The RugbyPass Champions Cup XV - Round 4
The European Champions Cup pools really began to take shape this week, as the “double header” rounds, perhaps the most tactically interesting two-week slot in the competition, were wrapped up.
Wasps bounced back from a disheartening loss to keep their qualification hopes alive, Ulster and Ospreys continued their resurgences and pool leaders Leinster, Bath, Munster and Clermont will all go into January confident about their chances.
We picked our XV of the week below.
- Anthony Watson, Bath
Watson scythed through the Toulon defence for two tries in front of a watching – and seemingly pleased – Eddie Jones.
His vision to exploit holes or mismatches in the Toulon defensive line was excellent and it was the kind of showing that will add fresh impetus to the calls for Watson to don the 15 jersey for England, as well as for Bath. He kicked and dealt with aerial balls well, too, making it a complete performance from the full-back.
HIGHLIGHTS: @BathRugby are now on top in Pool 5 after this victory over @RCTofficiel at The Recreation Ground. #ChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/3IeGQnhlqt
— Champions Cup (@ChampionsCup) December 17, 2017
- Aled Brew, Bath
Brew might have been playing on the left wing for Bath, but the 14 on his back gives us an easy out here, on a weekend when left wings were dominant.
The Welshman has reinvigorated his career at the Rec and is in blistering form. He gave Josua Tuisova a constant headache on Saturday evening, both as an attacking threat raiding down the wing and stopping the Fijian powerhouse defensively before he built up the momentum to go on his trademark bullocking runs.
A nod, too, to Craig Gilroy and Charlie Walker, both of whom impressed in Belfast on Friday.
- Paul Asquith, Scarlets
The Australian was one of the few Scarlets players to really impress in their narrow win over Benetton last week and backed it up with another strong showing this week.
The centre was a constant threat on phases after Scott Williams crashed the ball up, either as a runner himself or linking with wings Johnny McNicholl and Steff Evans. It was that variety to his game that saw him narrowly pip the equally impressive Frans Steyn.
- Ma’a Nonu, Toulon
There were flashes of vintage Nonu on Saturday, with the Kiwi running the out-to-in line and targeting the space between Rhys Priestland and Ben Tapuai on several occasions.
Stuart McCloskey also excelled, albeit in a more open game, but Nonu’s powerful carrying kept Toulon in contention at the Rec right up until the 80th minute.
- Nemani Nadolo, Montpellier
If it was a relatively quiet week for right wings, it was a barnstorming one for left wings. Jacob Stockdale, Isa Nacewa, Elliot Daly and Virimi Vakatawa were all excellent in their respective games, but none that managed quite the same dominance as Nadolo.
The behemoth wing battered and bruised the Glasgow defence and whilst there were a couple of moments when he was compromised defensively, the positives he brought in attack overwhelmingly outweighed those moments. There may be no player in the world game who the opposition must tactically prepare for as much as Nadolo.
HIGHLIGHTS: @MHR_officiel clinched back-to-back victories over @GlasgowWarriors? in Pool 3. #ChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/BheQquTygO
— Champions Cup (@ChampionsCup) December 17, 2017
- Danny Cipriani, Wasps
Ulster’s Christian Lealiifano came very close with a classy display on Friday night, but Cipriani orchestrated a vital win for Wasps off the back of a pummelling in France a week previously.
The veteran Englishman played with freedom and fearlessness on the gain-line, allowing himself to take several big hits in the process of unleashing runners through holes. He lost his pressure valve, Jimmy Gopperth, to injury early in the game, too, but managed the disruption perfectly and took on full puppeteering duties for 80 minutes.
- John Cooney, Ulster
A second commanding performance in as many weeks for Cooney, as he contributed 27 points personally, as well as popping up to assist three tries, making him responsible for 42 of Ulster’s 52 points against Harlequins.
His distribution was excellent, he constantly picked the right runners or options and his own work as a support runner was invaluable to keeping Ulster attacks alive. In this form, Cooney should be catching the eye of Joe Schmidt.
Dan Robson and Gareth Davies both deserve honourable mentions, too.
- Beno Obano, Bath
A second appearance in as many weeks for Obano, whose ascent this season is beginning to border on meteoric.
He took his try well to give his side a fast start to the game and continued to make impact players at the Rec, whether it was powerful carries around the fringes to keep Bath on the front foot or manful tackles on the gain-line. The Scarlets’ Rob Evans deserves a nod, too, for his strong display against Benetton.
- Kevin O’Byrne, Munster
Luke Cowan-Dickie and Tom Dunn came close but O’Byrne excelled on his European debut.
At a rainy Welford Road where ball security was paramount, O’Byrne nailed all 15 of his lineout throws, as well as forcing a couple of knock-ons with powerful tackles in the greasy conditions. It was the perfect foundation for Munster in a dogged, close contest.
