at their disposal. Regardless of the outcome of this weekend’s final there is no doubt that Saracens are now one of the biggest powerhouses in domestic club rugby.


Player of the season: Alex Goode

Highlight: Reaching another Premiership final to bid for a fourth title in five years.

Lowlight: Off the field antics. Vunipola came under criticism for his involvement with Folau’s homophobic social media post and the club once again had to deal with rumours of salary cap fiddling.

 

Gloucester – 3^rd

My Prediction – 3^rd

 

Review: Having recruited well in the off-season it was perhaps no surprise that Gloucester were competing for the top four but to finish third with a comfortable buffer between them and fifth will likely have exceeded expectations. Although the season ended in disappointment to Saracens the Cherry and Whites will feel like they’ve made a very big step in the right direction in their attempt to return to being one of English rugby’s big players. Johan Ackermann’s side played some of the season’s most exciting rugby with names like Thorley, Atkinson and Cipriani influential in more than just a couple of fixtures and players such as Franco Mostert and Ed Slater doing the hard work up front tirelessly. With the previously dominant playoff teams of Wasps and Leicester falling further off the pace this season there’s a real sense that this year could be the first of many more Gloucester top four finishes. The only concern that remains for the Cherry and Whites is their consistency. Their home form was once again mainly positive with wins against Saracens and Exeter but let down by defeats against weaker opposition renowned for struggling on the road themselves; Sale and Quins. Away from Kingsholm they again showed a full spectrum of results, losses to sides like struggling Worcester and Leicester are the kind of blemishes they will need to eradicate to compete with Exeter and Saracens next time out.


Player of the season: Danny Cipriani

Highlight: A first semi-final since 2011 and the successful integration of Cipriani as chief playmaker all point to an encouraging future.

Lowlight: To have crumbled so horribly to Saracens in the semi they worked so hard to get to will disappoint.

 

 

Northampton Saints – 4^th

My Prediction – 7^th

 

Review: There was always a sense the battle for fourth could be an interesting one, but Northampton were never the first or perhaps even second choice to fill that spot. Two points less would have seen the Saints finish eighth in the table so close were the final margins but crucially they snuck in on games won. The season itself was mixed as the eleven wins and eleven losses suggests and the fact they were thirty points off Exeter meant their semi-final defeat wasn’t all that surprising. Chris Boyd will have plenty to be happy about though, their defence shipped eighteen fewer tries this season compared to last and one hundred and twenty-four fewer points in total. Break out players like Rory Hutchinson and Alex Mitchell have reinvigorated the sleeping English giant who at times were brilliant, wins against Exeter and a 67-17 drubbing of Sale showcased the very best of Saint’s rugby. Cobus Reinach was the master puppeteer behind the vast majority of what went well for Northampton, the South African scrum-half was untouchable on his day and won a handful of games almost single-handedly on his way to being named in the team of the year. Being involved in post-season rugby was an achievement in its own and for half of the semi Northampton were very much still battling for a Twickenham spot. When the dust settles it’s hard to see this season at Franklin’s Garden as anything but a success with so many positives to draw on.


Player of the season: Cobus Reinach

Highlight: Beating Exeter 31-28 at Franklin’s Gardens was a monstrous result and crucial in the final standings.

Lowlight: The departure of big names like Luther Burrell and Ken Pisi will be missed enormously. The premature retirement of James Haskell was also a massive shame and case of what could have been.

