Brian Dick: Presents beneath the rugby Christmas tree

Dec 18 2008 By Brian Dick, Rugby Correspondent

While the rest of us have to play out our sporting fantasies in a sphere that is more virtual than reality, they are the men who do it in real life. They are living our dreams and appear to have everything. Or do they? Rugby Correspondent Brian Dick wonders what the region’s leading coaches want for Christmas.

Mike Ruddock (Worcester): A year’s supply of cotton wool – Warriors aren’t having too disastrous a season, yet they are still some way off playing with the sort of flair with which they finished last season. That has led to rumbles of discontent in some quarters.

But it should be noted that the Worcester director of rugby has had to endure a horrendous run with injuries. Captain Pat Sanderson missed a couple of months with what started out as a dead leg and ended up on the surgeon’s table.

Last year’s star performer, Marcel Garvey, has not played all season because of a hip problem, Miles Benjamin’s out for three months with a broken leg, fly halves Matthew Jones and Loki Crichton are both injured and even Chris Latham and Chris Pennell have missed recent weeks.

New recruit Hal Luscombe played his first game for seven months last weekend and now there’s a cold virus sweeping through Sixways. Ruddock would be well advised to take care of the remaining few, hence the cotton wool.

Ian Smith (Moseley): A broken watch – Moseley have a serious time-keeping issue. Imperious for 79 minutes, they have lost three games in the last minute. Rory McKay, Jamie Albinson and Brian Tuohy have respectively given Bedford, Doncaster and Cornish Pirates wins over the Mose in the dying seconds.

That’s equated to seven league points which, had they been retained, would have given Smith’s men a total of 40 and a share of eighth place in the table.

As it is, they are 11th in National One and sit precariously in the last Championship spot.

Add those facts to a 72nd-minute winner by Nottingham and one with six minutes to go by London Welsh - both at Billesley, and it’s clear Smith needs a faulty timepiece to convince his men there’s 10 minutes to play.

Russell Earnshaw (Birmingham & Solihull): A life-size cardboard cut-out of himself – Earnshaw nearly pulled off the escape act of the decade last season when he came within a decent Rotherham performance at Sedgley Park of saving Bees from relegation. Titans’ non-appearance at Park Lane meant Bees’ victory at Bedford counted for nothing.

He’s got them moving again this season, too. In normal circumstances, they’d be