Mike Catt’s purring over ‘animal’ Delon Armitage

Rejuvenated: Delon Armitage, being held by Bath’s Michael Claassens, is back to his best attacking best
10 April 2012

Mike Catt believes the resurgence of Delon Armitage has been a key factor in taking the club to second place in the Aviva Premiership.

Armitage lost his England place last season as injury and poor form saw him replaced by Northampton's Ben Foden, who still holds the Test position.

However, the full-back is now back to his attacking best and Catt is full of praise for the 26-year-old, who has his sights on regaining his place in Martin Johnson's squad in time for the World Cup in New Zealand next year.

Irish backs coach Catt, who is preparing his side for Saturday's clash at Newcastle, said: "Delon is the animal he was two years ago but is now armed with a lot more experience.

"He has been key to the mindset of the team and was fantastic in pre-season because he knows the past 16 months have involved a lot of ups and downs on and off the pitch.

"He was dropped by England and faced questions about his form. He understands that period and all we asked him to do was put a smile back on his face.

"Delon is one of those instinctive rugby players and they are extremely rare. He is naturally very good and when he mentally decides to do it, he is up there with the best."

Ryan Lamb, the outside-half, has contributed a crucial 34 points in the Premiership to boost the Irish cause and Catt has also been working hard with the former Gloucester No10, who has yet to realise his true potential.

"We want Delon to enjoy what he does and I have been working on his kicking and his work ethic is outstanding and the same is true of Ryan [Lamb]," added Catt.

"It's all about getting consistency out of the young guys whose performance levels can fluctuate. It was hard for Ryan last season because people around him weren't performing well but now the guys who can help him on the pitch are flying and that is hugely important."

Catt's philosophy is to keep the ball in the hand and his players are capable of breaking open the toughest defences, although last season they lacked consistency as a raft of injuries decimated the back line.

Try scoring sensation Sailosi Tagicakibau was ruled out for long periods, along with Armitage and Topsy Ojo.

Even with centre Elvis Seveali'i banned for a dangerous tackle, Catt still has the majority of his first-choice squad to choose from, including Daniel Bowden, who has arrived from New Zealand to boost the midfield options as they prepare to face Newcastle and then Leeds before the Heineken Cup takes precedence with fixtures against Munster and Ospreys.

Catt said: "We have players with that X-factor that we can bring to the game — particularly off quick ball and the solid set-piece possession our forwards deliver.

"Of course, you have to play a big, physical game and at times against Gloucester [they won 33-16] we did become a bit too loose. It's about getting the balance right and these matches with Newcastle and Leeds are massively important from a mindset and consistency basis.

"We didn't have consistency last season. It was a major factor the previous year when we picked up bonus points on a regular basis and reached the Premiership final. These next two weeks will tell us exactly how far we have come after discussing what would be required to get us back to the effectiveness we showed two seasons ago.

"The defence has been very good. Against Gloucester we were up to 92 per cent for tackles made and Dave Ellis, our defence coach, is a very happy man. He uses a tackle club in the mornings for those players who have dropped below the required level in defence in the matches, but it's been pretty quiet this week."

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