Preview: Premiership, Round Five
The Premiership's new boys have hit the ground running this season – two wins already placing them comfortably sixth in the table.
But this weekend will be their biggest test yet – taking on defending champions Saracens in unfamiliar territory in front of a huge crowd.
Their task is made harder still when you consider that Saracens are unbeaten in their last nine games in all competitions, a run that stretches back to a defeat last season to Exeter Chiefs.
Indeed Saracens are becoming regular visitors to Twickenham and have only lost once in their last five visits, but Annett is adamant that Warriors are embracing the opportunity in front of them.
"Of course this game stands out on the calendar, you would always pick out a game at Twickenham – that is something every rugby player would love to take part in," he said.
"I have never actually played there before so I am sure it will be a great occasion and hopefully we can put in a good performance to match.
"You want to go out there and enjoy it, to try and treat it like any other game of rugby but 60-80,000 people there certainly adds to the occasion and makes you want to go out and play your best game.
"Saracens have got fantastic pedigree, the reigning champions with international class everywhere. These are the games that you play rugby for, to go up against the best teams, in the best environments and this will certainly be that – it's exciting to see how we will go."
Saracens have won their last three Premiership fixtures against Warriors since Worcester's 12-3 victory at Sixways in November 2012.
But Annett is adamant that the newly-promoted Warriors are itching to prove themselves against the very best – having already beaten Northampton Saints this campaign.
"We are only four games into the season, we have still got a lot to prove and we know that," he added.
"But from those four games you can see we are building a culture, that we are not afraid to play rugby – it is up to us to keep proving ourselves every week.
"Since I have been here we have talked about how we want to make Worcester a successful club, challenging at the top of the Premiership and that can be competitive in Europe as well.
"We are a bit off that at the moment but we are working towards that as our goal and this will be a good occasion to show we can try and mix it with those teams."
We look at all the Round Five matches!
Friday, November 27
Northampton Saints v Gloucester
(Franklin's Gardens – Kick-off: 19.45)
Northampton Saints' only victory in their last six Premiership matches was against Newcastle at Milton Keynes, 24th October.
The Saints have lost their last two Premiership encounters at Franklin's Gardens (both to Saracens) but have not lost three in a row at the venue in the tournament since 2011.
Gloucester's only defeat in their last four matches in all tournaments was to Wasps at Coventry in Round Four of Premiership.
Gloucester have won two of their last three away games in all tournaments.
Gloucester have not beaten Northampton since a 26-24 victory at Kingsholm in Premiership in September 2013 whilst their only victory at Franklin's Gardens since 2011 was 27-11 in Premiership in February 2013.
The teams:
Northampton Saints: 15 Ben Foden, 14 Ahsee Tuala, 13 George Pisi, 12 Luther Burrell, 11 George North, 10 Stephen Myler, 9 Kahn Fotuali'i, 8 Sam Dickinson, 7 Tom Wood (captain), 6 Jamie Gibson, 5 Christian Day, 4 Michael Paterson, 3 Kieran Brookes, 2 Mikey Haywood, 1 Alex Waller.
Replacements: 16 Matti Williams, 17 Ethan Waller, 18 Paul Hill, 19 Victor Matfield, 20 Teimana Harrison, 21 Lee Dickson, 22 JJ Hanrahan, 23 Ken Pisi.
Gloucester: 15 Rob Cook, 14 Charlie Sharples, 13 Bill Meakes, 12 James Hook, 11 Jonny May, 10 Billy Twelvetrees (captain), 9 Willi Heinz, 8 Ben Morgan, 7 Matt Kvesic, 6 Ross Moriarty, 5 Jeremy Thrush, 4 Tom Savage, 3 John Afoa, 2 Richard Hibbard, 1 Paddy McAllister.
Replacements: 17 Darren Dawidiuk, 17 Yann Thomas, 18 Paul Doran-Jones, 19 Mariano Galarza, 20 Sione Kalamafoni, 21 Greig Laidlaw, 22 Henry Purdy, 23 Jacob Rowan
Referee: Greg Garner
Assistant referees: Paul Dix and Ashley Rowden
TMO: David Sainsbury
Saturday, November 28
Sale Sharks v Newcastle Falcons
(AJ Bell Stadium – Kick-off: 14.30)
Sale Sharks' last six Premiership fixtures have all been won by the home side on the day, whilst their only loss at AJ Bell Stadium in Premiership in 2015 was 23-25 to Harlequins in April.
Newcastle Falcons have lost all four matches so far this season in Premiership since their 37-21 victory at home to Harlequins in round 22 last season.
The Falcons only win on the road in the tournament since October 2013 came at London Welsh in 11 October 2014.
Sale have won their last three Premiership contests with Newcastle since the Falcons' 15-14 victory at AJ Bell Stadium in September 2013.
