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Harlequins survive late fightback to beat Champions Cup opponents Castres

By PA
Tabai Matson /PA

Harlequins survived a late fightback from Top 14 opponents Castres to open their Heineken Champions Cup account with a hard-fought 20-18 win at Stade Pierre-Fabre.

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Alex Dombrandt was the beneficiary of a well-worked lineout move early in the second half, as he blitzed under the posts from 20 metres out to give the visitors a crucial lead.

Those seven points, and a 72nd-minute penalty for Marcus Smith, looked certain to end the game as a contest.

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The French side were not quite finished, however. Winger Martin Laveau broke through a packed defensive line to score from the restart and set up a tense finish.

But, as they pushed forward in search of an unlikely win, one final penalty was enough for the visitors to clear their lines, and head home with four crucial points.

Castres – in their first Champions Cup outing since the 2018-19 season – had named a very different side from the one that picked up a bonus-point win over Racing 92 in the Top 14 a week earlier.

Head coach Pierre-Henry Broncan opted for experience, bringing back long-term halfback partners Rory Kockott and Benjamin Urdapilleta, while Thomas Combezou partnered Pierre Aguillon in midfield.

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Those four players alone contributed 138 years to the overall age of the hosts. At the other end of the experience table, Jack Whetton – son of club great Gary – made his first start having joined on a short-term contract in October.

A simmering first half ended 11-7 in favour of the hosts, as the English champions found out the hard way, just as Racing had done eight days previously, that Castres’ defence is not easily broken down.

Harlequins spent much of the first period hammering away at the Top 14 side’s defensive line – Smith turned down no fewer than three gettable penalties in favour of kicks to touch.

But it took them over half an hour to register their first points of the game. It was third time lucky for Quins, who had again refused easy points after Castres’ scrum, under pressure all evening, was penalised just outside their 22.

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The Top 14 side defended the resulting lineout well, but the ball broke on the short side to Louis Lynagh, who had a simple run-in to the corner. Smith converted from out wide.

Castres – the last Top 14 side to lose to Harlequins in the Champions Cup in 2015 – had earlier surprised the visitors after an opening 20 minutes mostly played in their half.

Harlequins failed to deal with a kick ahead and chase from Urdapilleta, who caught Smith five metres from his own line, forcing him to pass rather than clear.

The following clearance from Lynagh only found the hosts’ winger Filipo Nakosi, who threaded his way easily through the Quins’ defence before passing to Josaia Raisuqe to score on his first ever start at seven.

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J
Jon 7 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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j
john 10 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

40 Go to comments
A
Adrian 12 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

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