FRIDAY night’s loss may well have made it seven defeats from seven, but there was a far more positive attitude among supporters.
Whether this is because there is a general realisation that we are facing relegation or because Dean Ryan keeps saying ‘we are only so many points adrift, with plenty of games left, so no need to panic,’ I don’t know. But the mood did feel more upbeat.
The club definitely got it right with the ticket prices and advertising as it drew in a crowd of more than 9,000, and I noticed there were not so many early leavers.
The game itself was far better than we have seen for some time, with our forwards making a massive improvement. At times our pack had the upper hand in the scrum and we generally appeared more dominant around the field.
However, we do seem to be suffering at the breakdown – constantly coughing up the ball at crucial times. We do all the hard work of getting good field position only to give the ball away, either by good counter rucking by the opposition or a dropped ball.
But I thought the whole team’s body language looked better, so selection does seem to be coming together. The additions of Agustin Creevy, Leonardo Senatore and Mariano Galarza have made an obvious difference as they have given us a harder edge and when we get James Percival back as well I think things will start improving.
Also, blooding new lads from the academy can only be a good thing, with Dean Hammond really stepping up and almost scoring a superb try against Bath.
The defeats may hurt at the moment, but I believe things are looking up.
By Martyn Jones