Back and Key commit to Leeds

Andy Key and Neil Back: sticking around

Today is an excellent day for Leeds Carnegie fans like me.  Why?  Well because coaching duo Neil Back and Andy Key have pledged their future to the club by signing one-year contract extensions.

The new deals will see head coach Back and director of rugby Key both stay at Headingley until 2012.

I like this for many reasons.  Firstly, Backy and Kiwi have instilled a harder, more professional edge at the club since they dragged it up by its bootstraps in 2008.

Call it a Leicester mental toughness, call it what you like, but the pair, who joined from the Tigers, steered Leeds to promotion from the Championship before securing the club's position in the Premiership last term.  Now they are looking to consolidate and build and seal a top six finish complete with a Heineken Cup spot.

The fact the duo have committed their future to the club beyond the end of this season speaks reams about their dedication to the club and their vision for it.

I love a bit of positivity.  This pair are the best thing to happen to Leeds since the shock Powergen Cup win back in 2005.

And I'm not the only one who is excited by their new deals.

"This is an exciting time to be involved with Leeds," Back told BBC Radio Leeds.

"I am pleased to have agreed a new contract. Andy and I have a long-term vision for the club.

"We're two steps along the road in the first two years, and everyone is working tremendously hard to raise the additional finance so we can build a squad that can compete at the highest level.

"We need the support of the Yorkshire people as they can contribute to our success and bums on seats at our next home game are critical for raising the funds we need to buy the players that are necessary to compete at the top of the table.

"We see the infrastructure is in place to do that, we just need people to support and buy into it so they can contribute to our success."

Here here.  Without getting all Delia Smith about it, come on people of Yorkshire, start supporting your one and only Premiership rugby team.

Leicester in the Making?

Unless you've been sleeping under a rock I'm sure you will know that Leeds Carnegie beat Worcester Warriors 12-10 at Headingley on Sunday to grab their place in the top flight for next season.

As a die-hard Leeds fan I am immensely proud of the entire squad, backroom staff and coaching team. And I'm not ashamed to admit it, but I did shed a tear when the ref blew the final whistle.

Whilst I feel for Worcester (as I know the pain of relegation) it is a brilliant achievement for Leeds.  This season, the Yorkshire side managed to secure top flight rugby with 40% less cash than all other teams in the Premiership.

Now that's boxing clever.

Their success due in massive part to the focus and determination of Head Coach Neil Back and Director of Rugby Andy Key.

When Back and Key arrived in LS6 two years ago they set themselves a non-negotiable three year plan:

Year 1: Promotion from the Championship.  Check.
Year 2: Survival in the Guinness Premiership.  Kerching!  Pass GO and collect £1m.
Year 3: Top 6 finish in the league and a Heineken Cup spot.  Dare I dream?

Well maybe.

Back and Key have instilled a new level of grit and determination in Leeds.  Call it mental strength, the ability to grind out results - it doesn't matter. 

Last time they were in the Premiership, Leeds didn't have the fitness or mental toughness to dispatch London Irish in the way they did two weeks ago.  Back then, I lost count of the times when I stood in the South Stand at Headingley to see Leeds start blowing out of their arses and roll over in the last twenty minutes.

Not now.  Neil Back's Leeds are arguably one of the fittest teams in the league - as London Irish discovered in the frantic final minutes at the Majedski.

And Carnegie seem to have a newly found mental strength to tough out games and grab the win.

Remind you of anyone?

It's like Neil Back has picked up a load of individuals, shook them up, whipped them into shape, distilled his winning mentality and injected it into them along with a load of Leicester grit.

Are Leeds a new Leicester Tigers in the making?

Leeds have the infastructure, the academy, the stadium, the community links and now they have the cash.  OK, so Carnegie don't have the same fan base, but if they keep winning - and winning well - then the crowds will come.

Hopefully the ex-Leicester pairing of Back and Key will be able to entice quality signings to the club with the extra £1m they will get from the RFU.

But I'm not talking about big name stars - I mean, the Justin Marshall disaster from a couple of years ago says it all. 

No, I'm talking about players who many people might not have heard of but who go on to develop and be great for the team.  Players like flanker Hendre Fourie, second rows Marco Wentzel and Eric Lund (who is sadly leaving the club), and hooker Andy Titterall.