- Vincent Koch, Saracens
Montpellier’s Johannes Jonker was in the mix, as would’ve been Kyle Sinckler if only his first 40 minutes at Ravenhill had counted, but it was Koch who distinguished himself from the rest of the pack this weekend.
It wasn’t just his marauding runs, but the amount of clearing work he did at the breakdown and the eagerness with which he dived on and secured loose balls. Scrummaged well against a cohesive Clermont unit, too.
- Sébastien Vahaamahina, Clermont Auvergne
Vahaamahina’s powerful thrusts through the middle of the Saracens defence were one of the key differences between the sides in the second half and something which allowed Clermont to sneak a game that was balanced on a knife edge for most of the contest.
Clermont struggled for the go forward that they enjoyed so prolifically at Allianz Park in the previous round, but Vahaamahina helped make up for a Clermont pack unable to exert the same kind of physical dominance they had a week earlier.
- Jonny Gray, Glasgow Warriors
Fair play, Gray. Glasgow’s chances of European qualification were ended a week earlier, but the big lock didn’t let that stop him from putting in a powerful and impactful performance against Montpellier.
Sam Skinner came close with a very good outing, but a late penalty for obstructing at the maul cost Exeter a shot at securing a rare win in Dublin.
- Sean O’Brien, Leinster
It wasn’t quite the blood and thunder with ball in hand performance that O’Brien is capable of, but it was the physicality he brought in the tackle and the contact area that played a key role in subduing a much-improved Exeter side.
Where Exeter had success was when they shifted the ball wider and played with speed, because their often used one-out runner strategy was constantly being stymied by the physical presence of O’Brien and a handful of his teammates.
HIGHLIGHTS: @LeinsterRugby dug deep and secured victory at the @AVIVAStadium. #ChampionsCup pic.twitter.com/u5Fw0ebYkO
— Champions Cup (@ChampionsCup) December 17, 2017
- Francois Louw, Bath
James Davies went well against Benetton and a big cameo from Dan Leavy helped Leinster see out their win over Exeter, but Louw just sneaks it.
The South African was a vice over the ball, both as an individual fetcher and supporting teammates who got to the contact area ahead of him. He carried and tackled strongly as well, helping counter the Toulon power game.
- Leone Nakarawa, Racing 92
It doesn’t seem to particularly matter where you play the big Fijian, as you know you’re going to get an outstanding performance irrespective of the number on his back.
Nakarawa brought all the power carries, offloads and defensive lineout ability to the eight jersey that he has shown countless times in the row. The duelling Jack Conan and Sam Simmonds came close, as did Nathan Hughes, but none could quite match the authority that Nakarawa stamped on the game in Paris.
Comments on RugbyPass
Thanks for the write up. Great to see the Rebs winning, I am a little interested in how they will go against the remaining kiwi teams, I think they’ve only played Hurricanes and Highlanders but how great to see these players performing!! I also see Parling has a job beyond June 30! A good move by RA? Also how do you fix the Rebels previously scratchy defence?
81 Go to commentsbe smart - go black
13 Go to commentsNext week the Crusaders hopefully have Scott Barrett back. Will be great to have the captain back. Hopefully he will be the All Black captain as well.
12 Go to commentsExciting place to be for the young fella. I expected he was French Polynesian when I saw him included in the France 6N squad (after seeing him in NZs), and therefor be strong grounds we might loose him to rugby down here. Good, in that he is good enough to warrant such a profile, and from a journalism’s fan interaction aspect, to finally get a back ground story on the fella. Hope he has settled into NZ OK and that at least one rugby country will fit with him to help his development, which, if so, he should surely continue for a few years, and then that he can experience France to it’s fullest with a bit more maturity and less reliance on family than you would have at his current age. A good 3 or 4 years before he would be ready for International duty if he wanted to wait. Of course he already sounds good enough to accept a call up, and to cap himself, in the more immediate future (he’d have to be very very good in the case of the ABs), and he’ll get a great taste of that being with the Canes who have a bunch who are just a few years further into their career and looking likely Internationals themselves.
13 Go to commentsI remember towards the end of the original broadcasting deal for Super rugby with Newscorp that there was talk about the competition expanding to improve negotiations for more money - more content, more cash. Professional rugby was still in its infancy then and I held an opposing view that if Super rugby was a truly valuable competition then it should attract more broadcasters to bid for the rights, thereby increasing the value without needing to add more teams and games. Unfortunately since the game turned professional, the tension between club, talent and country has only grown further. I would argue we’re already at a point in time where the present is the future. The only international competitions that matter are 6N, RC and RWC. The inter-hemisphere tours are only developmental for those competitions. The games that increasingly matter more to fans, sponsors and broadcasters are between the clubs. Particularly for European fans, there are multiple competitions to follow your teams fortunes every week. SA is not Europe but competes in a single continental competition, so the travel component will always be an impediment. It was worse in the bloated days of Super rugby when teams traversed between four continents - Africa, America, Asia and Australia. The percentage of players who represent their country is less than 5% of the professional player base, so the sense of sacrifice isn’t as strong a motivation for the rest who are more focused on playing professional rugby and earning as much from their body as they can. Rugby like cricket created the conundrum it’s constantly fighting a losing battle with.
