Bristol Bears should be counting the positives despite double Champions Cup defeats
Well, on the face of it, a six day turnaround playing the best teams Ireland and France have to offer was always going to be an extremely difficult task.
Two defeats were predicted by the pundits as soon as the fixtures were announced. La Rochelle rarely lose at the Stade Marcel-Deflandre and Leinster rarely lose anywhere they play. But I prefer to take a more leftfield and subsequently positive approach to the first block of this year’s European rugby Champions Cup fixtures.
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Firstly Harry Thacker hit the nail on the head a few weeks ago when he said these were the games we want and need to be involved in. To pit yourself against the best players in the World has to be the ultimate ambition for a professional, not just in rugby but any sport. The same rhetoric applies to supporters too, we want to see these big teams and huge superstars come to BS3 to showcase their multi faceted talents.
Although our progression under the tutelage of Pat Lam has been nothing short of biblical, it still wasn’t that long ago we were boarding trains heading for destinations such as Hartpury, Ealing and Rotherham. No disrespect intended to any of the aforementioned but at that moment games like last weekend against seemed nothing but a pipe dream. Bears supporters would have bitten your hand off if offered the chance of sitting at the top table of elite rugby then and that’s how we should approach these fixtures now: as a ‘no lose’ occasion to savour and enjoy.
Secondly although the final results might look as though we were clinically defeated, both games were much closer than the final score might suggest. We had Leinster on the back foot for large spells at Ashton Gate, to the extent they resorted to using underhand tactics just to stay in the game. There is no doubt losing A.J McGinty to injury was a massive contributing factor despite Janse stepping up admirably.
Against La Rochelle, penalties aside and despite our injury list deepening just days prior to kick off, we were competitive throughout. In fact it wasn’t until the 50th minute we heard the magnificent Alles Rochelais battle cry resounding in unison from the stands, you certainly won’t hear anything like that at Ealing Trailfinders!
Up The Bears!!!
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