By James Pritchard

Hello once again and welcome back for another week of my inner thoughts on rugby in the Championship and with a Bedford side, that after a good 5 point win on the weekend against a determined Nottingham side, are gearing up for the playoffs. We’ve been given a week off this week from training to let the body’s heal after a gruelling campaign and to get us all ready for the next 4 weeks which are a step up in intensity from what we are used too.

And it doesn’t get any tougher for us than our first game away up in Rotherham. A side that has been a thorn in our sides for the last few seasons up there and I don’t see next weekend being any different. But this being our 3rd year in the playoffs, the boys know what to expect and we’ll be ready come kickoff. The other big game in our group is Pirates at home to Leeds. This will be an interesting game to watch as both teams are looking pretty sharp at the moment, but with home ground advantage, I think the Pirates may just scrape this one.

Now turning my attention to the 6 Nations this weekend we have one hell of a game over in Paris with Ireland, after totally taking apart the Italians last week. Ireland will be looking to take a win against a French side that disappointed last week in their game against Scotland. Wales were also disappointing but managed to get over the line against a determined England.


Super Rugby kicked off last week and while not everyone was impressed with what they saw in the first round of games (me being one of them) I can only hope that was nerves and this weekend we get a true glimpse of what rugby down under has to offer. While unfortunate not to grab themselves a win last weekend against the Reds, (for God sakes hold onto the ball when your leading and there are 30 seconds on the clock) the Waratahs take on the Melbourne Rebels, who I believe could be the underdogs this year when the likes of Cipriani, O’Conner and Beale start showing everyone what they’re capable of.

Well that’s enough of my ramblings for another week. Hope you enjoy the rugby this weekend and if your up nice and early and stuck for something to watch, flick on Premier Sports as the NRL kicks of this weekend back in Australia and check out the skills that some of those boys bring to the table.
Goodbye for now and don’t forget “Come On You Blues”.

James Pritchard is a professional rugby player for the Bedford Blues and Canada and you can follow him on Twitter @JPritchard_21.