Let the Battle Commence - Harlequins vs. Northampton Saints

Round 2, just 480 minutes of rugby have been played and already we have the match that some people are tipping to be the clash of the season. It is rare that a game so early on has such a high level of expectation however tonight's clash between Harlequins and Northampton Saints at The Stoop is set to be HUGE in every way.

As we all know Saints made some killer signings at the end of last season – George North, Alex Corbisiero, Kahn Fotulai'i - huge players designed to come in and ensure that Saints aren't the nearly men again this season. In contrast Harlequins made minimal and late signings, forced mostly by injury as opposed to a huge desire to grow their squad – Paul Doran Jones, Nick Kennedy and Paul Sackey all arrived.  Instead Conor O’Shea is focusing on his home grown academy talent, with many tipped to have 'breakthrough seasons' this year – Luke Wallace, Charlie Walker and Rob Buchanan as examples. Take these young whippersnappers and put them with the 'old guard' and that is the formulation that Conor is hoping will take them all the way this year.

So just why is this match so exciting??? Both sides are teams that play fast paced rugby, they are Top 4 teams – some say Top 2 depending on whom you speak to… that alone demonstrates the quality that will see out on the pitch tonight. Add onto that the individual battles that will be going on and that is why this match is HUGE! I’ve no doubt that Stuart Lancaster will be watching intently on BT Sport to see how the evening’s action pans out. I mentioned individual battles, to get us in the mood and warmed up let's take a little look at a couple shall we;

Up Front: Alex Corbisiero vs. Joe Marler – The Tour Winning Lion vs. The ‘On The Brink’ Man… both men have huge amounts of power, just a question to throw out there early on, is Corbs the more technical scrummager!? Probably, but let’s not forget that Joe Marler never backs down without a damn good fight. Whilst some would suggest that Corbs has the Number 1 jersey sewn up and made to measure for the QBE Autumn Internationals, a storming season between now and then for Joe and it will give Stuart a nice little headache. Starting that off getting one up against his rival will certainly do him a lot of favours! Equally if Corbs outshines Joe in every way then it makes Stuart's decision easy!

The Battle of the 9s: Danny Care vs. Kahn Fotulai'i – The Golden Boy of Quins & England vs. The Most Exciting Signing in the Premiership bar one. 2 heads up, opportunistic 9s, making breaks, making tackles and generally causing havoc all over the pitch… this is the battle that I am most excited at watching (for purely for rugby reasons obviously!!!!!!!! )
 

D.C will enjoy a great individual battle tonight against Kahn Fotulai'i

The Captain’s Battle: Chris Robshaw vs. Tom Wood – The Old vs. The New England Captain some might say… let’s be more factual shall we… Openside vs. Blindside.  There is no denying that this match up will have the most focus, the most press coverage and the most conclusions drawn from it. Will either man be thinking about it?? No, they are both far too professional for that, instead they will be focusing on their teams and doing the job in hand, winning tonight’s fixture. One thing that is certain is that Stuart will name only one of them to lead out England on 2nd November and the question that hangs in the balance is which??? 

 Robshaw vs. Wood - The Battle for the Captaincy

The Battle at the Back: Ben Foden vs. Mike Brown – The Battle of the England Full Backs. There was no other way to dress this one up, it is plain and simple, both play 15 extremely well, both are solid under the high ball, both love to run it from deep and make outrageous breaks however again only one will take that starting spot. Fodes looks like he’s back to his best, the ankle injury is long gone and he is fitter than ever. Brownie continues to show why he is more suited to 15 than 11/14, running the show from deep at Quins. It’s another 'watch this space' come the Autumn as to whom will grab that starting jersey, although don’t forgot to throw in Mr Alex Goode into the mix!
 
The Most Exciting Battle: George North vs. Everyone - After a solid first run out last weekend expect fireworks from George… I think that I can speak for everyone when I say that I hope that we get another Falou moment. Personally my bets are on George Lowe being given a ride on the North bus!! In all seriousness we all saw the quality of George North in Australia, he is an outstanding footballer, who has a ridiculous amount of talent… not only that but he works damn hard on and off the field to constantly improve. The down-to-earth winger is by far my favourite Welsh Player (with Leigh Halfpenny & Jamie Roberts close behind) and I cannot wait to see him take on every single Quins player on the pitch tonight.

George North vs. Everyone!

There is no doubt that this fixture is HUGE… it has a final’esque feel - Jim Mallinder’s men will want to show that they are already a cohesive and formidable team and Conor O’Shea's Harlequins want to show why his decision to stick with his existing squad is the right one and the one that will games and titles. 

Tonight is a clash of epic proportions… I will be at The Stoop taking it all in live, rain or shine. However if you can’t make it to Twickenham then I suggest that you turn on BT Sport 1, sit back, relax and enjoy a colossal game of rugby!