Billy's back and all the other talking points from the weekend of European rugby

From Billy, to Chris, to a meltdown at Gloucester, there’s plenty to discuss while we wait for next weekend to roll around.

Billy’s Back…
Billy Vunipola played 72 minutes for Saracens in his first match since November, and has promptly been called up into England’s 30-man squad for the Calcutta Cup match against Scotland at the weekend. He looked fit and healthy and revitalised after his three-and-a-half month lay-off, and probably could have played the full 80 against Newcastle. The question now is whether Eddie Jones will let him loose in the number eight shirt that Nathan Hughes has been keeping warm over the opening rounds of the Six Nations, or if he decides to hold him in reserve for a smash in the closing quarter. Jones is sure to keep his cards close to his chest until the squad announcement, which leaves plenty of time for chin-stroking discussions about the best England line-up to face a Scottish side sure to be in full-on marauding mode.

What’s happening at Gloucester?
Gloucester shipped 15 points in eight dramatic final minutes to lose their Aviva Premiership match against Harlequins 27-30. As capitulations go, it wasn’t just bad, it was awful. The game hadn’t simply been won, it was wrapped up, tied with a pretty bow and waiting for Gloucester at the counter while they finished their leisurely browsing. Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory in such a dramatic manner prompted head coach Laurie Fisher to apparently hand in his notice via Twitter.

Unbelievable capitulation. Clearly not good enough. My responsibility. Time to make room for someone else.

— Laurie Fisher (@LordLaurie58) March 4, 2017

The club has said little in response to the former Brumbies’ DoR’s comment, other than to acknowledge its existence. But, given that the Cherry and Whites have qualified for the European Challenge Cup quarter-finals, but remain eight points adrift of the top six and automatic qualification for the European Champions Cup with just five games of the regular season remaining, it’s easy to understand Fisher’s frustration.

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France still looking for their perfect 10
Toulon’s François Trinh-Duc has returned to the France squad ahead of Saturday’s Six Nations clash with Italy, as Guy Novès search for his perfect 10 continues. Clermont’s Camille Lopez may well hold on to the fly-half berth for the remainder of the Six Nations, but his budding partnership with Baptiste Serin has not always worked. Trinh-Duc, who has 56 caps in a stop-start international career in which he has regularly failed to replicate his club form, has been recalled after playing at centre for Toulon in the weekend’s defeat at Brive following a lengthy injury lay-off. While the 30-year-old is hardly the future of French rugby, it’s hard to see where else Novès can go. Toulouse’s error-prone Jean-Marc Doussain was never the man for the job, Stade’s Jules Plisson has seemingly fallen out of favour, and FTD’s Toulon team-mate Pierre Bernard burns hot and cold faster than a bunsen burner in the hands of a bored chemistry student. Elsewhere, the Top 14 is littered with imports in that role…

It’s getting worse for Racing 92
Last week, we wondered whether things could get any worse for the defending Top 14 champions. They have. To make matters worse, they first had a modicum of good news: the French anti-doping agency decided it would drop an investigation into doping allegations against flanker Yannick Nyanga. But, like the aftermath of a Trump speech to Congress, that hint of a turnaround quickly disappeared as Chris Masoe was sent off five minutes into their must-win match at Grenoble. After that dismal start, the match did not end well for the struggling blue-blood side from the outskirts of Paris. Second-from-bottom Grenoble won 19-10, and the scoreline would have been even less flattering but for an interception try from another France reject Teddy Thomas in the dying seconds.

Mads’ move
Ian Madigan’s Bordeaux nightmare is nearly over. The French dream turned sour pretty quickly for the former Leinster man, who has found himself unable to get a look in even as his side plunged down the table. Rumour had it that he was being courted by a number of clubs, but in the end decided to head to … Bristol. The Aviva Premiership’s basement side, who won promotion last season, lost a crucial relegation dogfight at Worcester at the weekend. They are now seven points adrift at the foot of the table and staring instant relegation in the face. But the club has been working hard to ensure that their stay in the Championship is a short one, recruiting a new coach in Pat Lam, and bringing in the likes of Madigan and Super Rugby’s Steven Luatua. Money must be talking, because another season away from the bright lights of international rugby could damage what’s left of his hopes of an international recall.