Philosophers, or those with too much spare time on their hands
(if I can say that as a man who writes a rugby blog for no money), always say
that there can be no light without darkness; no good without evil and no beauty
without...er...mingers, or whatever fancy word is for ugliness. It’s why it has been so easy to appreciate
Harlequins over the years – you have only had to hold their free and fast style
of play up to the kick, chase and maul snoozefests Saracens produced to feel
like you were watching perfect rugby.
It’s fair to say that, over the last two seasons, the
difference between the two sides has been as clear as the aesthetic difference
between Chris Robshaw and Jaques Burger.
But this year, the lines have become blurred. Sarries have started unleashing some serious
speed and firepower out wide to couple the brutal pack of rhinos they have up
front, playing what you may describe as total rugby to such an extent that even
Burger has become to radiate his own beauty in a chaotic and frenzied sort of
way. That’s not to say the Quins are all
flowers and daisies in comparison though – any side with Joe Marler, Nick
Easter, Maurie Fa’asavalu and Robshaw in will always provide you with an
arm-wrestle if you want one.
It was fair to say then, that this game had power and speed
in abundance – all the ingredients for a brutal and pulsating encounter. And the Stoop faithful weren’t to be
disappointed as the game exploded into life straight from the off. An early Nick Evans penalty put fears that
the veteran Kiwi’s kicking boots had been nicked in the offseason to rest as he
nailed the kick from a tricky position, but Richard Wigglesworth then went within inches
of scoring a five pointer after charging down Evans’ clearance kick. Ugo Monye then continued his impressive start
to the season by absolutely creaming Chris Wyles in a man-and-ball tackle
before skinning Chris Ashton on the outside and chipping ahead, only to be impeded
by Alex Goode with one of the less subtle blocks you’re likely to see. It earned Goode a trip to the sin bin – and a
break he would have been thankful for, given the hectic opening – and Quins a
six point lead.
Sarries have become renowned for their fearsome carrying
this season but in the opening quarter they were rocked by some phenomenally
aggressive Quins defence, with Tom Williams and captain Chris Robshaw both
making good hits that forced turnovers. Unfortunately
for the hosts, though, they were unable to get out of their own half despite
the man advantage, and it came as no surprise when Owen Farrell knocked over
his side’s opening points when Nick Easter was penalised for holding on.
Evans then restored the hosts’ 6 point advantage before
Williams once again showed defensive brilliance by somehow rolling Kelly Brown
onto his back and preventing him from grounding the ball after the Scotsman had
broken clean through from a lineout. The
aftermath saw a Primark-level of handbags as Danny Care unwisely slapped Billy
Vunipola and Maurie Fa’asavalu was shown a yellow card for pulling Jacques Burger’s
hair; these two sides may be relentlessly physical but they fight like girls in
a playground. It was the last meaningful
play of the half, as Farrell and Evans exchanged penalties to give Quins a 12-6
lead at the interval.
If the Stoop faithful were feeling confident as the teams
trooped off, that feeling would have rapidly started diminishing in the second
period as the visitors started rumbling through their rather sizeable gears. Ashton was making a menace of himself off his
wing and Mako and Billy Vunipola were making some serious yardage in the close
exchanges, before Farrell demonstrated the new-found attacking instinct he
picked up over the summer to make a couple of telling half breaks and send
Ashton in under the posts for the first, and only, try of the game.
The hosts were starting to visibly tire under the relentless
onslaught, and it was only outstanding work in tackle by Robshaw and substitute
Luke Wallace that saved them from conceding more tries throughout the
half. Instead, they were forced to watch
monotonous sight of Farrell’s boot swinging the ball through the posts a
further 3 times – once following a Joe Marler sin-bin for pulling down a maul –
in between futile attempts in attack, where they were standing far too deep and
wide to pose the visitors a threat. The
final whistle went with the score at 12-22, and Sarries had landed their first
blow on a big rival this season.
You get the feeling it won’t be the last.
What else was happening in the Premiership over the weekend?
Bath 33 – London Irish
18: George Ford earned plaudits for
his attacking display (but less for his defence) as the West Country side coasted
to victory over Irish. The hosts were
rampant in the first half, scoring tries through Jonathan Joseph, Guy Mercer
(2), Ford and Rob Webber, with Shane Geraghty grabbing a brace for the
visitors.
London Wasps 32 – 16 Worcester
Warriors: Wasps claimed their first
win of the season and resigned the Warriors to yet another defeat with a solid home
performance. The Londoners earned a
bonus point through tries from Matt Mullan, Christian Wade, Jake Cooper-Woolley
and Guy Thompson, with Josh Drauniniu responding for Worcester.
Exeter Chiefs 9 – 21
Leicester Tigers: Tries from Ben
Youngs and Niki Goneva were enough to see the Champions come away with a hard-fought
win over the Chiefs at a blustery Sandy Park.
The hosts could only score their points through the boot of Gareth
Steenson.
Newcastle Falcons 16 –
22 Gloucester: The Cherry and Whites
launched a superb second half fightback to win the game despite going down to a
first minute score from winger Tom Catterick which put the Falcons in control
early on. Gloucester, though, clawed
their way back into things with scores for Rob Cook and Jonny May.
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