A Message From Conor O'Shea
This is our fifth season at Madejski Stadium and in the time we've been there we have never faced as demanding a set of opening Premiership fixtures as we have over the past month.
In the first four rounds we have played NEC Harlequins at Twickenham, Gloucester at Kingsholm, Leicester Tigers at Madejski Stadium and London Wasps at High Wycombe. Given that all four clubs had finished higher than us last season and qualified for the Heineken Cup, the difficulty of the challenge becomes apparent, especially with a team in which we have been trying to introduce new players in key positions.
We started off the new campaign with a "home" match against NEC Harlequins as part of the 'London Double Header' at the home of England rugby. We outscored Quins by two tries to none and did enough to deserve to win.
The following Saturday we made our first visit of the season to the West Country. Playing Gloucester at Kingsholm is never easy, although we travelled in hope having recorded an away victory over the Cherry and Whites in the Powergen Cup last season. A bright start in equally bright sunshine saw us take an early ten point lead in the opening ten minutes! Then the rain came, the playing conditions changed fundamentally, the error rate increased and the home team fought their way back into the game. Although we competed throughout the eighty minutes, we were unable to regain our early lead and lost. A bonus point was scant reward for a hard afternoon's work.
Having set qualification for next season's Heineken Cup as the objective for the season, we had a chance to measure ourselves against Leicester Tigers, England's most successful club in a European context, a week ago. Martin Johnson, Neil Back and their colleagues provided formidable opposition. In an exciting eighty minutes we lost to a better team by five tries to one, a team that was more streetwise and physically combative than us, especially at the breakdown.
Yesterday's visit to the Causeway Stadium was the final hurdle in the opening series of demanding fixtures. On paper Wasps looked vulnerable but you ignore the talent in their squad at your peril. Having said that, it was disappointing to be leading 10-0 and 19-12 at two key stages of the game and still come away empty handed. Once again inconsistency and errors were our undoing.
Creating chances and opportunities are not our problem. Those of you that have seen our opening four matches will have seen the potential. It is time to start converting that potential into reality.
Next Sunday we have another London Derby at Madejski Stadium when we entertain Saracens. Rod Kafer's new look team is laced with talented players like Richard Hill, Kryan Bracken, Cobus Visagie and Raphael Ibanez and will provide tough opposition.
We always get valued and incredible support at home. Have no doubt that we need it this weekend as we try to secure our first home win of the season. The players will be doing all that they can, your presence and vocal support will make all the difference.
Conor O'Shea
Managing Director
Saracens Ticket Promotion!
London Irish will take on Saracens this Sunday, 3 October at the Madejski Stadium in Reading (kick off 3pm).
Spectators planning on coming along to the Saracens game can take advantage of our special October Ticket Offers! Spectators buying a ticket for Saracens (3 Oct) and Leeds Tykes (16 Oct) can get a ticket to see Irish playing Auch in the European Challenge Cup (31 Oct) for only £5! Or if you can only make Saracens or Leeds you can still buy an Auch ticket for half price!
This offer is only available through the ticket hotline – 0118 968 1000 – and does not apply to hospitality areas.
Match tickets for both the Saracens and Leeds games can be purchased online.
Please note the On-Line Ticketing will be down from 1pm till later this evening due to an essential upgrade.
We are sorry for the inconvenience that this may cause. Tickets can still be purchased via the Ticket Hotline on 0118 968 1000.
Hospitality at Saracens match
There are various hospitality packages available for the next home game against Saracens, starting at just £55 per person. Please contact Kelly (kelly.adey@london-irish.com) or Verity (verity.keal@london-irish.com) for various pricing options.
Tell your mates about The Blarney
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