Against Bath last Saturday, we may not have played the prettiest rugby seen at The Stoop over the past 15 months but it gained us four Zurich Premiership points and put the squad in good heart for this Sundays Heineken Cup clash with Castres (3.45pm).
The victory added to the return of a buoyant Keith Wood and the not so cheerful English trio of Jason Leonard, Will Greenwood and Dan Luger has meant spirits have been high at the training ground this week.
All the players are looking forward to the challenge of playing Castres in back-to-back games which will go a long way to deciding the outcome of the group.
Bridgend play Munster on Friday evening.
Castres are a very good French side, who have slightly under-performed in Section Two of the French league this season. But they were close to beating Munster at Thomond Park in the first game in the group and must not be underestimated.
Mark Evans and I have first-hand knowledge of Castres, having taken a Saracens team to that part of south-west France in 1998.
A team containing Michael Lynagh, Philippe Sella, Richard Hill, Danny Grewcock, Paul Wallace and Tony Copsey came very unstuck and lost by a lot of points to not very many.
The current Castres squad includes international players such as Scottish backs Gregor Townsend and Shaun Longstaff, and New Zealand All Black Norm Berryman, as well as a host of French internationals, such as Raphael Ibanez, Guillaume Delmotte and Thierry Bourday.
Stern
Their coach Alain Galliard resigned earlier this week, but this may well make them a sterner test for us.
Our second team chalked up their fourth win in five games when they beat Cambridge University 30-6 at The Stoop earlier this week.
There were strong performances from a number of players and it was pleasing to see Jamie Williams play his first full game since the European Shield Final in May.
On the injury front, David Wilson is still fighting the tendonitous that has affected his rehabilitation and at this stage we are unsure when he will be back in the UK.
Closer to home, Tani Fuga is continuing to battle with the ankle injury that has affected him since before the London Wasps game earlier this season. But with Ace Tiatia un-available for European games, we hope to see Tani on the bench on Sunday.
James Hayter, who had a foot operation in September, is recovering well and has recently signed a new one-year contract to keep him with Harlequins until June 2003.
Jim Evans, who played for the second team against Cambridge University, will go under the knife on November 1 and will be out of action for four months, missing most of the remainder of this season.
Jim has also signed a new one-year contract and we look forward to seeing him back in action in March or April.
The squad are now going through their final preparations for the important Heineken Cup group game with Castres. We would all appreciate your support at The Stoop on Sunday. See you there!
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