The Times They Are a-Changin'

How has your team fared?!

It's no secret that rugby has changed dramatically over the past couple of seasons, but how have certain teams responded to this change? Have a read and see if you agree about the status of your team.

Let's first take a look at the current Premiership league leaders Northampton Saints. Known as the bridesmaids of rugby, the Saints were consistently on the cusp of greatness, but seemed to fall short at the final hurdle. Whilst finishing most competitions in fairly good positions, they just could not break through, but over the past two seasons this appears to have changed. The 2012/13 season was a sign that there may be good things to come in the near future for the club, and this came to fruition when they made it to the the highly anticipated Premiership Final. However a red card to Dylan Hartley ended the dream for silverware, and essentially gifted the trophy to champions Leicester. It still looked to be written in the stars for Northampton that they would not make it to the finish line, but they finally put this to rest in 2014, which went on to become the most successful year in the club's history with the winning of the Premiership and the Amlin Challenge Cup. The Saints recorded many massive victories during this season, including a 41-20 win over Saracens, a 43-25 win over Bath, and a 74-13 win over London Wasps in the Premiership – the Saints were playing some of the best rugby that their fans had ever witnessed, and this resulted in a home semi-final to Leicester. Now, when you look at Saints' previous winning record against Leicester, it did not look good – Leicester were unbeaten in 10 matches, something that had created a bitter rivalry between the two clubs. The match was a closely fought contest between the teams, but a 'scuffle' (which is a polite way to describe it) between Leicester's Tom Youngs and Northampton's Salesi Ma'afu resulted in a yellow card for the former and a red card for the latter, which seemingly diminishing Saints' chance of progressing to the final. In spite of that, Northampton produced some quite simply jaw-dropping rugby, and a late try on 77 minutes from Tom Wood secured the victory for Northampton in a match that was labelled as one of the best in Premiership history. This changed everything for the Saints – it ended their ridiculously awful losing streak against Leicester and gave the club another shot at the trophy, a chance that they converted to beat Saracens 24-20 after a wonderful try from Alex Waller in the final minute of the match. So what have the past two seasons shown us? They've demonstrated that the Saints have made some purposeful strides ahead in terms of their game, finally allowing them to take those chances and actually make something of them. Take this season for example, and the round 10 match between, you've guessed it, Saints and Leicester. When Dylan Hartley received a red card after roughly 16 minutes, it seemed that Leicester would go on to record an easy win. But it wasn't to be for Leicester, as a late try by Jamie Elliot gave the Saints the win – virtually no other club would be able to win a match being a man down for 62 minutes. It just is not done. However the Saints did it, demonstrating that times are changing, and clubs are evolving, Saints doing so in an extremely positive way.

I've already started to discuss how things seem to be changing for Leicester, so let's take a look in more detail at their recent performances. Prior to last season, Leicester had been in NINE consecutive Premiership finals. That is a phenomenal achievement by anyone's standards, and just because they failed to do so last season does not necessarily mean that the team's luck is changing. However, I would make the argument that it is – they did play exceptionally well last season, but their defeat at the hands of Northampton in the semi-final clearly effected them and took their dominance away. Currently, they sit in sixth place in the Premiership, a position that is way below their high expectations, particularly as we are already 13 rounds into the season and they are not in the top four. Yes they have had a significant number of injuries, which does not help their plight, but when you think of a team like Leicester, you expect them to be able to handle this with no major problems. Instead, it serves to demonstrate that they don't have sufficient depth in their squad, and this will prove to be an issue for any team. I am not for one second suggesting that Leicester have played really poorly this season, because they haven't. They just haven't played that well, and it shows. For all we know, this could only be a phase and Leicester could make another Premiership final by the time May comes around. However I am not predicting this for them, although I do expect them to fight their way to a top four finish because it is Leicester after all and they will not give up. The evidence shows us that things are changing for Leicester, and they look to have finally been overtaken by teams such as Northampton and Saracens and dethroned from being the team that dominate year after year.

Exeter are a shining example of a team where things are constantly on the up and up, season after season. Their first season in the Premiership was 2010/11 and it resulted in an 8^th place finish. This does not sound that impressive at first, but actually it is, especially when you consider the position of London Welsh, who from the beginning of the season never looked like they were going to retain their premiership place and will get relegated after only one season in the Premiership. What is even more remarkable is that, in only their second season, they finished 5^th – this is spectacular in two ways: first, that they have finished in the top half of the table after only two years; and second, that after only two seasons they have qualified for the European competition. No matter which way you look at it, Exeter have done incredibly well for themselves. Over the past few seasons, they have continued to improve under Rob Baxter, who has run his club efficiently and smartly to ensure success. The pinnacle of their club's history arguably came last season, when they won their first piece of silverware – the LV=Cup. They beat later Premiership champions Northampton to win, and this clearly demonstrates how far they have come in such a short amount of time that they can come out on top over a side that have played well across all competitions throughout the season. This success is not necessarily going to happen to all promoted clubs, but the fact that Exeter have managed to do so well is an indication that times have changed in rugby and that clubs can, if they work hard enough, turn themselves around and really push for that silverware over other established clubs. I would put money on Exeter advancing to the semi-finals or even the final over the Premiership within the next five years, and to do so would make them a great ambassador for the sport. If Exeter can do it after fairly recent promotion, there's no reason to suggest that other clubs cannot do the same.

