Worcester News gives our key takeaways from a disappointing defeat at Castle Park.
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Discipline costs Warriors again
Two weeks ago Warriors fell to defeat away against Hartpury, with much of the reason behind the defeat coming down to discipline – even playing with 13 at one point.
In the match, fly-half Harry Balzagette punished Warriors for giving up penalties by successfully kicking home three of them – collecting what would be a decisive nine points as Hartpury took a close-run 28-25 victory.
This match felt somewhat like a rerun of the Hartpury match, but to a greater extent.
The first-half discipline ultimately hugely cost Warriors – with head coach Matt Everard confirming after the whistle that his side conceded 10 first-half penalties, to Doncaster’s zero.
They were punished again by a 10 in this one, but Russell Bennett’s kicking took even greater advantage of Warriors’ poor discipline, earning 15 points from penalty kicks alone in the first half.
Post-game Everard clearly thought he and his coaching team needed to find a solution to put an end to the ill-discipline, saying: “We will have a look at that, pick out the trends and make sure we get better at it. Discipline is something we’re speaking about at the moment, we need to really make it come to light.
“We will have a look, have a look at the trends in it. Is it something in the ruck? Is it something in the set piece? I know there was two high tackles which isn’t us, we like to hit low. So we will go through the analysis and see what trends we can pick out.”
Improvement in the second half
Four rounds of Champ Rugby completed now and in at least three of those, Warriors have looked a hugely improved side in the second half.
On opening day against Coventry they were stunned in the first to find themselves behind at the half, but rallied back to seal a memorable victory.
Against Ampthill in round three, they led at the break in a close-run first half where the sides traded blows, but completely ran away with it in the second half to ensure victory.
Even against Hartpury, their best spell came in the second half when they built themselves a nine-point lead early on in the second period.
And today, they looked a shell of their Ampthill performance in the first half, finding themselves at a 22-7 disadvantage, but rallied back to lead until the final play of the game.
It’s unclear why the have struggled to start with the same force that they have finished with thus far, Everard has previously referenced nerves and cohesion, which could both play into it – you also have to factor in a significant away-day for them in this one up at Doncaster.
Whyever it is happening, it’s something they will need to rectify as soon as possible, because every team they face is going to be right up for it from the opening whistle. It’s been said so many times already but it is true – for many teams in the Champ, a match against Warriors feels like a cup final.
READ MORE: Doncaster defeat tough to take after Warriors ‘won and lost it twice’ – Everard
I thought I was going to be writing a very different match report after Billy Twelvetrees went over and Tiff Eden converted for the lead with mere seconds left. I was already formulating the headline in my mind… ‘Warriors seal vital victory against Doncaster with stunning comeback’.
But it wasn’t to be.
I imagine it hurt even more when you put in all that impressive effort and work to overcome the first half deficit, only to lose it in the final moments.
You can’t help but feel some different decisions at the end could have made all the difference to see Warriors leave with maximum points rather than two.
Should they have kicked or just held onto it? Could the chase have been better after the kick? Should Olowofela have been able to run through like that?
Of course, the professional rugby players and coaches know the answers to these questions far better than I would, but it’s hard not to think that different decision-making in those key moments could see us all walk away from Doncaster with very different reflections on the game.
Standout performers
Regardless of defensive or disciplinary woes, you can’t go over five times and not have positives to take away.
There were some clear standout performers, and for me, they’re the same players who have been standouts across multiple games so far.
Khalik Kareem – some impressive runs from the young backrower, even in the first half as Warriors struggled for any form of territory, Kareem looked the brightest spark in their attempts to make ground and carried that through for much of the second half.
Jake Garside – went over twice and produced what was arguably a try-saving tap-tackle in the first half, Garside consistently made the most of the opportunities afforded him and was a big part of the Warriors comeback to lead in the final moments.
Tim Anstee – in my opinion, the best Warriors performer across the first four competitive matches. Anstee again showcased his strength in contact, athleticism and importance to this Warriors team. His interception try to race through was the momentum shift for Warriors and had they have taken the win, I think many would have pointed to his try as the key moment that changed the match.