 

 

Harlequins – 5^th

My Prediction – 10^th

 

Review: Last season was an absolute horror show from the Quins with their defence only slightly better than the relegated London Irish’s. The optimism was there at the start of this campaign but to be going into the final week still in with a chance of a semi-final spot would have been ambitious for even the keenest Harlequin. Paul Gustard has done a superb job though and at one point the Londoners were in the driving seat for a playoff berth as they won six of their mid-season seven games picking up twenty-nine points on the way. It was ultimately the patchy form of old that was Harlequins undoing though. Following a comprehensive defeat at home to Gloucester things started to go downhill, they finished their final seven matches with just one win. They clung on until the final week with a couple of losing bonus points knowing a win against Wasps would get them over the line. After such an up and down season, it was perhaps fitting that Quin’s playoff dream remained on right until the end, with only a final minute penalty miss meaning they would ultimately come up short for a fifth straight season. Although the manner of their failure to advance means the season ended on sour note and although they finished with a losing record the focus must be on the positives. A return to Champions Cup rugby and a much tidier defensive record will delight fans whilst the performances of younger players like Alex Dombrandt combined with some encouraging signings suggest happier times at the Stoop are on the way.


Player of the season: Alex Dombrandt

Highlight: Picking up twenty-nine out of a possible thirty-five points is the kind of form that only Exeter and Saracens are capable of in this division.

Lowlight: James Lang watching his penalty drop under the bar after his side had battled back from 24-8 down in their final game of the season against Wasps.

 

 

Bath – 6^th

My Prediction – 5^th

 

Review: Another of the middle table sides that struggled for consistency throughout the year. At no point did Bath either win or lose three consecutive games in the league. Every time they looked to be making steps in the right direction they would lose or draw and whenever the dark clouds looked to be setting in they’d win a game. In the end Bath finished with ten wins, ten losses and two draws, fifty-two tries scored against fifty-four conceded and a points difference of just one. Despite such a middle of the road season Bath ended up on equal points to the two teams ahead of them. Unlike Northampton though, Bath cannot gloss over the fact they failed to win more than half their games by saying at least they made the playoffs. Worryingly there was an alarming number of matches that the Blue, Black and White would lose in the closing stages, although crucially they flipped the script against Leicester in their final game. As a result, action was taken at the end of the season and the club appointed Stuart Hooper as a replacement for Todd Blackadder who ultimately failed to return this historic side to the peaks of English rugby during his tenure. The successful season of 2014/15 where they finished second seems a long way off now and for such an ambitious club another mid-table finish only reinforces the concerns of fans that there’s serious stagnation under way at the Rec, Champions Cup rugby next year and a potential new coaching set up though will mean as always a new season will bring new optimism on the banks of the Avon.  


Player of the season: Ruaridh McConnochie

Highlight: A last game of the season win against Leicester with a late try of their own meant that Bath would end on a high knowing they’d secured Champions Cup rugby again.

Lowlight: Another season come and gone with no clear signs of improvement, they will hope a coaching shake-up can help them reinvent themselves.

 

 

Sale Sharks – 7^th

My Prediction – 9^th

 

Review: Unlike many of the teams above them Sale finished with a win ratio above 50% and would have been devastated to come up as short as they did. It isn’t all doom and gloom for the Sharks though as despite finishing 7^th results and permutations across Europe meant that they still qualified for top tier continental rugby and their league points put them the closest they’ve been to finishing in the playoffs since the 07/08 season. Getting to Europe’s top table was likely Sale’s most realistic goal so to have achieved that and pushed the top four so close will bring massive encouragement to Steve Diamond. The Sharks also continued their evolution away from their old school total reliance on brute strength and pack power, it was still there in the form of players like Jono Ross and the Curry brothers but the ball carrying and flair of men like Solomona and de Klerk offered a different dimension. Sale have always boasted an impressive home record and once again they made the AJ Bell tricky for visiting teams, they won nine out of their eleven league games in front of their own. For large periods the Northerners defence was another highlight with them finishing fourth in this regard behind only Bath, Saracens and Exeter. There was the odd capitulation though, they conceded fifty-one to Harlequins, sixty-seven at Northampton and even forty-one to Gloucester despite winning. They did however restrict their opponent on five occasions to scoring ten points or less, an impressive achievement in this division. Overall there’s plenty to work on for Sale but they will feel this is the springboard season to help push on to regular top four contention and incoming players like Lood de Jager will go some way to helping.