Although saying that, I wouldn't mind too much if they signed Dan Carter...

But I am keeping my fingers crossed that Back and Key might have stumbled across the winning formula:

Leicester-style Grit + Fitness + Amazing team spirit x £1m = Top 6 finish for 2010/11.

As I say, I can dream...

WELL DONE LEEDS!

The Crunch

Well, well, well.  What a turn up for the books that was.

Leeds Carnegie grabbed a brilliant 23-13 win over London Irish at the Majedski Stadium on Sunday to set up a tantalizing penultimate round in the Guinness Premiership.

Playoff chasing Irish were outplayed by the better team on the day, and the result catapulted Leeds into 9th spot.  Relative safety, you might say.

Let's look at the table:

Leeds host relegation favourites Worcester on Sunday, and Sale entertain fellow strugglers Newcastle on Friday night.

The Gods of relegation couldn't have planned it better if they had tried.  The bottom four are all playing each other, and something, or someone has to give.

But what are the cold hard facts?

If Leeds beat Worcester then the Warriors are gone.  Doomed.  Consigned to a year of Championship rugby.  As Rafa Benitez would say, that is a fact.

But Sale and Newcastle are by no means safe yet. Whoever loses at Edgeley Park on Friday will be praying for a Leeds win, that I can guarantee.

However, if Mike Ruddock's men take four points from Neil Back's battling Leeds there is everything to play for in the final round. 

This would leave three of the four teams staring down both barrels of relegation on the last day of the season.

Gulp.

What a finale!  I know the argument about relegation/ringfencing and the viability of the Championship is rumbling on, but that is for another day.  End of season squeaky-bum finishes like this are the biggest advocate for promotion and relegation.

However, I wouldn't want to be one of the players who have put pen to paper on a Worcester Warriors contract for next season.  The bookies have them as 1/4 favourites for the drop.  Leeds are now 5/1 after drifting out from 7/4.  I'm not a betting woman, but I know that sucks for Wuss.

I've got to wonder though... Will new Worcester signing Andy Goode become the only comb-over in the Championship?  What of full back Luke Rooney who has set his sights on playing for England?  And will the excellent Neil Best still leave Northampton for Sixways?

Time to check out the get-out-of Championship-relegation-escape-clause in your contracts boys.  After all, the bookies are rarely wrong.

COME ON YOU TYKES!

Man of the Month: April

Today might be April Fool's Day but my Man of the Month is far from an idiot.

As the Guinness Premiership season enters the home straight, once again I find myself nervously tapping at my calculator and praying for a great escape.

You see, life as a Leeds Carnegie fan is a tough one.  At the start of the season Leeds were written off by pundits and the media alike.  Halfway through the fixture list, Carnegie were still rooted to the bottom of the table and couldn't buy a win.

But then something wonderful started to happen.  A dramatic upturn in form.  Cohesive play.  Excellent performances by the Leeds pack.  Three successive wins and an amazing climb out of the drop spot.

Head Coach Neil Back and Director of Rugby Andy Key have been working wonders. 

However they don't win this month's award.

No, that honour goes to the man who said he would cancel Christmas for two Leeds Carnegie wins.

He is the man who will lead the boys in blue onto the pitch against Northampton on Saturday.

My Man of the Month for April is Marco Wentzel, Leeds Carnegie captain and line-out master extraordinaire.

Come on Marco - you can steer the boys into another season in the top flight!

GO ON YOU TYKES!

Snow, Shovels and Tarpaulin Tsunamis

What did you do last Sunday morning? 

a)  Enjoy a nice relaxing lie in before propping yourself up in bed with a coffee and the Sunday papers? 
b)  Slump on the sofa in a hungover haze and watch the Hollyoaks omnibus? 
c)  Go for a run or get a sweat on at the gym?

I have to be honest and admit that I usually go for option b, although on the rare occasion that I'm feeling all virtuous or if I've overdosed on Cadbury's chocolate buttons, I head to the gym to go and masquerade as a red sweaty tomato for an hour and a half.  Attractive.