One team that is currently in a similar position to Exeter in terms of table positions is Harlequins, who currently sit in seventh. Unfortunately, Quins are another example of where the changing times in rugby has had a negative influence. The club hit their pinnacle in the 2011/12 season, where they were crowned Premiership champions over Leicester, and from there they were predicted to continue to push the top clubs for more silverware. However this has not happened. Over previous seasons they have stayed in and around the top four, but this season in particular has been a disappointment. They haven't quite reached their full potential, and their loss to Wasps just last weekend really highlighted this. Quins have been very inconsistent this season, and that does not allow a team to really sink their teeth into a competition. Wasps on the other hand have been on excellent form this season, and are well on their way to getting back to the club of old that used to dominate the sport. Despite all of this, a win for Quins was what everyone expected, especially since the match was being played at the Stoop. Instead, Wasps put in one heck of a performance and came away with a really impressive win, leaving the home side with absolutely nothing from the encounter. To say it was surprising would be an understatement. Whilst I expected Wasps to put in a good shift and really test Harlequins, I was not expecting them to get a win, let alone one of such magnitude. For some reason or another, the club have not been able to keep up the intensity that allowed them to win the Premiership trophy back in 2012, and so they give off the appearance of a one-time club, almost as if their success was a fluke. They have some great talent in their squad, of course including England captain Chris Robshaw and recent England call-up Nick Easter, but as a unit they are not quite cohesive, and it shows in their performances. Whilst the changing tide of rugby has benefited many other clubs, who have managed to keep fighting hard and stay on top, Quins have been left flagging behind at the back, and could be in serious danger of not finishing anywhere near the top four this season.

Bath are the wonder team of this season. They have put in some incredible performances thus far, and it's obviously caught the attention of Lancaster, who has selected 11 of their players for the England squads, the most of any team in the Premiership. I think we started to realise Bath's potential this season when they comprehensively beat Leicester 45-0 at the Rec. Nobody saw this result coming, but it showcased the power of Bath and got everybody talking about how far they can go this season. Right from the beginning of this current season they have been playing consistently in all areas, and this has consolidated itself by giving them the second spot in the Premiership table as it stands. Their European campaign has also been a triumph so far, and the pool match away at Toulouse is one that will stick in the memory for a long time. Year after year Toulouse seemed to be dominant in European rugby, and so they were to expected to win this fixture, especially as they were the home team. But Bath came out all guns blazing, never taking their foot of the gas, and produced some sensational rugby. The highlight for me in that match was the break from Jonathan Joseph to set the team up to score - never have I seen a player manage to side-step and beat tackles as effectively. It summed up just how well Bath had been playing, and it's clear that they are going to keep their intensity levels high for the rest of the season and really push for silverware. They have some immense players in their squad, but of course all of the coverage surrounded the signing of Sam Burgess. Whilst I am yet to be won over, I firmly believe that he will go on to be an outstanding player for Bath, and his arrival at the club affirms Bath's plans to be a consistent team that we see in the top four year after year. The changing times have been good to Bath, who are well on their to cementing themselves as a really dominant side.

The final English club that I wish to consider is London Irish. A consistently mid-table team, Irish have not been able to push for silverware for some time. This season in particular has been a poor showing from the team as they find themselves in 11th spot. If it wasn't for London Welsh, Irish could very well have found themselves in the relegation spot come the end of the season. One reason for this drop must be the increase in high quality performances from other teams, but the main reason is that they are just not playing very well at all. Being a mid-table team does not inspire players to stay, and when they lost Yarde to Quins you couldn't help but feel that this was a big blow for London Irish. The other team down near the bottom are of course Newcastle, but they have stepped up massively this season. They have put in some amazing performances, most notably that against Northampton at Franklin's Gardens. Newcastle did not give up once in this match, and they reaped the rewards when they managed to get a try bonus point. They are definitely on the up and up, and I am excited to see what they can do next year despite the fact that they have recently lost key players to other teams, such as Kieran Brookes. So for London Irish, the changing tide of rugby has led to their crash down towards the bottom of the table, whereas Newcastle are playing some of their best rugby in years.

It's not just English teams that seem to be changing, but some other European teams as well. Take Munster as one example. They are out of this year's European Champions Cup even before the quarter final stage, which is a rare occurrence. They were absolutely dominated by Saracens in round 5, and it left everyone stunned that they could be so comprehensively beaten. Toulouse are another example of a previous giant of European rugby that are not quite performing to the high standards of old. They too suffered a huge shock defeat in round 5, this one to Bath. Not only were they the second best team in every facet of the game, but they let the visitors walk all over them, and Bath did play magnificently. One team that seems to actually get better season after season though is, of course, Toulon. The current European champions, Toulon are breathtakingly amazing in every way. A lot of people make a song and dance about the money they spend, but if your team had access to that kind of money, trust me - they would spend it, and you wouldn't be complaining then. This illustrates that rugby is changing vastly all over Europe, and teams will either respond positively or negatively to this. But rugby is always changing, so who knows how long this current situation will stay this way? 

As to why the times are changing and clubs that once dominated are no longer doing so, and vice versa, it's hard to put my finger on. There are probably multiple reasons as to why this shift has occurred, but that is a whole different debate. All I can hope to do is try and illustrate to you how teams have responded to this new situation. I'm sure money and player retention are two massive factors in how rugby is changing, and these reasons can only continue to shape how the game is played over years to come. Evidence clearly suggests that it is time for some different teams to emerge and run things, rather than the same old clubs leaving no room for anyone else to really cement themselves as a contender for silverware. I hope this analysis of different clubs has provided an interesting insight into rugby today. 

Thank you for reading, ruckers!
Jess.