Player of the season: Faf de Klerk

Highlight: Despite finishing three spots off the playoffs the fact they were only one point (the closest they’ve been for eleven years) away is the sign of a good season in Sale.

Lowlight: Steve Diamond’s confrontation with journalist Sam Peters was unwelcome off the field attention for the club.

 

 

Wasps – 8^th

My Prediction - 4^th

 

Review: For a side jam-packed with talented individuals to miss out on not just a top four spot but also the Champions Cup is a disaster. Wasps started off well and won four of their first five games with their only defeat against the Chiefs also bagging them a point. At this stage they looked to be building the foundations for another playoff appearance come May. One win in their next six left them off the pace though and they seemed to lose all their early season confidence. An indifferent second half of the season meant they never closed the gap and finished five off the pace in the end. The Ricoh Arena in the past had been a tricky place to come and play but this season Wasps lost more games at home than they won, six of the eleven ended in defeat. Their away form was the same (five wins, six defeats) and comparatively pretty good but the missed opportunities at home were criminal for a side trying to compete at the top of the table. Not only was there a marked drop in performances by some of the players but the club has also come under increased media scrutiny regarding its financial stability. Phrases like ‘broken promises’ have also been thrown about and the club has already confirmed the departure of a host of big names including Le Roux, Daly, Hughes and Simpson. After a disappointing season which saw them fall from 3^rd last year to 8^th with many of their bigger names still here it’s a genuine worry for Wasps that things could get even worse before they get better.


Player of the season: Will Rowlands

Highlight: Beating Exeter at Sandy Park showed Wasps at their very best and raised brief hope they might still be in with a chance of the top four.

Lowlight: The season itself was bleak but the way things are shaping up for the future is looking even worse.

 

 

Bristol Bears – 9^th

My Prediction – 11^th

 

Review: Not since the 2010/11 season has a newly promoted side finished as high as Bristol did this time out. Even now you get the feeling that the newly named Bears are disappointed; their ambition and desire has been on show right from the first game when they beat Bath. Those at the top of the club have made no secrets that they believe Bristol are capable of being a top half team and on their first season showing it’s hard to argue against such a statement being possible. The attacking tactics of Pat Lam’s Bristol not only won his side games but also fans as the club continued its attempts to become a powerhouse in the English game both on and off the field. An opening day win over Bath immediately laid down the marker that Bristol weren’t going to be a London Welsh-esque side departing as quickly as they came. The Bears stuck by their game plan throughout and succeeded in picking up points even in defeats, only four times did they come away with nothing at all and they got at least one in all of their matches in the second half of the season. Although there were heavy defeats on occasions there was plenty to smile about including a win over Saracens and league doubles against both Leicester and Gloucester. Returning to the Premiership meant that Bristol needed their experienced professionals like Steven Luatua and John Afoa to really step up, which they did. What really pushed Bristol on was their ability to turn some of their younger players into top class performers too, Andy Uren and Callum Sheedy two such examples. One of the most impressive things about Bristol was the very evident club culture they have going on off the pitch. The only teams who appear to have something on the same level are Exeter and Saracens, which is likely no coincidence. With further additions like Nathan Hughes and Dave Attwood joining for next year Bristol rugby looks in very good shape.


Player of the season: Steven Luatua

Highlight: Surviving relegation by such a comfortable margin allowing them to build for the top half next season rather than looking over their shoulder.

Lowlight: Losing twice to Worcester including a 52-7 trouncing at Sixways. Pat Lam later claimed this was a season defining defeat.

