Robinson back in the Nick of time (From Bucks Free Press)

Robinson back in the Nick of time

4:50pm Thursday 9th February 2012 in Sport By Alan Feldberg

NICK Robinson was part of the brave new world when he made a winning Wasps debut against Saracens back in September.

It was Twickenham, it was sunny and it was an against-the-odds victory over a more-fancied team – in many ways it was like a postcard through time from a bygone era and it offered fans the faint hope that the ship was turning again after years of decline.

Wasps and Saracens clash again on Sunday, and the months between the first and second meetings have drawn a bold line through those favourable first impressions.

Robinson said: “It seems like a long time ago. It was slightly different weather then and slightly different circumstances, we were going in there all keen and confident. We’d made some good signings and there was a new coaching staff. We were all looking forward to it.

“I remember I enjoyed the game. I was blowing, but the crowd was great, we had a fair bit of ball and were involved in the game – when it’s like that you do tend to enjoy it.

“They would have felt they were slightly unlucky to lose, while we thought we took our chances and deserved the win.”

Another win followed against Leicester, but their slide since then can be tracked by scratch marks down a slippery slope. Recalling Saracens in September then, is no bad thing.

Robinson said: “The sides will be vastly different, but it’s good that we watch a bit of that game because we played some good stuff and it’s good to remind ourselves of the side that we are.

“We’re not as bad a side as the table is showing. We are where we are because we haven’t played well enough in most of the games. But there have been exceptions and we’re still capable of beating the top sides in the Premiership. You’ve got to remind yourself of that sometimes.”

And despite occupying 11th place in a league of 12, Robinson insists Wasps are one good spell away from a recovery.

He said: “The injuries have really hit us quite hard but our performances have been poor as well at times.

“The commitment has been there throughout but we’ve let ourselves down with silly mistakes and in this league if you make errors they can be very costly.

“We’ve just got to tighten up on those basic errors and then hopefully build a bit of confidence back in.

“Performances haven’t been great, but confidence can come back so quickly. It takes a good ten or 20 minutes and then suddenly you get a couple of tries and then everyone is feeling great again.

“There is still a long way to go in this season and if we can string some performances together and pick up a few results we could be looking up.”

An influx of seven new players in the past month could be the injection they need.

It brings its own problems in terms of combinations and systems, but Robinson doesn’t see that as a major issue.

He said: “If you look at the nine, ten, 12, 13, you’ve got lots of key players that have been here throughout the season.

“And the other boys have been here for a few weeks, training with the squad and playing in the LV.

“We needed to strengthen our squad a little bit and we’ve done that with some quality signings.”