THIS time of the season is always about seizing opportunities.
We have a great chance at Newcastle on Sunday to take a big step towards safety and some of our players will have the opportunity to make a statement for themselves.
Injuries to Tim Collier, Chris Horsman and Lee Fortey mean that there will be chances for others as we finalise the team line-up today. It's then up to those squad members to come in and grasp the nettle.
Obviously, when you lose players such as Tim, it's a set-back but I prefer to look at it as a great chance for someone to put their hand up. That's what we have a squad for and, in the summer when you are planning the make-up of that group, injuries are something you have to take into account.
Jon Hylton is perhaps the classic example. He played his first game of the campaign last weekend against Leeds in the European Shield after suffering a cruciate ligament injury in pre-season. He came in, scored a try, and gave everything he had against the Tykes. But, when we were offering him a contract last summer, how could we envisage that he would not play until April?
The injuries don't make anything any easier for coaches but we're very happy to be in the position we are with 34 points on the board. We have three games to go this season and the players are ready for the challenge at Kingston Park. I guess there are a few nerves in the camp as we focus on Sunday's game but we are well prepared and know it is all about our mental and physical toughness.
Going away from home is always a very different test for the players and Newcastle will be exactly that. However, we've won in pressurised encounters at Northampton and Harlequins and I'm sure Newcastle wouldn't have wished for the type of preparation they have had with a heavy European defeat and a glut of injuries up front.
Whichever way you look at it, Sunday's clash is a pressure match. Who deals with that pressure and makes fewer mistakes will undoubtedly win. It's what the Premiership has been all about for us since we won promotion. Every game brings its own pressure, against top quality opposition.
Bristol's head coach Richard Hill this week voiced his concerns about the style of play within the Premiership, branding the vast majority of English top flight clubs too cautious. I thought it was an interesting talking point but I'm not sure I agree with him.
Richard has experience but I think he might be kidding himself if he thinks he's going to take his Bristol side into the Premiership and play expansive, winning rugby next season. I've looked at the comparison with ourselves at this time of the season last year and we are way ahead of his side in terms of tries scored and points gained. And, even after smashing every National One record in the book last season, it took us a while before we came to terms with the Premiership.
We have had to play some good rugby to win 34 points this season. You have to work so hard for anything in this league because you come up against quality week in, week out. So, I wouldn't agree with Richard's comments that the Premiership is -- in terms of quality rugby -- at its worst ever level. I'm sure, if his club gets promoted, that he will find that out next season when he sees it first hand again.
The Newcastle game will give us another chance to see just how far we've come from that opening day defeat at Sixways. To some extent, that game was a bit of a shock to the system and it did take us a while to acclimatise. However, we've grown so much since then and we're a strong, tight-knit group.
Let's be clear -- this is a testing time for everybody. The pressure is being cranked up week after week as the games run down. But, that's what we're in this game for. These are the matches that give you an opportunity to shape your destiny and it's a chance we're determined to take.
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