Dawe worried about season
Plymouth Albion chairman Graham Dawe has admitted that it could be a very long season for his Championship rugby side.
Plymouth Albion are not one of the teams expected to compete with the likes of Worcester, Rotherham and Bristol in the Championship this season and Dawe has admitted it may take the club a while to improve.
This will come as disappointing news to all Plymouth fans because the stakes in English domestic rugby have never been higher. Traditionally small clubs like Bedford have also stated their intent to try and get into the Premiership and have spent money to do so.
There are a high number of factors that will stop Plymouth and Dawe from advancing this season. However, the club have to simply take things on the chin and set small ambitions and aims in order to get better.
Decisive factors
Plymouth do not enjoy a large and deep playing squad that will allow them to compete to their highest levels for a whole season. This is something that the likes of Worcester and Bristol enjoy and it enables them to win more matches over the course of a long season.
The problem is that if Plymouth pick up a few injuries early on then the squad can quickly become stretched. If there is not cover in key areas then the club will be forced to play younger players from youth sides. These players are not as physically strong and mistakes will start to appear all over the team.
Dawe will also experience the problem of how to change mentality at the club. It will be very hard for Plymouth players to get themselves up for a game if they do not believe they have the slightest chance of winning it.
Dawe said: "I think it will be no different than most years, but we can't really predict it. Every year has been tough at Albion and we've enjoyed some great years in the past and I have no doubt we'll enjoy this season. There's a lot of very ambitious players out there that want to play in the Premiership, and they're going to be going out all guns blazing."
Small goals and targets
It is very naive for the club to head into a new season with heads already dropping. The club can start to set small goals and targets that will allow them to slowly move up the table and achieve the best results possible.
This will be a much more sensible move than coming out and publicly stating their ambitions straight away. Bristol, Bedford and Rotherham have all done this because they know they are within the group of the best teams in England.
Dawe added: "We try not to work with excuses, we just work with what we've got and enjoy the season, we enjoy every day we come into work to train. At this moment in time a lot of the teams are on a level playing field. But somebody that is not well fancied is going to do well this year, and a team that is well fancied is going to struggle."
Betting advice
Plymouth will have to have a fantastic season and make no errors at all if they stand any chance of going up to the Premiership. It's not very likely that it will happen so unless you're a Plymouth fan you will probably favour backing way off from that bet.
The best place finish the club can hope for is somewhere around mid-table or just outside the top four. The best way to make money is to back the winger, flanker or kicker in the team who is likely to score the most points.
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