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'The victory keeps us in the hunt but it doesn't get any easier for us'
Tabai Matson has warned Harlequins not to relax in their pursuit of a Gallagher Premiership play-off place after a 41-14 win at London Irish put them clear of the chasing pack.
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The defending champions scored seven tries, including two for Jack Walker and Huw Jones, and are just two wins away from securing their place in the top four.
Quins are third in the table but Matson is wary of upcoming games against league leaders Leicester and perennial contenders Exeter.
“The victory keeps us in the hunt but it doesn’t get any easier for us with Leicester, Gloucester, Northampton and Exeter in our last four games,” he said.
“But being in the top four is the marker in the ground and we are in the box seat.
“We’re clearly so happy with the five-point win here because we put all our eggs into this basket and we weren’t thinking any further than London Irish at Brentford. We’re so happy with that result.
“It was a tough encounter early. Probably one thing we’re really proud of is containing their scoreline. They’ve scored a lot of tries and are one of the best defensive teams in the competition.
“One of the things I love about London Irish is that they are one of the best teams in the league at the breakdown and on the back of that they score a stack load of points. So this week we’ve really focused on that and guys like Hugh (Tizard) have done a lot of the unsung work today.”
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London Irish took the lead through a Paddy Jackson try but Harlequins fought back, with Cadan Murley, Danny Care and Andre Esterhuizen also crossing for scores.
Irish gained a late consolation through Benhard van Rensburg but it was of little comfort to director of rugby Declan Kidney, who saw his team’s hopes of a top-four finish end.
He said: “There’s frustration, but also the knowledge that we are creating the chances. Today was just one of those days where we didn’t convert them into points.
“We won’t be a side that will make excuses. We’ll congratulate Harlequins on their win and they took 80 to 90 per cent of the chances that came their way, and we took 10 or 20 per cent that came our way. And in a game like this, it’ll give you a scoreline like it was.
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“I thought our endeavour and application through it was very good. There were obviously some errors that we made in small aspects of play and in a game like this, that is going to cost you.”
Comments on RugbyPass
It was a let’s-see-what-you're-made-of type of a game. The Bulls do look good when the opposition allows them to, but Munster shut them down, and they could not find a way through. Jake should be very worried about their chances in the competition.
2 Go to commentsHats off to Fabian for a very impressive journey to date. Is it as ‘uniquely unlikely’ as Rugby Pass suggests, given Anton Segner’s journey at the Blues?
1 Go to commentsSad that this was not confirmed. When administrators talk about expanding the game they evidently don’t include pathways to the top tier of rugby for teams outside of the old boys club. Rugby deserves better, and certainly Georgia does.
1 Go to commentsLions might take him on if they move on Van Rooyen but I doubt he will want to go back, might consider it a step backwards for himself. Sharks would take him on but if Plumtree goes on to win the challenge cup they will keep him on. Also sharks showing some promising signs recently. Stormers and Bulls are stable and Springboks are already filled up. Quality coach though, interesting to see where he ends up
1 Go to commentsAnd the person responsible for creating a culture of accountability is?
2 Go to commentsMore useless words from Ben Smith -Please get another team to write about. SA really dont need your input, it suck anyway.
264 Go to commentsThis disgraceful episode must result in management and coach team sackings. A new manager with worse results than previous and the coaching staff need to coached. Awful massacre led by donkeys.
1 Go to commentsInteresting article with one glaring mistake. This sentence: “And between the top four nations right now, Ireland, France, South Africa, and New Zealand…” should read: And between the top four nations right now, South Africa, Ireland, New Zealand and France…”. Get it right wistful thinkers, its not that hard.
23 Go to commentsHow did Penny get the gig anyway?
2 Go to commentsNice write up Nick and I would have agreed a week ago. However as you would know Cale & co got absolutely monstered by the Blues back row of Sotutu, Ioane and Papaliti and not all of these 3 are guaranteed a start in the Black jumper. He may need to put some kgs before stepping up, Spring tour? After the week end Joe will be a bit more restless. Will need to pick a mobile tough pack for Wales and hope England does the right thing and bashes the ABs. I like your last paragraph but I would bring Swinton, Hannigan into the 6 role and Bobby V to 8
21 Go to commentsThe Crusaders can still get in to the Play Off’s. The imminent return of outstanding captain Scott Barrett and his All Black team mate Codie Taylor will be a big boost.There are others like Tamaiti Williams too. Two home games coming up. Fellow Crusader fans get there and support these guys. I will be.
1 Go to commentsCant get more Wellington than Proctor.
2 Go to commentsWhy not let the media decide. Like how they choose the head coach. Like most of us we entrust the rugby system to choose. A rugby team includes the coaches. It's collective.
13 Go to commentsHi NIck, I have been very impressed with him and he seems a smart player who can see opportunities which Bobby V _(who must be an international 6_) doesn’t see or have the speed to take advantage of. If he continues to improve and puts on 5kgs then he could be a great 8. He is a bit taller than Keiran Reid at 1.93m and 111 kgs, so his skill set fits his body size and who knows where it will lead. I hope the spate of Achilles tendon issues have been dealt with by the S&C people. It’s been a very long time since Mark Loane and Kefu stood out at 8. The question is will we be able to hold onto him, if he does make it he will be pretty hot property. I disagree with the idea of letting them go to the Northern Hemisphere and then bring them back.
21 Go to commentsBilly Fulton 🤣🤣🤣🤣 garrrmon not even close
13 Go to commentsDoes the AI take into account refs? hahaha Seriously why not have two on field refs to avoid bias?
23 Go to commentsVern challenging this Blues side might be the edge they need to fulfill their potential. Convincing results from strong D and strong carries are hard to argue against.
1 Go to commentsLove seems to add a strong back field defense with speed to close the gap and tackle to his ability to attack, kick and pass (an accurate long pass). This sets him an edge over some of the other names - JRK in particular. Has to be said that Jordan and Stevenson have also been exposed defensively while Love has yet to face test match intensity. Spoilt for choice.
1 Go to commentsHe’s strung together a few strong seasons, I’d like to see him in the ABs and build some depth along with Reiko and ALB. Levi Aumua hasn’t taken the step we hoped to see but time yet.
2 Go to commentsWhere has our good friend Pecos gone!? Similar place to the Crusaders D, the abyss.
4 Go to comments