“It was a really good battle” said Gloucester Rugby Academy coach Tim Stevenson after the loss to Sale Sharks in Prem Next Gen.
Gloucester narrowly lost 29-24 in the Prem Next Gen league at Hartpury College on Saturday afternoon, leaving them ninth in the standings heading into their next fixture against third-place Saracens.
“Typical northern team, they had lots of grit and some great backs who were really good in the transition, and the inaccuracies from us gave them those opportunities.”
Stevenson described where his side went wrong and applauded the opposition for their ability to counterattack and put Gloucester on the back foot.
“We spoke before the game about our intent, our effort and our attitude, and they were all extremely apparent throughout the match, so we as coaches are really pleased with that.”
Highlights of the match here.
The Cherry and Whites coach expressed his delight with the player’s effort following the defeat, which gives them a stepping stone to build off heading into their next fixture against the Saracens.
Following this performance from his side, this game showed encouraging signs that they are moving forward. Stevenson explained how a review of some things is a natural thing to address instead of concern, but insists the belief is high.
“There are some technical things and tactical things that we will look to fix this week, but in terms of our foundations, they’re all there, which gives us a great springboard into the final couple of rounds of this competition.”
Some injuries early into the game to big names in the side, try scorer Junior Denny and the captain, Henry Horsfall, affected Gloucester, but Stevenson praised his side for staying in the fight despite this.
“Sadly, the injuries don’t look great, but it was great resilience in the group today to lose two key players like Henry and Junior, and it gave some young lads opportunities to make their debut and step up.”
Stevenson praised the academy set up at Gloucester, for the players coming through and stepping up for the U18s’ and creating opportunities for themselves.
“It was great to see a load of young lads and U17s’ make their debut, and it is really pleasing to see those boys stepping up, and it shows the quality of the academy. Oli Mason, getting a try on his debut and Zac Nicholson both showed some good moments”.
Stevenson then looked ahead to what he needed to do this week to get the best out of his group.
“It is hard to digest at the moment, but I will go away and look at it to see why we weren’t as accurate as we would’ve liked, but we will endeavour to put things right for the next opportunity these boys get to play for Gloucester”.
Gloucester will face the Saracens on January 31st at the StoneX Stadium.