 

 

Worcester Warriors – 10^th

My Prediction – 12^th

 

Review: Yet again the Warriors were unable to have a comfortable season free of relegation woes. Despite picking up their best points tally since 2006 a competitive season meant they were battling until the end for their Premiership safety which they deservedly achieved in the end. Worcester’s season started with three narrow defeats, but they roared into life with a bonus point win over Leicester and then two games later the same again against Bristol. They lost three on the bounce again in the mid-season, but they picked up wins throughout at crucial times of the season to help keep them moving forwards. Three wins out of four at the end, including a last game of the season win over Saracens meant they were well clear of Newcastle and even eclipsed the struggling Tigers come the final standings. This season has seen big improvements mainly because of the direction and leadership they now have under fly-half Duncan Weir, the number ten shirt has been missing a man like him at Sixways for a long time. The finishing prowess of Josh Adams meant the ability to score from just about anywhere and the emergence on the big stage of players like Ted Hill have taken Worcester up a level. Coach Alan Solomons must also take an enormous amount of credit, this was always going to be a side struggling at the foot of the table with Worcester many people’s relegation favourites. Yet Solomons has guided them to another year’s safety and oversaw one of the most exciting seasons for Worcester in a long time. His achievements have also seen him nominated for the ‘Director of Rugby of the Season award’, a sign of what a good job he’s done with limited resources.  


Player of the season: Duncan Weir

Highlight: A best points finish for a long time and another season secured in the top flight.

Lowlight: Josh Adams, who has been a huge part of the Warriors’ season is returning across the bridge to Cardiff Blues.

 

 

Leicester Tigers – 11^th

My Prediction – 6^th

 

Review: The tone was set for what would be a year from hell for the Tigers when Matt O’Connor left after just the first game of the season. Leicester teams of old have been renowned for their ability to defend, something they seemed incapable of doing this season. The previous year they conceded fifty-five tries, what was at the time considered a disappointing showing, this time out they let their opponents over a record humiliating eighty-one times (for context in 2016 London Irish went down with seventy-four). This was an evident problem from the start of the season, their first four games (despite winning one) all saw their opposition pick up a try bonus point, the Tiger’s woes stemmed from the fact they were never able to rectify this glaring issue. Their offense which had started out as being pretty potent also tailed off, in the first four games Leicester were averaging just under thirty-two points a game, from then until the end of the season this dropped to nineteen and a half though. Leicester’s season continued to spiral out of control and reached a climax when they travelled to Kingston Park just five points ahead of last placed Newcastle. It was only a narrow win here that prevented a Leicester in turmoil from potentially going down. Even after such a pressure relieving win the Tigers returned to their old stale ways losing their final three games of the season and ending with a whimper. The quicker this season is forgotten the better but to simply turn a blind eye to what happened this year would be cataclysmic. This season Leicester were a side in complete disarray, unorganised and well below their capabilities. Serious guidance and structure is needed back at Welford Road and quickly; with London Irish returning to the fold with an army of big names if the Tigers put out performances like this again they could easily end up going down.


Player of the season: George Ford

Highlight: Guy Thompson’s performance in the relegation battle with Newcastle.

Lowlight: The entire year.

 

 

Newcastle Falcons – 12^th

My Prediction – 8^th

 

Review: There was always a worry that with some big players moving on last year and such a superb 2017/18 season that there was going to be a rebound this time out at English rugby’s most northern outpost. Relegation certainly wouldn’t have been expected in September though. Just one win in their first seven games gave an early indicator that this wasn’t going to be like the previous season. The games they were edging last time out were turning into defeats and they were struggling for tries, they scored the fewest of any team and secured just one try bonus point all term. Newcastle’s form followed a dangerous pattern throughout, they won games eight and nine but then lost five consecutive league encounters. They then broke this torrid form by winning three back-to-back but once again lost another five to finish the season. Every time they clawed their way back into contention they slipped back. In the end they ran out of chances. Their struggle to find a win against the formbook was evident and their runs of defeats ultimately sealed their fate.  It shouldn’t be too difficult for the Falcons to get promoted again next year but with all of the hard work of that top four finish last year out the window they will be up against it again to re-set as a regular Premiership fixture.


Player of the season: Sonatane Takulua

Highlight: Star forward Mark Wilson pledging his allegiance to the Falcons despite relegation.

Lowlight: Relegation from the top flight.