28-0 down but Quins come back to make Premiership final
HOW on earth did Harlequins manage that? Forget Lazarus, they will need to rewrite the old book now to reference this — the greatest comeback in Premiership history, Quins 28-0 down at one point but now finalists after rising from not just the dead, but the completely buried, winning after extra time against Bristol.
The facts are that four second-half tries — from Tyrone Green, Louis Lynagh, James Chisholm, and Joe Marchant — extraordinarily meant that come full-time Quins had levelled the scores.
After half an hour they were beaten, Ben Earl, Max Malins — twice — and Luke Morahan all scoring wonderful tries for Bristol to add to Callum Sheedy’s two penalties, but Alex Dombrandt’s try just before half-time gave Quins the faintest hope of a revival that surely even they never expected to complete.
Then before half-time of extra time Green’s second try meant Harlequins had their sixth of the game, so when Malins claimed his hat-trick and Bristol’s fifth six minutes from the end Sheedy did not bother lining up the conversion as if the scores stayed level Quins were through on tries scored.
Boos then rang around Bristol as Marchant’s second was allowed in the 104th minute after the referee Wayne Barnes ruled Luke Northmore’s hit on Siale Piutau in the build-up was fair.
As Quins leapt about madly at full-time, their coaching committee were unable to contain themselves pitchside knowing they would return to Twickenham next week for the club’s first final since 2012.
‘I’m still in shock,’ Billy Millard, Quins’ general manager, said. ‘ Today was very emotional. I watched the last two and a half minutes in the changing room. Kyle Sinckler [the Bristol prop] had to tell me what was happening. He was in t here as well peeking through the door.’
Two penalties from Sheedy set Bristol on their way before the savagery started. First from a quick line-out Charles Piutau hit the dancefloor and threw some special moves to fox a broken defence; with him i n behind and Semi Radradra and Earl outside there was only one outcome.
Next Nathan Hughes — with a fresh red-tipped haircut — piled on, allowing Malins to sneak around the corner to score with ease.
When Malins then had his second on the left and Morahan span through a turnstile tackle to take Bristol’s fourth, Quins were a distant third in a two-horse race.
Having missed three conversions, Sheedy, not knowing how crucial they would be, hit that last one.
Bless them, the 500 Harlequins fans kept singing and at last the tiniest glimmer of hope for them came two minutes before half-time as Dombrandt pounced on a loose ball and galloped away to beat Malins to the line.
After Marcus Smith’s missed kick Quins went into the interval for their dressing down, which must have registered as they shot out of the blocks in the second half.
Danny Care tapped a penalty quickly in the Bristol 22 and Green whacked through, Smith kicking a quick conversion.
When the Bears fumbled in their 22 and Chisholm nicked the ball to score the visiting coaches went spare, sensing the tide turning.
Then Dombrandt became Moses, parting Bristol like the Red Sea, before firing a pass to Lynagh who sped in. A Sheedy penalty took Bristol’s lead back out to seven before Marchant raced in with five minutes left. Smith levelled the scores with the conversion and it was extra time — never before seen in 33 previous play-off semis.
In added time Sheedy hit a post with a penalty, before Green scored Quins’ crucial sixth.
‘You don’t always get the fairytale,’ said Bristol boss Pat Lam.
Try telling Quins that.