I had a slightly unusual Sunday morning last weekend as I did none of these things.  Despite my gym avoidance, by the end of my morning's activities I still ended up working the red sweaty tomato look.  Oh and to make things more attractive than usual, I was wearing a comedy bobble hat at the time.

So what was I up to?  Well, short of pulling on my Wonderwoman knickers over my trousers, I leapt to the aid of the Leeds Carnegie ground staff along with half a dozen or so other willing volunteers to help clear snow from the Headingley Carnegie pitch ahead of the Amlin Challenge Cup game against Bucharesti Oaks.

Due to the snow fall over Leeds, a call went out via the Leeds Carnegie newsletter and message boards to ask for any willing volunteers to help head groundsman Jason Booth and his team shift the snow and ice from the Headingley pitch.  Desperate to leave my Christmas present wrapping nightmare behind me for a few hours, I happily offered by bobble-hatted services to the good cause.  Well, I figured that it would be a good way to get a bit of fresh air, possibly make a few new friends and also to satisfy my inner rugby geek and take the opportunity to walk on the hallowed Headingley Carnegie turf.  That is how I found myself in the middle of the pitch at 10:30am whilst wearing about 500 layers of clothing and my trusty bobble hat.

If I said that clearing the pitch wasn't hard work then I would be lying.  Jason and his team do an absolutely brilliant job, and my three hour snow shovelling session on Sunday really made me appreciate how much work they put in so that games like the one against Bucharesti Oaks last Sunday can go ahead.

A massive eight, yes eight volunteers turned up to help, and we all started off by shovelling snow out of the in-goal areas and dumping it against the advertising hoardings.  This done, we pulled back the frost sheets to reveal the rather surprisingly squelchy mud patches underneath the posts, which immediately answered my question as to why the Leeds players always seem to try and score in the corners.

Assisting the ground staff and the fans in shifting the snow was Leeds Carnegie player Jon Pendlebury, who was sporting a rather interesting pair of saggy tracksuit bottoms.  In fairness, Jon's ensemble was much more flattering than the all white Ghostbusters-style romper suit which one of the groundstaff had decided to wear.  To make matters worse for the wannabe Dan Ackroyd, there was a worryingly large hole gaping around the bum area of his all in one jumpsuit.  Was this down to a severe bout of vindaloo arse or did he just like the cool waft of fresh air ventilation?  Maybe it was the ectoplasm?  Thankfully I never did find out, although Mr Ghostbuster did go missing during the pitch clearing duties, which did make me wonder if his snow-coloured stealth outfit had provided him with the opportunity to sneak off for a crafty fag.

Who ya gonna call? Comedy groundstaff.

Whilst flinging snow in the general direction of the side of the pitch, Mr Pendlebury decided to liven up proceedings by inadvertently showering me with a shovel full of snow.  Well, I say inadvertently but he was definitely stifling a laugh as he apologised.
"I'm sorry," he said smirking.
"Oh you will be," I replied, half joking.
Check out my smack talk, baby.

Both in-goal areas cleared and a coffee break later, we split into two X-factor style teams led by Leeds' Director of Rugby Andy Kiwi and Head Coach and world cup winner Neil Back.  Team Kiwi (along with the girls) was on snow shovelling duty, whilst Team Back (with the boys) started busying themselves with tarpaulin tugging.  It was good to see the coach and director of rugby lending a hand, especially as they managed to keep their white Leeds Carnegie fleeces pristine throughout.  They would definitely win the Daz doorstep challenge.

My new friend Tim was part of Team Back and somehow he managed to trip himself up under a tidal wave of tarpaulin which left him gasping for air and frantically crawling to his feet.  I on the other hand, had a lovely chat with Andy Key and had my rosy red cheeks and stupid hat caught on camera by the pesky roving Sky Sports cameraman.  (Despite the cameraman's total confidence that footage of me and my co-shovellers would appear on the European Rugby Special that night, thankfully there is a God, and my sweaty red tomato look wasn't broadcast to the world.  It's probably in the comedy blooper real though just waiting to be wheeled out one day, much to my delight.)

With all the snow shovelled away we were almost done.  All that was left to do was to help out the slackers of Team Back by removing the last couple of frost sheets from the pitch.  A pair of muddy gloves, a couple of bright red cheeks and 3 and a half hours later the pitch was ready for action having successfully passed the pitch inspection.

