Clubs must grasp this big chance to reset their goals

THE Covid-19 pandemic has been unfortunate for so many people that when Rugby Union starts again it will not top the agenda. However, this enforced break does give clubs the opportunity to reassess where they’re going, and whether what they were doing before the lockdown is going to get them to their chosen destination.

- JEREMY GUSCOTT

Is very difficult during a season to do any kind of analysis, because week to week whatever your plan is dependent on results, and you go from result to result attempting to make quick fixes to what is not working, and polish those moves that are.

In the Premiership, clubs placed from fourth to eleventh are losing as much as they are winning, so the vibe at those clubs will be mixed.

What they should recognize now is that they are in a unique position of being able to analyze in-depth why they are not performing as they planned – and this applies as much to players as it does to head coaches and their array of analysts and backroom staff.

If the season is to be finished there is also the question of whether it is possible to fit in another ‘in-season pre-season’ of anything up to a month, where, as well as getting their players match-fit again, they can also download all that analysis into their squads.

It is also likely that this enforced shutdown will bring a much tighter focus on recruitment among Premiership clubs. This will extend from whether you need players A, B or C to strengthen areas in which you have discovered weaknesses, so that next season you hit the ground running, to considering whether to bring in utility players who can cover more than one position.