Anthony Watson has called on Gloucester supporters to make the Shed as hostile as possible when the club host back-to-back Investec Champions Cup winners Bordeaux at Kingsholm.
The former England and British & Irish Lions winger was speaking ahead of Gloucester's tournament opener against Union Bordeaux-Bègles. The Cherry & Whites made a dream start to the Gallagher Premiership season with a bonus-point win away to last season's finalists Exeter Chiefs, but face a stiff challenge in the Champions Cup against Bordeaux.
The French side crushed Leinster in last year's final to claim a second successive title and have won 16 in a row in the competition, with their last defeat coming back in 2024.
Watson backs Gloucester's new-look side
While Watson was impressed with how Gloucester kicked off their campaign, he knows they will need all the support they can get on Friday October 16.
“People might look at Gloucester of last season and think, ‘We can roll over there and we'll get five points’,” said Watson, speaking at this week's EPCR season launch in Lyon for Premier Sports. “But it's not really going to be a foregone conclusion this year with some of the signings that they've made and, I guess, how even more cohesive they look in their game plan.
“I know I'm taking that off just one round, but they do look like a different team to what we saw last year. A good Gloucester is good for English rugby in general, to be honest. I think it's good for the competition. French teams going away to the hostile environment that is Kingsholm, I think it's great. Again, it adds a little bit more jeopardy into those closing rounds for teams that have to go there. The Shed will be hot. They'll be fired up. There's no debate about that.
“If you were to hand-pick an opening game for the Champions Cup, I think this is right up there because people will have an image in their mind of what they can expect from Gloucester based on last year, and what they can expect from Bordeaux based on last year. I can guarantee you it won't be anything like that.”
Bordeaux's fly-half options
Gloucester's cause will be helped by the likely absence of Bordeaux's star fly-half Matthieu Jalibert, who is currently sidelined with a quad injury. As a result, former France U20s fly-half Hugo Reus has been filling in, while scrum-half Maxime Lucu also has experience in the No.10 jersey.
But a new contender has also emerged, with superstar winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey having been tested at fly-half during a pre-season encounter. It was the position he played when he first picked up the game at junior level and while he has limited experience there since, Watson was excited to see what the flyer could offer.
“I think Jalibert being injured isn't great for Bordeaux, and everyone wants to see him play,” said Watson, who was speaking ahead of the new season of the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup, which will again be shown exclusively live on Premier Sports. “With him missing Round 1 potentially, those other boys will step up, and they'll have to play because Jalibert is the in-form 10 in the world at the moment.
“That being said, it's not like Bordeaux are struggling elsewhere. You've still got Lucu who will quickly take more control back. And then you've got (Salesi) Rayasi, who I think is still extremely underrated, and the man that is LBB — you don't even need to talk about him, because he's that good.
“Whoever's playing full-back or scrum-half that week, if he is at 10, is going to have to be on it for the chip-and-chases, because I'll predict a few of those coming your way. That's something that I really enjoy about French rugby: they're not afraid to mix stuff up. Bielle-Biarrey probably hasn't played 10 at a really high level but they're still willing to give him a crack there.
“I love seeing it because, for me, rugby is about getting your best players on the pitch with the ball in hand as much as possible. Now, look, LBB to 10 might be a bit of a stretch from that capacity.
“But even that being said, for him to have the skill set that they believe he can play at 10 is pretty special.”
Anthony Watson is part of the Premier Sports team bringing every game live from the Investec Champions Cup. The broadcaster offers 400+ live rugby games every season plus every game from the Rugby League World Cup.
