They say that absence makes the heart grow fonder and that was certainly the case for the Aviva Premiership... the break from domestic rugby was difficult to take but my goodness me did the competition return with a bang this weekend. Round 13 was one of the most emotional and action packed that we have seen so let's get straight into reviewing all of the matches;
On Friday
night at Sixways we witnessed a pulsating encounter between the team propping
up the table and the current champions. Before kick-off many had written this fixture off as a
full gone conclusion however from the first minute it was clear that the Warriors had other ideas. The
heart and soul that was shown by every single Worcester player for the full 80
minutes cannot be applauded enough. Leicester
weren’t brilliant but they simply weren’t allowed to be due to the intensity
that was thrown at them by the Warriors. Josh Drauniniu and Mike Williams in particular had stormers however it was Chris
Pennell who was truly phenomenal. Chris’ statistics say a lot; 7 carries for 94
metres, seven beaten defenders, 17 points and one assist however it was the
emotion that he showed that said even more. Sport can be a cruel thing and the
23-22 scoreline flattered the Tigers... their journey towards the Top 4 looking
increasingly challenging and whilst it is still a huge, huge ask for Worcester with performances like that you could see them remaining in the Aviva Premiership this year.
Whilst all
eyes focused on the match at Sixways, the Sale Sharks welcomed Gloucester to
the AJ Bell Stadium and with four tries and two yellow cards it certainly was an
action packed match. In the first
half the rugby was expansive from both teams; with the likes of Rob Cook,
Charlie Sharples, Rob Miller and co on the pitch you wouldn’t expect anything
else however for the Cherry and Whites once again it was their discipline that
let them down. The yellow cards were either side of half time and Sale did not need
to be told twice to take full advantage of the sin bin periods. Gloucester didn't leave empty handed as Freddie Burns' boot gained them a losing bonus point however ultimately the evening and the win
belonged to the Sale Sharks.
On Saturday it
was the turn of The Rec to welcome back Premiership Rugby and in a match that was hampered slightly by the elements the home team
battled to secure the victory. Whilst the 24-6 final score looks comfortable it
was far from it for Bath as the Falcons were in a stubborn mood and actually held their
hosts to 3-3 at half time. It will come as no surprise to you all that the
moment of the match came courtesy of none other than George Ford who opened up
the Falcons defense for Horacio Agulla to score. Injuries plagued the home team
and they certainly will have woken up on Sunday knowing that they had been in
a contest. The Newcastle Falcons will be disappointed that they didn't take more from the fixture and certainly will wish to improve
their accuracy before they head to Harlequins next weekend.
Allianz Park
witnessed the shock of the season so far as London Irish comprehensively beat
Saracens 22-13. Saracens had not lost yet this season and needless to say no-one outside of the London Irish camp had predicted a win for the men in green. Whilst the result in itself is astonishing, it becomes
even more incredible when you add in the fact that London Irish had two players
sin binned in the first half! Irish's stranglehold on the match came just before half time as they ran in two tries. Irish dominated at the breakdown and held on for the win due to a superb defensive effort in the second half. Saracens will wish to forget all about Round 13 and will want to put in a much better shift against Sale away next weekend.
Sandy Park is certainly not a venue for the fainthearted and whilst the Chiefs' experience of the elements showed it was the visitors who came out on top in the second nail-biter of the weekend. Early on the Saints were gifted 10 minutes with an extra man as Dean Mumm was sin binned and they took full advantage. Gareth Steenson had yet another strong day at the office commanding the game and kicking well however it was the Saints who impressed the most. Exeter's difficult run of form continues and hosting Bath next weekend will be a big, big test of character for Dean Mumm and his men. Northampton cruised to the top of the table due to Saracens earlier loss and with performance's like that you suspect that they could be there to stay!
The final fixture of the weekend was at The Stoop where Harlequins played host to the London Wasps. Derby Days between these two are always close affairs that often go down to the wire and needless to say this one was no difference. The drama started before kick off as George Robson and Andy Goode both had to withdraw due to injury and Charlie Matthews and young Joe Carlisle stepped in respectively. It was all about Wasps in the first half, they looked extremely strong with the ball in hand and their forwards dominated at the breakdown. The second was an equally close affair, however for 75 minutes neither team took their chances and it looked as if it was going to be Wasps' day yet again in this fixture. However on 77 minutes Sam Smith made a superb grounding and snatched the match back for the home side. There were notable performances from a number of Wasps players, Jake Cooper Woolley and James Haskell both put in big shifts however it was Quins who once again stole the victory out of their hands, just like they did on day one of the Premiership season at Twickenham.
As the sun sets on a huge weekend of Aviva Premiership action some of our Aviva Premiership players will sleep easy knowing that they came out on top this weekend whilst others will be replaying their respective matches over and over again in their minds wishing that they could turn back time. There is time to dwell as Round 14 is just around the corner and despite it falling on Valentines Weekend there will be absolutely no love shown out there on the pitch as our Premiership teams do battle once again.
The final fixture of the weekend was at The Stoop where Harlequins played host to the London Wasps. Derby Days between these two are always close affairs that often go down to the wire and needless to say this one was no difference. The drama started before kick off as George Robson and Andy Goode both had to withdraw due to injury and Charlie Matthews and young Joe Carlisle stepped in respectively. It was all about Wasps in the first half, they looked extremely strong with the ball in hand and their forwards dominated at the breakdown. The second was an equally close affair, however for 75 minutes neither team took their chances and it looked as if it was going to be Wasps' day yet again in this fixture. However on 77 minutes Sam Smith made a superb grounding and snatched the match back for the home side. There were notable performances from a number of Wasps players, Jake Cooper Woolley and James Haskell both put in big shifts however it was Quins who once again stole the victory out of their hands, just like they did on day one of the Premiership season at Twickenham.
As the sun sets on a huge weekend of Aviva Premiership action some of our Aviva Premiership players will sleep easy knowing that they came out on top this weekend whilst others will be replaying their respective matches over and over again in their minds wishing that they could turn back time. There is time to dwell as Round 14 is just around the corner and despite it falling on Valentines Weekend there will be absolutely no love shown out there on the pitch as our Premiership teams do battle once again.
