No case for the defence

As has been said in previous comments, my viewpoint is positive but those who have commented will be pleased to know there’s no case for the Red Bulls defence tonight. On the day Calum MacRae was announced as defence coach his arrival can’t come soon enough following the 19-52 loss to Bristol.

Defence optional?

Don’t get me wrong, Bristol are a brilliant attacking side but it was all too easy tonight for them. If you don’t make your first up tackle then they will punish you and they did. Red Bulls were too passive and in all honesty must have the weakest back three defensively in the league. Not just that but they couldn’t live with the Bristol energy and tempo, Bristol capitalised on this and ghosted through gaps in the defence.

Red Bulls did start well

Despite being 14-0 down after twelve minutes, Red Bulls did start well and looked like they could score first. Christian Wade made a poor decision in attack to grubber through rather than keep hold of possession and from that Bristol went wide and went the length. Just before that the crowd was loud and behind the team, I’d say it was probably the loudest I’ve heard Kingston Park this season. Then the second try straight from kick off sucked all the energy out.

Amongst the gloom, Parsons stood out

Despite results this season, someone who’s come in and impressed me is Reuben Parsons. He was excellent tonight given he’s still only twenty. His work over the ball was really good too, when the crowd energy was up in the second half after the Wade try he won a turnover penalty and I felt they could kick on to get a bonus point. Unfortunately, Healy missed the kick for touch. It went out for a scrum….But back to Parsons, he reminds me of Mark Wilson and could become a cult figure on the Kingston Park terraces.

I also thought Freddie Clarke had a good game, his chargedown led to the Brocklebank try. If as rumoured he is leaving Red Bulls, he’d still be a good pick up for someone.

Harsh decisions?

Red Bulls can possibly feel that they didn’t get some decisions from Anthony Woodthorpe in the first half. There looked to be about three high tackles before they scored their first try. There was also a Genge tackle on Tom Christie which didn’t get looked at any further. But despite this these decisions can’t be blamed for the result. 

Set piece woe

I said in my build up that Bristol had improved their scrum and so it showed, the Bristol scrum was dominant all night meaning the number eight’s were often going backwards to get the ball from the back of the scrum. The lineout wasn’t giving a consistent platform either.

What’s the plan in attack?

At times it looked like give the ball to Wade and seeing what he could do again. Red Bulls are definitely trying to keep the ball alive and play but at other times it looks like they run out of ideas. On a couple of other occasions they made a decent break and then got turned over through poor decision making. Bristol were strong at the breakdown and any poor clear out or isolated attacker was punished. There are shoots of optimism in the attacking game and I do think that they will be entertaining to watch next season.

Mafi gives a lift

The return of Amanki Mafi gave the crowd a boost and he worked hard and carried in his usual way. If he can stay fit then he can become key for the remaining games and a back row of Christie, Parsons and Mafi looks interesting. 

Opportunity lost for a bonus point

Following the Wade try they had their tails up and it felt like there was a chance of a bonus point try but frustratingly they didn’t get that. The crowd was behind the team and it felt like they could get something but the Healy missed kick to touch took the energy away. 

The crowd

I thought the crowd at times was the loudest I've heard it this season, Blaydon Races was belted out followed by Red Bulls. There had been a student event on this afternoon and it was disappointing to see people leaving the ground as I arrived just after 19:00, that reflected the emptiness of the North Stand.

Disappointment tonight but still a chance

This is where people will no doubt disagree but there is still a chance of eighth albeit a long chance. Games at home to Sale and Harlequins and away to Gloucester are all winnable. They can put some pressure on still. I know the Red Bull investment has come but this was always going to be a project and if you think back twelve months things felt really uncertain. There will be small improvements off the pitch and it’ll be interesting to see where things are at in twelve months on the pitch. I think a goal for next season to be realistic should be to challenge for the top eight. 

Credit to Bristol

I’ll leave it with fair play to Bristol, they turned up and did a job and punished a poor defensive effort from Red Bulls. They are up there as one of the best attacking teams in the league and some of the rugby they play is brilliant. That win tonight has lifted them into the top four maybe only till Sunday but they’ll look to stay in the fight now.