Teams:
Sale Sharks: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Tom Arscott, 13 Sam James, 12 Sam Tuitupou, 11 Will Addison, 10 Danny Cipriani, 9 Chris Cusiter, 8 Josh Beaumont, 7 Magnus Lund, 6 Dan Braid (captain), 5 Jonathan Mills, 4 Bryn Evans, 3 Vadim Cobilas, 2 Tommy Taylor, 1 Ross Harrison.
Replacements: 16 Cameron Neild, 17 Eifion Lewis Roberts, 18 Brian Mujati, 19 Andrei Ostrikov, 20 TJ Ioane, 21 Peter Stringer, 22 Joe Ford, 23 Mark Jennings.
Newcastle Falcons: 15 Alex Tait, 14 Giovanbattista Venditti, 13 Adam Powell, 12 Juan Pablo Socino, 11 Marcus Watson, 10 Mike Delany, 9 Michael Young, 8 Nili Latu, 7 Will Welch, 6 Mark Wilson, 5 Sean Robinson, 4 Calum Green, 3 Jon Welsh, 2 George McGuigan, 1 Rob Vickers.
Replacements: 16 Scott Lawson, 17 Alex Rogers, 18 Taione Vea, 19 Mouritz Botha, 20 Ally Hogg, 21 Ruki Tipuna, 22 Tom Catterick, 23 Chris Harris.
Referee: Craig Maxwell-Keys
Assistant referees: Peter Allan and Robin Goodliffe
TMO: Trevor Fisher
Exeter Chiefs v Harlequins
(Sandy Park – Kick-off: 15.00)
Exeter Chiefs' only loss in their last five matches in all tournaments was 13-25 to Ospreys in Swansea in the first round of the European Champions Cup.
Exeter have not lost at Sandy Park since Gloucester were the visitors in Premiership on January 3.
Harlequins only defeat this season in any tournament was 19-22 at Leicester in Premiership on 25th October.
Exeter claimed a Premiership double over Harlequins last season, something they had also achieved in season 2012/13; with Quins achieving a similar double in both 2011/12 and 2013/14.
Teams:
Exeter Chiefs: 15 Phil Dollman, 14 Jack Nowell, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ian Whitten, 11 James Short, 10 Gareth Steenson, 9 Will Chudley, 8 Thomas Waldrom, 7 Don Armand, 6 Dave Ewers, 5 Damian Welch, 4 Mitch Lees, 3 Moray Low, 2 Jack Yeandle (captain), 1 Ben Moon.
Replacements: 16 Elvis Taione, 17 Alec Hepburn, 18 Alex Brown, 19 Geoff Parling, 20 Tom Johnson, 21 Dave Lewis, 22 Sam Hill, 23 Olly Woodburn.
Harlequins: 15 Mike Brown, 14 Charlie Walker, 13 George Lowe, 12 Harry Sloan, 11 Tim Visser, 10 Nick Evans, 9 Danny Care (captain), 8 Nick Easter, 7 Dave Ward, 6 Chris Robshaw, 5 Sam Twomey, 4 James Horwill, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Rob Buchanan, 1 Joe Marler.
Replacements: 16 Joe Gray, 17 Mark Lambert, 18 Will Collier, 19 Charlie Matthews, 20 Kieran Treadwell, 21 Tito Tebaldi, 22 Tim Swiel, 23 Matt Hopper.
Referee: Matthew Carley
Assistant referees: Ros Campbell and Roger Baileff
TMO: Keith Lewis
Saracens v Worcester Warriors
(Twickenham Stadium – Kick-off: 15.15)
Saracens have won their last nine matches in all tournaments since losing to Exeter Chiefs at Allianz Park in Premiership last May.
Saracens only defeat in their last five visits to Twickenham came after extra time against Northampton in the Premiership final 2014.
Worcester Warriors have a won two, lost two record in Premiership this season, with both the victories being at Sixways and both defeats on the road.
Worcester have never played a game of XVs at Twickenham before, but did appear in the Middlesex Sevens on seven occasions in the noughties.
Saracens have won their last three Premiership fixtures against Warriors since Worcester's 12-3 victory at Sixways in November 2012.
Teams:
Saracens: 15 Ben Ransom, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Marcelo Bosch, 12 Brad Barritt, 11 Chris Wyles, 10 Charlie Hodgson, 9 Ben Spencer, 8 Ernst Joubert, 7 Will Fraser, 6 Kelly Brown, 5 Alistair Hargreaves (captain), 4 George Kruis, 3 Juan Figallo, 2 Schalk Brits, 1 Rhys Gill.
Replacements: 16 Jared Saunders, 17 Richard Barrington, 18 Titi Lamositele, 19 Maro Itoje, 20 Samulea Vunisa, 21 Neil De Kock, 22 Owen Farrell, 23 Nick Tompkins.
Worcester Warriors: 15 Chris Pennell, 14 Bryce Heem, 13 Wynand Olivier, 12 Ryan Mills, 11 Cooper Vuna, 10 Tom Heathcote, 9 Jonny Arr, 8 GJ van Velze (captain), 7 Sam Betty, 6 Phil Dowson, 5 Darren Barry, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 Nick Schonert, 2 Niall Annett, 1 Na'ama Leleimalefaga.
