The conversation Harlequins had with Marcus Smith over missed kick
Harlequins skipper Stephan Lewies has claimed that last Saturday’s costly missed kick from Marcus Smith wasn’t mentioned in their Monday squad review of their agonising Heineken Champions Cup review, but senior coach Tabai Matson suggested a conversation was had between him and his star out-half in the aftermath of the now-infamous conversion attempt.
The failure to kick the two points after a Louis Lynagh try left Harlequins eliminated from Europe on an aggregate score of 60-59 versus Montpellier, but Smith has apparently moved on quickly from that disappointment knowing that Gallagher Premiership leaders Leicester are next up at The Stoop on Saturday.
“He is absolutely fine,” said Lewies when asked how Smith has been in wake of the missed conversion that was described as a straightforward kick for the England out-half. “He understands the nature of sport. The amount of games he has won for us in that situation at the end is ridiculous.
“Before the game, if you told him you would give him five out of six kicks today he probably would have taken that. He can’t be too hard on himself, to be honest, and we’re happy to see that he is just preparing the boys for a good performance this weekend again and pushing to strive and get better all the time. It’s brilliant to see a youngster like that and his maturity for his age is unbelievable.
“We reviewed the game quite hard to see where we failed and I don’t think the kick was brought up once. That is not where we failed. Where their tries came from we struggled to exit, they put pressure on us there.
“That was more the stuff we reviewed, our mistakes letting them into our 22 and giving them points. And then when we were dominant in the scrum we didn’t convert that into points – that was a discussion point more than anything else after the game,” continued the skipper, who added that he won’t be in the least bit surprised if Smith and Harlequins are back in the winners’ enclosure next weekend.
“That is what the good players, the good teams do, they bounce back. We all bounce back as a team and in saying that, if you look at that first-half performance (against Montpellier), it was probably some of our best rugby of this season. There is disappointment at not going through but in terms of our performance on the day it was still a clinical and good performance. Where we failed was in the first leg.”
Senior coach Matson later gave his take on how Smith was dealing with his missed kick, explaining there was no room for self-pity in this game. Harlequins’ collective reaction at their Guilford training ground, for instance, was to go and play some cricket following the review of their European exit.
“He has to be (getting on with it). If you’re as successful a goal-kicker and game leader as him you just can’t dwell on things for too long. We did have that conversation. He moves on really quickly which is an important trait for someone in his position and with the lot of responsibility we give him.
“You forget he has played more than 100 games of Premiership rugby and all the other accolades he has got. All those experiences are really important and what you want him to do is learn from them, whether that is for a big Test match for England or for us in the playoffs in a couple of months, hopefully.
“I don’t think anyone who has become world-class has had an easy ride. Exits like this are things to learn from. There is only really one way to grow and learn from these things. You probably figure from me I want to walk away from learning from these events – these lads will learn for sure.
“For a lot of guys who felt they missed opportunities, a loss and exit like that means we have got lots to work on. We will take the positives out of being knocked out of Europe and try and use that energy to make our game better so we can stay in the top four.
Comments on RugbyPass
I hope Leinster’s proud of themselves fielding a poor team. They should decide if they’re all in or not.
1 Go to commentsJordie is looking at 16 games maximum if Leinster reach both the URC and champions cup finals. Thats not guaranteed. Some of those home URC fixtures will be cakewalks as well for Leinster and there is not much doing during the 6 nations in Feb and March so he can probably get a decent rest then. He will have to really put in it for maybe 7 or 8 games max. It should be a good move for both.
13 Go to commentsThe game was a quarter final, not a semi final. Barrett will be here for 6 months, he is no one's replacement at 13. That mantle will most likely ultimately go to Jamie Osborne, though Garry Ringrose has at least 4 more years in him. The long term problem position (in the next 3 years) for Leinster is tighthead prop, though there are a couple of prospects at schools level.
25 Go to commentsSo much for all that hype surrounding the ‘revival’ of Aussie rugby. The Blues were without the likes of regular starters Perofeta, Sullivan, Christie etc… This was a capitulation of the highest order by Australia’s finest. Joe Schmidt definitely has his work cut out for him.
2 Go to commentsYes they can ignore Sotutu. Like Akira Ioane plays OK at Super level but gets lost in tests. Too many chances too many failures.
2 Go to commentsA wallaby front-row of Bell, Blake and Tupou…now that would be hefty
1 Go to comments“But with an exceptional pass accuracy rating “ Which apart from Roigard is not a feature of any of the other 9s in NZ. Kind of basic for a Black 9 dont.you. think? Yet we keep seeing FC and TJ being rated ahead of him? Weird if it’s seen as vital to get our backline beating in your face defences.
1 Go to commentsThanks BeeMc! Looks like many teams need extra time to settle from the quadrennial northern migration. I think generally the quality of the Rugby has held up. Fiji has been fantastic and fun to watch
13 Go to commentsLets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
13 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
10 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
13 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
6 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
25 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
6 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
10 Go to comments