All that was left for me to do was to ask one of my snow-banishing chums if they would please take a photo of me looking triumphant on the Headingley Carnegie pitch to show that I was really there.  And looky here, they did just that:

Yes, this is a rather glamorous shot of me in my lovely bobble hat whilst wearing about 500 layers of clothing.

Look at that pitch.  Isn't it lovely?

The snow clearing team did good, and as if to repay us for our efforts, Leeds ran in seven tries to beat Bucharesti Oaks by 47-0. 

The only thing that dampened this most excellent day was that Ceiron Thomas, Leigh Hinton and Richard Welding all left the game early due to injury.  This is a big worry ahead of the resumption of the Guinness Premiership next weekend, and I hope that they're not seriously injured and will be back for Leeds soon. I, on the other hand, I don't think I'll be back on groundsman duty any time in the near future - not with the way my back feels today!  For now I'll just stick to cheering from the South Stand and writing my rugby based musings on here.

Leeds Carnegie vs Harlequins: Preview

What is it about the doom and gloom merchants?  I've barely had time to open the first few doors on my Thomas the Tank Engine advent calendar and already they're casting their eyes towards the final fixture of the season when Leeds take on Bath at the Rec.  This game is already being touted as the game that might decide the relegation battle, but seriously, we aren't even half way through the season yet and there is plenty more rugby to play.

I know Bath are perilously close to the bottom of the table, but if Leeds can pull off a victory against Quins tomorrow night at a chilly Headingley Carnegie they stand a chance of leapfrogging the Baarth Boys into 11th place.  Why do I bring this up?  It's because I think Leeds are going to kick start the rest of their season and beat Quins tomorrow, whilst Bath are going to lose to away at Northampton - that's why, and that's why one fixture at the end of season does not a season make.

Leeds coach Neil Back doesn't appear to be stressing out about Leeds' current home at the foot of the table.  If anything he is positively realistic:

"Our objective this year is to finish 11th or above and if we can continue to take steps forward that will give us a boost going into the next two European games. [After Harlequins] we then face two big games back in the Premiership, up at Newcastle and at home against Bath over the Christmas and New Year period. We have now got five massive games that can determine the pathway that we take this season, starting on Friday."

OK, so he does admit that Leeds have to start winning games, but I think they are about to turn that corner and will hopefully do so tomorrow night.

Leeds will undoubtedly have been disappointed in the way they let a 17-3 lead slip through their fingers at home to Sale a couple weeks ago, and their frustration will have been compounded at Welford Road last Saturday when a 6-6 hard fought half time score developed into a 39-6 final score line.

Neil Back remains positive

Speaking of the defeat at the hands of his old club, Back said:
"We gave the ball up cheaply at times and we knew that that could come back to hurt us in the second half and that was case.  We will learn from that experience though."


And that is why Harlequins should be nervous.  After an away win at Wasps, what should have been an away win against Saracens (had it not been for an incorrectly disallowed try), and excellent first half performances against Sale and Leicester, Leeds are almost there and they will be desperate to nail down their first home win of the season.  Of course, a game of rugby lasts 80 minutes and not 40 so Leeds have to maintain their focus and discipline tomorrow night.

The bad news for Leeds is that they will face a Harlequins side who will arrive at Headingley fresh from a 35-29 victory over Gloucester last week.  In that game ex-Leeds boy Danny Care and Kiwi Nick Evans (who would undoubtedly have won more than his 23 international caps if it hadn't been for the arrival of a certain Daniel Carter into the All Blacks team) ran riot over Gloucester.  Leeds will really have to nullify the threat of this half back pairing if they want to hold onto the reins of this game.  Luckily for Leeds they have wily Andy Gommersall at their disposal: ex-Quin and one time mentor of Danny Care.  Gommersall will undoubtedly use all his guile and experience to try and teach his protege a thing or two on the pitch, and this will be a fascinating battle to watch.

We miss you Danny

Other bad news for Leeds is the injury problems that have hit the back row.  Arguably Leeds' best player Hendre Fourie (openside flanker) is out with an infected leg (nice), whilst number 8 Alfie To'oala has a damaged leg muscle.  Fly-half Ceiron Thomas is not included in the squad after injuring himself in the warm up before last weekend's game at Leicester, so 19 year old Joe Ford wins his second cap after doing enough last weekend to justify his starting place above Jason Strange.

