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Just wondering does anybody know if the games that Mathers has picked up on his suspension will count on his contract clause saying that he has to play a certain number of games,avoiding injuries.

tom g wrote:Just wondering does anybody know if the games that Mathers has picked up on his suspension will count on his contract clause saying that he has to play a certain number of games,avoiding injuries.

Would be very harsh if they did don't you think

It would IMO but I suspect if has a poor season and the club want to get rid, they will count. If he has a great season and they want to keep him, they wont.

exile in Tiger country wrote:It would IMO but I suspect if has a poor season and the club want to get rid, they will count. If he has a great season and they want to keep him, they wont.

well he best get improving as of after his suspension!

All things taken into consideration Mathers has not made a bad start with us.
OK a few have questioned his one on one tackling and his positional play but to be fair to him we are comparing him to Radlinski ~ who's one on one work was way above the average. Its hardly fair to blame the last line of defense for missing the last tackle after three or four failed attempts from other players!

If all our defense was doing their job Mather may not be drawn from one wing to the other to cover then be so-called out of position when he can't be in more than one place at a time.


Now don't get me wrong I am not saying he has been perfect.
I am just trying to give a more balanced view taking everything into account. He missed a lot of Rugby and I am happy enough if not ecstatic with him so far.
As things progress - hopefully - I can see him doing really well for us.

consigliere wrote:All things taken into consideration Mathers has not made a bad start with us.
OK a few have questioned his one on one tackling and his positional play but to be fair to him we are comparing him to Radlinski ~ who's one on one work was way above the average. Its hardly fair to blame the last line of defense for missing the last tackle after three or four failed attempts from other players!

If all our defense was doing their job Mather may not be drawn from one wing to the other to cover then be so-called out of position when he can't be in more than one place at a time.


Now don't get me wrong I am not saying he has been perfect.
I am just trying to give a more balanced view taking everything into account. He missed a lot of Rugby and I am happy enough if not ecstatic with him so far.
As things progress - hopefully - I can see him doing really well for us.

we just need to see the FIRST bloody try in SL from him now


when then ground gets a little harder i think our backs will come good!

consigliere wrote:All things taken into consideration Mathers has not made a bad start with us.
OK a few have questioned his one on one tackling and his positional play but to be fair to him we are comparing him to Radlinski ~ who's one on one work was way above the average. Its hardly fair to blame the last line of defense for missing the last tackle after three or four failed attempts from other players!

If all our defense was doing their job Mather may not be drawn from one wing to the other to cover then be so-called out of position when he can't be in more than one place at a time.


Now don't get me wrong I am not saying he has been perfect.
I am just trying to give a more balanced view taking everything into account. He missed a lot of Rugby and I am happy enough if not ecstatic with him so far.
As things progress - hopefully - I can see him doing really well for us.

I agree for the most of that but I don't really agree with the defence of him regarding comparison to Rads... Of course, Radlinski was a top player in terms of one-on-one play, you can't dispute that, but I still think that even without comparing the two, Mathers is distinctly below average defensively... Yes the defence has let players break the line a lot this season, but a good defensive full back should be in place for those situations. I wonder how many people can honestly say they have confidence in Mathers when an opposition player is one-on-one with him? Don't get me wrong, it's not a full blown criticism, just my opinion that defensively he needs to do a lot of work. If he puts in the work in training, I've no doubt he will be able to raise his game though.

Attacking wise, I'm pretty pleased with his general ability and would be happy personally for him to stay at the club as long as his defence improved a bit.

[quote="ince warrior[/quote]
I agree for the most of that but I don't really agree with the defence of him regarding comparison to Rads... Of course, Radlinski was a top player in terms of one-on-one play, you can't dispute that, but I still think that even without comparing the two, Mathers is distinctly below average defensively... Yes the defence has let players break the line a lot this season, but a good defensive full back should be in place for those situations. I wonder how many people can honestly say they have confidence in Mathers when an opposition player is one-on-one with him? Don't get me wrong, it's not a full blown criticism, just my opinion that defensively he needs to do a lot of work. If he puts in the work in training, I've no doubt he will be able to raise his game though.

Attacking wise, I'm pretty pleased with his general ability and would be happy personally for him to stay at the club as long as his defence improved a bit.[/quote]


a few may raise eyebrows here but:

when he's had players run at him over the past few weeks its often in the latter stages of a game.

in those latter stages players begin to get tired never mind Dickie Mathers when he's missed so much rugby!


the one at Quins in the 2nd half was sheer tiredness for me! just didn't look to have the energy to wrap his arms round the guy quick enough!

when his fitness comes, i think the guy will improve no end!

you cant blame mathers for our defence.

so far i think he has done pretty well but needs more trys.

and as far as comparing him to radlinski, you cant...

rads was the best of the best one like him comes along every 10 years

If you read my post you would see that I am saying it is unfair to compare him to Rads.

they are two very different players.

Defensively Rads was virtually untouchable but there are other fullbacks who offered more in attack than he did. It all depends what you want to see from your #1.

Mathers is not the problem in our team and that is a fact.