Euro rugby is dazzling, so there’s no shame in English struggles
SO, WHEN the dust has settled and the maths is done, we have just one English club in the quarterfinals of the Champions Cup. For me, this says more about the strength of European rugby than it does about any particular weakness of English clubs.
I’ve said it before — this year’s European Cup is exciting me more than almost any Test rugby I watched in November, thanks to the quality of players on view.
I’m certain it is the prelude to what is going to be an outstanding Six Nations. You only had to watch Stuart Hogg, back from injury, kick-start the Glasgow backs against Exeter on Saturday to know that.
With the majority of the French teams giving it everything, Munster and Leinster as strong as ever and the Scarlets flying the flag superbly for Wales, one or two places is about par for England.
Saracens scraped through in a very difficult pool despite hitting a run of injuries and poor form at the time of their doubleheader with Clermont before Christmas.
I wouldn’t write Sarries off yet. Players are coming back from injury all the time and, unless I’m mistaken, they’ve had their blip for the season.
Their quarter-final at Leinster has the potential to be an epic and I expect Leinster are wondering how they finished up with Saracens after qualifying as top seeds.
Wasps will be absolutely kicking themselves. Had they not coughed up that 28-12 lead at Quins last week they would have made it as well. Sincece it has been reduced to 20 teams, the Champions Cup is a very unforgiving competition.
Northampton and Leicester have been poor domestically and frankly it showed in Europe. Quins were undone by a poor start and Exeter blew hot and cold. They are not yet the force in Europe that they are in the Premiership and need to learn the lessons.
The other thing I really enjoyed aboutt the action over the lastt couple of rounds is howw the teams who were already out ‘turned up’, which helps maintain the competition’s integrity.
Glasgow beat Exeter, Quins beat Wasps and then made La Rochelle sweat yesterday and denied them a home quarter-final. No easy matches — just how it should be.
You don’t have to be Welsh to enjoy the way Scarlets are going about their work and they stayed true to themselves against Toulon at Parc y Scarlets on Saturday night to become the first team from Wales to reach the quarterfinals in six years.
It was a backs-to-the-wall effort in the second half but they had given themselves every chance with a first-half display full of attacking wit and verve.
I’m a big fan of their scrum-half Gareth Davies, who is a muscular bundle of energy and possesses one of the best sidesteps since Phil Bennett.
Perhaps his service isn’t quite as smooth as Rhys Webb’s but he is an exciting all-round talent who you fancy could probably play anywhere in the back line.
When you have teams going well in Europe it is almost all positive for a national coach. I used to love watching the Leicester, Bath and Wasps boys stride confidently into camp on the first Monday we met before the Six Nations.
They brought an energy and expectation of winning into our camp. The only slight downside I can see for Warren Gatland is that there will be a strong expectation for Wales to play in the image of Scarlets.
That sounds fine in theory, but it presents a few difficulties. At halfback, for example, he has two Lions tourists in Webb and Dan Biggar — hopefully fit after his knock — who have served Wales very well. Do you ditch them or ask them to play in the Scarlets’ style?
There are also two very important members of the Scarlets pack — Irishman Tadhg Beirne and Scotland captain John Barclay — who help set the tone but for obvious reasons aren’t available in the Six Nations. Can you replicate the Scarlets or do Wales have to put a slight twist on it?
You don’t hear the name Steff Armitage much these days, but on Friday night he was brilliant for a very impressive Pau team who put Gloucester away in some style at Kingsholm in the Challenge Cup.
To my eyes, he’s lost a bit of weight and is looking quicker than in recent years, without losing the power and strength that make him so strong over the ball at the breakdown. I can see him garnering yet another European winners medal with Pau this season.
I’m not going to beat the drum for him any more in terms of England; that ship has sailed.
But I will say one final time I just don’t understand the general principle that England get so hung up about a few players plying their trade an hour away in France — especially the likes of Armitage, Nick Abendanon, Chris Ashton and David Strettle. It seems an unnecessary shot in the foot.