However, good news for Leeds is that Argentina prop Juan Gomez returns to add some muscle to the scrum, and that Ugo Monye is ill (no offence Ugo).  This means that Tom "Bloodgate" Williams will take to the wing along with David Strettle.  I'm sure there won't be any squirting of tomato sauce or offensive chanting about the fake blood fiasco as we're a nice lot up here in Leeds - well, at least I think we are!  We really need to concentrate on the rugby and everyone needs to put all that rubbish behind us.

In conclusion, after watching Leeds over the course of the season I think they are ready and poised to shift up a gear and clinch their first home game of the season.  Everyone and his wife knows about the events which unfolded at the Stoop this summer, and whilst Quins started off the season in a shaky manner, they too are starting to pull together convincing winning performances.  Please excuse the pun but I expect this game to be full of bang and an early Christmas cracker.

My prediction:  Leeds to win by 3.

Not So Cocky: Leicester Tigers vs Leeds Carnegie Preview

When Leeds Carnegie roll into Welford Road this Saturday for their next installment of the Guinness Premiership, they will have to strain their ears in order to hear the distant crowing of the suspended Richard Cockerill.  With his place firmly reserved on the naughty step, it's nice of Cockers to step aside and herald the return of the Leicester old guard and watch Neil Back and Andy Key lead the much improved Leeds Carnegie side onto the turf of the Champions.

His lips are sealed

Of course it's not just Back and Key who used to haunt the locker room at Welford Road.  This Saturday's game is a trip down memory lane for three members of the Leeds squad, at least two of which are likely to start against their old club.  Leeds captain Marco Wentzl completed a recce of the new look Welford Road a couple of weeks ago when he moonlighted as a pundit and watched Leicester topple a lacklustre South Africa, and I'm sure the returning Wentzl, Rabeni and Moreno will all raise their game if they are selected to run out in front of the impressive new Caterpillar Stand.

Whisperings on the Leicester Tigers message board have hinted that this weekend's game might well see the return of hulking man mountain Alesana Tuilagi.  If that's the case then I fully expect to see a powerful running game from the Tigers with Seru Rabeni doing his best to neutralise the epic Samoan.  The return of Tuilagi really is something Leeds could do without.  Add Leicester's returning England stars into the mix along with a fit Toby Flood and it seems that the Tigers lying in wait to maul Leeds this weekend are a much more formidable challenge than the team of cubs that Leeds tamed at Headingley in the LV= Cup second round.

Gulp

However don't write Leeds Carnegie off just yet.  Historically Leeds have always been a bit of a bogey team for Leicester, and with a bit of the old Leicester magic, drive and belief instilled by Neil Back, Leeds might well have a few surprises up their sleeve.  OK so Leeds started the season slowly, but their recent form in the Guinness Premiership speaks for itself.  Last weekend they should have beaten Sale after playing some incisive rugby, but Leeds faded after half time and allowed Charlie Hodgson to get a grip on the game.  (I'm sure that's something Backy will have stamped out this week).  Had it not been for an incorrectly disallowed try Leeds would have beaten Saracens at Vicarage Road, however they took the momentum from that close encounter down to Adams Park where they ground out a well deserved victory against Wasps.  Welford Road might be an intimidating place to go, but as Marco Wentzl said: "We will go there with confidence."

So what are the key battles this weekend?  Personally I hope for an epic encounter between the two openside flankers, provided that Lewis Moody and Hendre Fourie both start.  Moody is considered by many as the one shining beacon of hope for England in a dismal series of November tests, whilst the highly rated Fourie is arguably Leeds's best player and was named Player of the Year last season.  The battle of the tens will also be one to watch, with Leeds's Ceiron Thomas growing into a solid number ten who isn't afraid to throw himself around the park.  It will be interesting to see how he matches up against the flair of Toby Flood.

Who will win the battle of the openside?

I'm not going to venture a prediction as I'd much prefer to perch uncomfortably on the fence and pull the splinters out of my arse.  However, I don't think Leeds are going to be the walkover that everyone might have expected at the start of the season.