The News Review:
- Mark Jones lauds Gatland
- Andrew Trimble can’t wait to get back into action
- Rugby’s top brass touch wood for England
- Scotland drop Paterson to bench
Mark Jones lauds Gatland
Planet Rugby – Feb 1, 2008
Head coach Gareth Jenkins was sacked after the World Cup, having managed just two notable victories – against England and Argentina – in 20 Test matches. But Jones is excited by what the future holds, after Gatland was hired in November and immediately reunited the coaching partnership with Shaun Edwards which brought unprecedented success to Wasps. Under the ‘dream team’, Wasps won a hat-trick of Premiership titles and the Heineken Cup – before Gatland returned to New Zealand and led Waikato to the domestic title. “Warren has come from environments in the past where he has tried to create that winning mentality,” Jones said. “If you look at the teams associated with him, they are associated with that mentality. “We want to be a team that is remembered as being not only mentally strong but one that wins games. The two go hand in hand.
Andrew Trimble can’t wait to get back into action
Belfast Telegraph – Feb 1, 2008
He has stuck by the players who failed so dismally in France, with Ulster’s Neil Best seemingly the only player in the 22 who has actually been dropped purely on form as opposed to changes necessitated by injuries or retirements. Ireland supporters may have been yearning for a new era, for fresh faces to bring new hope and expectation, but O’Sullivan has stuck with the majority of those who had won three Triple Crowns in the last four seasons before the falling flat in France amid poor preparation and bewildering selection policies. The coach and squad have since declared a collective line has been drawn in the sand and at least Munster’s thrilling performances in qualifying from the pool of death in the Heineken Cup indicates a return to form of a bulk of the side at provincial level, most notably out-half Ronan O’Gara. And Ulster wing Andrew Trimble, who is one of four changes to the side that lost to Argentina in the Parc des Princes on September 30, admits the players can’t wait for the first whistle tomorrow to make up for the huge disappointment of the World Cup campaign. "Everyone’s just dying to get stuck into the Six Nations," said Trimble, who starts on the right wing despite playing all his rugby in the centre for Ulster since returning from France. "It’s always special, and this year it is in particular. For the last few months we have been waiting to get back onto the pitch and everyone’s looking forward to doing that.
Rugby’s top brass touch wood for England
Telegraph.co.uk – Feb 1, 2008
The logical thing would be to pick the same team that played in the World Cup final, though allowing for challenges from players who couldn’t be considered then because of injury or suspension. This policy militates against the introduction of young meteors like Danny Cipriani, Anthony Allen, Nick Abendanon and James Haskell, though Haskell should make the squad in the absence of Joe Worsley and Dan Ward-Smith. The weekly intensity of Premiership and Heineken Cup rugby, lit up by genuine overseas stars, has raised the quality of the English game in such a way as to give hope that the resurgence of the national side is not just another false dawn. I can see England beating all the home nations and Italy; a wounded France in Paris will be much harder. When the whistle blows at Twickenham on Feb 2, the blazers in the committee box won’t be the only folk with their fingers crossed.
Scotland drop Paterson to bench
BBC News – Feb 1, 2008
Walker comes in at right wing, Allan Jacobsen replaces Gavin Kerr at loose-head prop and Dave Callam starts at number eight, with Simon Taylor sidelined with a broken thumb Barclay will start at open-side, with Hogg the player to miss out from the 23-man squad Hadden named on Monday. "Our track record in Scotland of developing players in the pro-teams is tremendous and to see John (Barclay) and Nick (De Luca) simply demanding to be chosen for the national team is a perfect example of that," Hadden added. "Nikki (Walker) is another player whose displays in the Magners League and the Heineken Cup mean he is fully worthy of a starting slot. " Scotland team: R Lamont (Sale Sharks); N Walker (Ospreys), N De Luca (Edinburgh), A Henderson (Glasgow Warriors), S Webster (Edinburgh); D Parks (Glasgow Warriors), M Blair (Edinburgh); A Jacobsen (Edinburgh), R Ford (Edinburgh), E Murray (Northampton Saints), N Hines (Perpignan), J Hamilton (Leicester Tigers), J White (Sale Sharks, captain), J Barclay (Glasgow Warriors), D Callam (Edinburgh). Replacements: F Thomson (Glasgow Warriors), G Kerr (Edinburgh), S MacLeod (Llanelli Scarlets), K Brown (Glasgow Warriors), C Cusiter (Perpignan), C Paterson (Gloucester), H Southwell (Edinburgh).