Replacements: 16 Jaba Bregvadze, 17 Val Rapava Ruskin, 18 Joe Rees, 19 Tevita Cavubati, 20 Matt Cox, 21 Charlie Mulchrone, 22 Ryan Lamb, 23 Ben Howard.
Referee: Ian Tempest
Assistant referees: Peter Huckle and Nigel Carrick
TMO: Rowan Kitt
London Irish v Wasps
(Twickenham Stadium – Kick-off: 17.30)
London Irish's only victory in any tournament since April came at home to Agen in Round One of the European Challenge Cup.
The Exiles have lost on their last six visits to Twickenham since beating Saracens there in the London double header in 2010.
Wasps only loss in their last five fixtures in all tournaments was 16-24 at Leicester in Round Three of Premiership.
Wasps have won only one of their last four visits to Twickenham: 38-30 over Gloucester in April 2014.
Wasps have lost just one of their last four Premiership fixtures against the Exiles: 20-23 at Adams Park in February. The two clubs have clashed just once before at Twickenham with London Irish gaining the victory during the 2008 London Double Header.
Teams:
London Irish: 15 Topsy Ojo, 14 Alex Lewington, 13 Aseli Tikoirotuma, 12 Johnny Williams, 11 Tom Fowlie, 10 Chris Noakes, 9 Scott Steele, 8 Ofisa Treviranus 7 Blair Cowan, 6 Joe Trayfoot, 5 Matt Symons (captain), 4 Eoin Sheriff, 3 Ben Franks, 2 David Paice, 1 Tom Court.
Replacements: 16 Gerard Ellis, 17 Tom Smallbone, 18 Leo Halavatau, 19 Jebb Sinclair, 20 Luke Narraway, 21 Darren Allinson, 22 Theo Brophy-Clews, 23 Fergus Mulchrone.
Wasps: 15 Charles Piutau, 14 Sailosi Tagicakibau, 13 Elliot Daly, 12 Ben Jacobs, 11 Frank Halai, 10 Ruaridh Jackson, 9 Joe Simpson, 8 Nathan Hughes, 7 Thomas Young, 6 James Haskell (captain), 5 Kearnan Myall, 4 James Gaskell, 3 Jake Cooper-Woolley, 2 Ashley Johnson, 1 Matt Mullan.
Replacements: 16 Edd Shervington, 17 Simon McIntyre, 18 Lorenzo Cittadini, 19 Bradley Davies, 20 Sam Jones, 21 Dan Robson, 22 Jimmy Gopperth, 23 Brendan Macken.
Referee: Wayne Barnes
Assistant referees: Paul Burton and Andrew Pearce
TMO: Sean Davey
Sunday 29 November
Leicester Tigers v Bath
(Welford Road – Kick-off: 15.00)
Leicester Tigers solitary defeat in any major tournament this season was 6-19 at Exeter in Round Four of Premiership.
The Tigers have won their last nine Premiership matches at Welford Road and are unbeaten in their last eleven there since going down to London Irish in September 2014.
Bath have a won 3, lost 2 record in all major tournaments this season, whilst their only defeat in their last five games of Premiership was to Wasps at Coventry in October.
Leicester have won only one of their last seven matches against Bath in all tournaments: 17-8 at Welford Road in this equivalent fixture in January.
Teams:
Leicester Tigers: 15 Mathew Tait (captain), 14 Adam Thompstone, 13 Peter Betham, 12 Matt Smith, 11 Telusa Veainu, 10 Tommy Bell, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Lachlan McCaffrey, 7 Brendon O'Connor, 6 Mike Williams, 5 Mike Fitzgerald, 4 Ed Slater, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Tom Youngs, 1 Marcos Ayerza.
Replacements: 16 Greg Bateman, 17 Matias Aguero, 18 Fraser Balmain, 19 Graham Kitchener, 20 Tom Croft, 21 Sam Harrison, 22 Seremaia Bai, 23 George Catchpole.
Bath: 15 Anthony Watson, 14 Semesa Rokoduguni, 13 Matt Banahan, 12 Kyle Eastmond, 11 Horacio Agulla, 10 George Ford, 9 Niko Matawalu, 8 Leroy Houston, 7 Francois Louw, 6 Matt Garvey, 5 Tom Ellis, 4 Stuart Hooper (captain), 3 Henry Thomas, 2 Ross Batty, 1 Nick Auterac.
Replacements: 16 Tom Dunn, 17 Nathan Catt, 18 Max Lahiff, 19 David Denton, 20 Guy Mercer, 21 Chris Cook, 22 Rhys Priestland, 23 Tom Homer.
Referee: JP Doyle
Assistant referees: Wayne Falla and Paul Dix
TMO: David Grashoff
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