GP: rugby365's Team of the Week
Mon, 01 Dec 2008 18:38
The inevitability of their third consecutive defeat on Saturday meant England fans, including Martin Johnson, were in desperate need of being cheered up this weekend. They just had to tune into the Guinness Premiership to see things might not be so bad after all.
London Irish and Gloucester are both packed with potential internationals and it’s these two entertaining sides that are level on points at the top of the table after another exciting weekend.
The Cherry and Whites may be just behind Irish on points difference, but their 33-10 win over Northampton was most impressive. England discard Olly Barkley was the star of the show after he replaced Anthony Allen in the centre in the second minute and went on to score one and set up two tries. Ryan Lamb’s boot was again instrumental in the success, with the yellow-booted Lesley Vanikolo and Ian Balshaw giving Johnson a little nudge too. In the loose, Ally Strokosch looked impressive, with Marco Bortolami dominant in the line-out.
By contrast, The Exiles secured their fifth successive victory but made heavy work of it against bottom of the table Bristol. Sailosi Tagicakibau put Irish ahead with a brilliant individual try from the halfway line in a poor first half but then Bristol’s pack, with No.8 Dan Ward-Smith to the fore, began to exert some pressure. They came back to within a point thanks to a try from centre Luke Eves but Shane Geraghty’s breakaway try sealed the win and top spot for Irish.
Having looked like a real force in recent weeks, the wheels came off for Bath at Harlequins as the hosts confirmed their play-off potential by triumphing 21-14. It took until the 62nd minute for Quins to get back on level terms, however, when centre Jordan Turner-Hall crashed over to cancel out Jonny Faamatuainu’s earlier try. In the end, a piece of quick-thinking from a penalty tap by No.8 Tom Guest allowed prop Ceri Jones to seal the win that lifts Quins into fifth spot.
Sale occupy the final play-off position after a great showing at home to Leicester. They raced into a 17-3 half-time lead thanks to an inspiring performance from flu-ridden fly half Charlie Hodgson, with Mark Cueto and Mathew Tait both crossing. The second half was much tighter as Leicester came back into contention but the presence of Sebastian Chabal stymied much of their attacking play, with full back Rory Lamont making sure of the points with a breakaway try in the last minute.
Saracens have been slipping out of contention after three weeks of failure but they checked Worcester’s good form with a 23-6 victory at Vicarage Road. Neil de Kock’s partnership with Glen Jackson was on song throughout as the fly half set up Kameli Ratuvou and then went over himself to make it 13-6 at half-time. Worcester’s pack has been the foundation for their success this season but Italian hooker Fabio Ongaro was the rock that they floundered upon, with replacement Bradley Barritt notching his first try for the Sarries late on.
At the foot of the table, two of the Premiership’s ‘crisis’ teams were in opposition but it was Wasps who finally secured just their second win of the season thanks to a late try from replacement prop Charlie Beech. Five penalties from the boot of Dave Walder wiped out an early try from former England rugby league star Danny Williams but Tom May put the Falcons back in front with a spectacular 80 metre touchdown. The dominance of the Wasps pack at set plays thanks to the powerful lock George Skivington was to prove too much for the hosts, though, and Beech’s try lifted the pressure on Iain McGeechan’s men.
With the autumn internationals now over, the congested table may just allow the champions the chance to sneak back into the frame when the Premiership resumes on December 20.
Team of the Week: 15 Rory Lamont, 14 Lesley Vanikolo, 13 Olly Barkley, 12 Jordan Turner-Hall, 11 Sailosi Tagicakibau, 10 Charlie Hodgson, 9 Neil De Kock, 8 Dan Ward-Smith, 7 Ally Strokosch, 6 Sebastian Chabal, 5 George Skivington, 4 Marco Bortloami, 3 Ceri Jones, 2 Fabio Ongaro, 1 Charlie Beech
by Ed Aarons
What do you think? Does the Premiership offer some promise? Let us know who shone for you over the weekend...
