Good win - always difficult to get anything at Whitehaven other than a tonking!

Excellent win. Over the years our away performances have got worse and worse. Two wins in Cumbria, when clearly not playing our best, suggests this is changing. Well done to all!

Really good win! no one ever liked the trip to Cumbria even in the North!

This was a game which we could easily have lost, we started okay, then fell off. I think Macani took a knock which they exploited for their early tries. Although I don't think they grounded the second one.
We were so much better with Slyney and Ioane on the pitch, their input at the end is what made the difference.
To come away from Cumbria with two wins, shows how we have progressed this season. A long way to go, but we are on our way.

Incidentally, Eliab had a good game for the Skolars at the Racecourse yesterday - solid, hard working and reliable with a good try scored to round things off.

Good win, nicely tucked in behind Leigh in 2nd place. Fingers crossed we stay injury free - C'mon London!!

A wins a win, but heavy weather. Possibly one Haven might feel they lost rather than us winning. They put a lot of pressure on in the second half and perhaps with better handling they could of scored a couple. Mind also missed a couple in the first half. Our defence was solid however and a lot of the poor or forced passing by Haven was as a result of increasing frustration in not being able to break through. Their completion rate was very good throughout. Also appeared more certain of the running lines in each set. We sometimes looked as if we had forgotten what was expected as the set progressed. Without Slyney and Ioane on the pitch we seemed to lose punch going forward. For them Fox appeared to have a good game and Duffy who appeared to be carrying the majority of Jennings brewery around his midriff caused problems every time he had the ball.

Their first try was good work from Holliday but feel shouldn't have been given the space. And for their second possibly should have been Macani getting to the ball. Whether it was grounded properly is another matter.

Barthau dictated most of our play. For the last try Slyney called for the drop off pass and came in at a 45 degree angle against the direction of play and despite having around 3 tacklers thinking they had him wrapped up was able to stretch out an arm to score under the posts. After that we'd start to get a good position and then knock on, or get penalised for something else gifting them possession in better and better positions. The final hooter seemed to take an eternity as we appeared incapable of running out a good set of six.

SR Cheers for the precis of the game, that backs up what the commentary team seemed to be saying.
Discipline seems to be an issue for us this year, Batley game was the same, first half was either 5-2 or 6-2 against us, and nothing really that we could claim as being harsh.
Lots of trying to slow the PTB and hands in or generally messing around, that is one we could and should be able to fix pretty easily. Improve the tackle technique and you dont need to be holding down so much.
The odd tackle that is high or rides up and makes contact with the head sometimes they are difficult to avoid but will always end up being pinged by the ref quite rightly thats more difficult to sort out.

if we cut out the penalties and giving away free mtrs we would be doing much better in my mind.

It would be interesting to see what are average completion rate in a game is so far this season

Why so many penalties? Are we fitter than other teams due to being full time and having the extra energy to 'work the tackle' which the refs are not used to in the league??

you cant blame the refs, what do you mean by work the tackle?

As theoretically the fitter team we should be dominating the ruck turning the player on his back and getting him facing his own line, that earns you the right to have slightly longer on in the tackle. If the tackled player is on his front and facing the right way as then the defender has to be off pretty quick that includes getting hands off the ball, that's where we get caught out when we try to slow it down because we have not won the ruck, referees recognise that and penalise accordingly. So it's not the standard of the ref it's poor technique from the players.
By all means first second set in a game test the ref out see what you can get away with, but after that a team should have it worked out.

Refs look at tackles and the move call is adjusted accordingly, defender controlling the ruck will result in slower ptb and more time to set the defence, attacker dominating as in landing on elbows and knees and still going fed defenders have to be off quick.
Defenders can only work the ball carrier on the ground in a surrender or dominant tackle.
Personally what I have seen so far we have deserved the majority of penalties

Working the tackle Mickey

It's not fitness, it's strength and technique. Our guys remain smaller, maybe more mobile but not as physical, and it's difficult to get some of the lumps into "good" positions in the tackle, in part contributing to the holding down penalties.

W q you cannot actually work the tackle once on the ground though that's the issue