Bath are facing catastrophe, Ellis Genge offers grounds for English optimism and Josh McNally makes a poignant returnAnother home defeat in the Premiership for Bath, whose season is now in grave danger of unravelling. It may have taken a late Joe Simmonds penalty for Exeter but after a bright start to the campaign Bath’s inconsistency has been their downfall and they occupy eighth place in the table. They will most likely have to win all four of their remaining matches to reach the play-offs and failure to qualify for the Champions Cup would be an unmitigated disaster. Bath have not been helped by injuries but there have been times this season when Todd Blackadder’s frustration at his players’ inability to...
Saracens became the only Premiership club to gain a European Champions Cup quarter-final place, Scarlets were the comeback kids and injuries made grim viewing for GatlandWasps must be kicking themselves for their late capitulation at Harlequins the previous weekend for there can be little doubt it was at the Stoop where their hopes of reaching the knockout stages disappeared. To their credit they produced perhaps their best performance of their campaign to eliminate Ulster, securing an emphatic bonus point win only to come up just short as they and Exeter finished as the two runners-up who failed to qualify. In doing so they may have also answered a few critics who could suggest they are a fairweather team – scoring...
Manu Tuilagi needs more time to recapture his best form while Wales’s Josh Adams is at the top of his game and will deserve a first Six Nations call-upBecause it is Manu Tuilagi, the question had to be asked, but if he were picked for England now it would be more on faith than form, notwithstanding the cheeky and acrobatic manner in which he leapt over a writhing mass of bodies to score Leicester’s third try in their victory against London Irish at Welford Road on Saturday. Tuilagi had also played a part in their second try, but that was more in the vein of a Keystone Cop. “We need to have a realistic view of Manu,” said Matt O’Connor,...
Of the five Champions Cup groups, Pool 5 looks like going down to the final weekend – with one point separating the top three: Bath, Toulon and ScarletsTake nothing away from Wasps’ hugely impressive victory against La Rochelle but the absence of Victor Vito, Levani Botia, Pierre Aguillon and Jason Eaton from the starting XV must be taken into consideration. Wasps certainly learnt from their mistakes of seven days previous however, were far more physical in the collisions and had Danny Cipriani in fine fettle at fly-half. It is not so long ago that Wasps were in somewhat of a crisis, languishing down towards the foot of the Premiership table amid a terrible run of injuries. Elliot Daly may yet...
England clubs suffered their worst set of results in European history but Bath, Leicester, Saracens and Wasps have the chance to lead a reversal of fortunesOK, so it looks bad. Seven European defeats for England’s seven Champions Cup representatives was their worst return in European history. Given four of the games were at home, it bodes ill for the reverse fixtures this weekend. Fair play to their Pro14 and Top 14 rivals but hang on; are we saying Bath have no chance at home to Toulon, that Leicester are doomed when they entertain Munster at Welford Road and that La Rochelle are guaranteed to win at Wasps? All are potentially competitive fixtures, all could still go either way. Even if...