3 Go to commentsOh wow… “But as La Rochelle proved in winning in Cape Town this season, a cross-continental away assignment need not spell the end of days.” La Rochelle actually proved quite the opposite. After traveling to Cape town and back they (back-to-back and current champs) got mercilessly thumped the next week. If travel is not the reason, why else would a full-strength powerhouse like La Rochelle get dumped on their @r$e$ one week later?
26 Go to commentsYou know he can land a winning conversion after the full time siren is up. (Even if it takes two attempts.)
5 Go to commentsA very insightful article from Jake. I would love to know how South African’s feel about their move to Europe. Do you prefer playing in Europe or want to go back to Super Rugby?
3 Go to commentspure fire
1 Go to commentsA very well thought out summary of all the relevant complications…agree with your ”refer the Cricket Test versus 20/20 comparison”. More also definitely doesn't necessarily mean better!
3 Go to commentsMust be something when you are only 19 y.o and both NZ and France want you. Btw he wasn’t the only new caledonian in french U20 as Robin Couly also lived in Noumea until 17. Hope he’s successful wherever he chooses to play.
13 Go to comments“Several key players in the Stade Rochelais squad are in their thirties” South Africans are going to hate the implications of that comment!
5 Go to commentsI know Leinster did a job on La Roche but shortly after HT Leinster were 30-13 ahead of them and at a similar time Toulouse were trailing Exeter. At 60 mins Leinster were 27 ahead but after 67 mins Toulouse were only 19 ahead before Exeter collapsed. That’s heavier scoring by Leinster against the Champions. I think people are looking at Toulouses total a little too much. I also think Northhampton are in with a real chance, albeit I’d put Leinster as favourites. If Leinster make the final I expect them to win by more than ten and with control.
5 Go to commentsHey Nick, your match analysis is decent but the top and tail not so much, a bit more random. For a start there’s a seismic difference in regenerating any club side over a test team. EJ pretty much had to urinate with the appendage he’d been given at test level whereas club success is impacted hugely by the budget. Look no further than Boudjellal’s Toulon project for a perfect example. The set ups at La Rochelle and Leinster are like chalk and cheese and you are correct that Leinster are ahead. Leinster are not just slightly ahead though, they are light years ahead on their plans, with the next gen champions cup team already blooded, seasoned and developing at speed from their time manning the fort in the URC while the cream play CC and tests. They have engineered a strong talent conveyor belt into their system, supported by private money funnelled into a couple of Leinster private schools. The really smart move from Leinster and the IRFU however is maximising the Irish Revenue tax breaks (tax relief on the best 10 years earnings refunded at retirement) to help keep all of their stars in Ireland and happy, while simultaneously funding marquee players consistently. And of course Barrett is the latest example. But in no way is he a “replacement for Henshaw”, he’s only there for one season!!! As for Rob Baxter, the best advice you can give him is to start lobbying Parliament and HMRC for a similar state subsidy, but don’t hold your breath… One thing Cullen has been very smart with is his coaching team. Very quickly he realised his need to supplement his skills, there was talk of him exiting after his first couple of years but he was extremely shrewd bringing in Lancaster and now Nienaber. That has worked superbly and added a layer that really has made a tangible difference. Apart from that you were bang on the money… 😉😂
5 Go to commentsNot sure exactly what went wrong for him at Glasgow but it’s pretty clear he ain’t Franco’s cup of tea. Suspect he would have been better served heading out of Scotland around the same time as Finn, Hoggy and Jonny!
1 Go to commentsBulls disrespected the Northampton supporters and the competition. Decide quickly, fully in or out.
26 Go to commentsI wonder if Parling was ever on England’s radar as a coach? Obviously Borthwick is a great lineout coach, but I do worry he might be taking on too much as both head coach and forwards coach.
1 Go to commentsJason Jenkins has one cap. When Etzebeth was his age he had over 80 caps. Experience matters. He will never amount to what Etzebeth has because he hasn’t been developed as an international player.
2 Go to commentsSays much about the player picking this gig over the easier and bigger rewards offered to him in Japan. Also says a lot about the state sanctioned tax benefits the Irish Revenue offers pro rugby players, with their ten highest earning years subject to an additional 40% tax relief and paid as a lump sum, in cash, at retirement. Certainly helps Leinster line up the financial ducks in a row to fund marquee signings like this!!! No other union anywhere in world rugby benefits from this kind of lucrative financial sponsorship from their government…
5 Go to commentsTrue Jordie could earn a lot more in Japan. But by choosing Leinster he’ll be playing with 1 of the best clubs in the world and can win a champions cup and URC…..
6 Go to comments