Round
21, the sharp end of proceedings, the business end of the season... whatever
you wish to call it this weekend the Aviva Premiership got serious, very
serious and we were treated to some tumultuous matches as a result. On Friday
we still had twelve teams in the Aviva Premiership, we still had no idea which
team would take on the European challenge or which teams would be in the
playoffs in a few weeks time... now after a staggering 46 tries things are a
little clearer!
The
action started underneath the Friday Night Lights at The Rec, it was a
gladiatorial battle between Bath Rugby and the Northampton Saints that was
filled with drama from minute one to minute eighty one. The game was eye
wateringly physical, the defensive intensity was up there with the level that
we see in Test Match Rugby and both teams should be immensely proud of their
efforts. The moments of attacking magic that penetrated the brutal defence were
provided by the fly halves; George Ford’s sublime individual try enthralled us
all whilst Stephen Myler showed his full box of tricks with a stunning offload
to put in young Jamie Elliott. Amongst all of the brutality there was the small
matter of the ‘hooker/no hooker, 14/15 men’ puzzle to decipher and in the end
Nathan Catt showed a huge amount of character and heart and stepped in to play
Hooker for his side instead of reducing them to 14 men and uncontested scrums.
The immense effort that he showed epitomised the desire of both teams and the
19 apiece final score was fitting for what was a truly gutsy game of
Premiership Rugby.
On
Saturday at Adams Park London Wasps hosted Newcastle Falcons and the crowd were
treated to an 82 point thriller courtesy of 11 tries! Newcastle were quickest
off the blocks in both halves and Dai Young's will certainly wish to sort out
his side's tendency to let teams go ahead before they play their best rugby
quickly. Throughout the game Newcastle's wingers Sinoti Sinoti and Noah Cato
proved to be difficult for Wasps to handle and Joel Hodgson had a near-on
faultless day at the office. However the home side really took it to Wasps up
front and in the back row. Will Helu scored what could be a very strong
contender for try of the season and eventually the experience of Wasps proved
too much for Dean Richard’s side. Wasps had a nervous wait to find out if their
bonus point victory was enough to secure them the European playoff spot and
reliable on Harlequins to do a job at Sandy Park, thankfully they did and Wasps
will now head to France to take on Stade Francais in their quest for European
Rugby next year.
The AJ Bell Stadium enjoyed one of its largest
crowds of the year as over 10,000 fans watched the Sale Sharks take on the Leicester
Tigers. Leicester needed a bonus point win to guarantee their playoff position
and they secured it pushing aside a Sharks side that just weren't quite
clinical enough when it came to putting the points on the board. The Tigers’
End of Season award winners were all in fine form; Mulipola, Gibson and
Williams showcased their talents although Owen Williams will be less than happy
with his couple of misses. Sale did eventually score some tries; Mike Paterson,
departing prop Henry Thomas and Johnny Leota all crossed to make the score look
much more respectable however the game was out of their reach. It must be said
that Leota's try was particularly spectacular and I'll confidently eat my hat
if it isn't part of the Try Of The Week contest however it was too late. A
certain Stuart Lancaster was once again in attendance and it will be
interesting to see if he thinks that Danny Cipriani has done enough to be
included in the touring squad over the summer, as I've said before I do hope
so. On the whole it was the visitors’ day; they secured their playoff position
for the tenth year in a row and can relax in Round 22 before the real work
starts again the week after. 
At
Allianz Park Saracens dealt Worcester the killer blow that confirmed their
relegation from the Aviva Premiership and they did so with some force. The
question of whether Mark McCall was going to rest all of his key men was
answered on Friday lunchtime when he announced a near full strength squad for
the match and from that point onwards you felt that it was always going to go
Saracens’ way. Dean Ryan’s men showed tenacity and character throughout, as
they have done all season however Saracens were simply too strong and too
powerful. Jackson Wray will rejoice in his hat trick of tries for a long time
to come and the try scoring machine that is Chris Ashton added another two to
his tally. Casting an eye over the Warriors I make no apologies for singling
out Chris Pennell once again as he oozed class and the Aviva Premiership will
be a poorer place without him. After the game Dean Ryan spoke candidly;
"What happened to this club had to happen, there aren’t many clubs that
would have the balls to take the drastic change that was needed and we are
going to try and grow a proper rugby club. There are some big players in that
changing room and being in the Championship is going to hurt egos and test
humility but it’s a drive to make sure we come back to this level and grow”. We
wish the Warriors well in the Championship and hope to see them back very soon.
So
there you have it Round 21 was befitting of a gloriously sunny May Bank Holiday
weekend, at times it has a certain Super 15 feel to it such was the flow of
tries. Now that the action is over there is only one unknown left, which team
will secure that final playoff place? Will it be Bath or will it be Harlequins?
Only time will tell...
Northampton
Saints Photos © Claire Jones RedHatPhoto.com all proceeds supporting Restart,
the rugby players' charity.
