Cardiff boss’ frank admission will worry Welsh fans after crushing defeat
The players walk out to the pitch before the Investec Champions Cup match at the Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff.
Cardiff head coach Matt Sherratt accepted that more illustrious opponents beat his side in Europe this season, with his admission bound to concern fans.
Sherratt said that his team had no answers to the quality performance of Harlequins as the Premiership outfit ran in eight tries in a 54-15 thumping at a sell-out Cardiff Arms Park.
The win virtually booked Quins a place in the Champions Cup last 16, with Jack Walker, Will Evans, Andre Esterhuizen, Will Beard, Dillon Lewis, Fin Baxter, Tyrone Green and Marcus Smith all grabbing tries for the visitors.
Meanwhile, Thomas Young crossed for two tries for the hosts, who were soundly beaten.
“No one expected us to get very far”
The result adds to the Welsh regions’ woes as they struggle to retain their top talents and compete in the top competitions.
It’s set to become even more challenging for the Welsh URC sides, as they are set to have their budgets cut ahead of next season.
The challenges facing the Welsh teams meant that they were on the back foot in the Champions Cup, and after three losses from three matches, Sherratt believes that no one expected his side to succeed.
As the only Welsh URC side in the tournament, Sherratt’s remarks will concern fans as he added that they were simply not of the same quality as the rest of their pool.
“Let’s be fair. No one expected us to get very far in the competition when we drew the equivalent of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Man City in our group,” Sherratt said.
“We had good energy in the first half and scored a couple of decent tries, but we lost a lot of confidence with that try just before half-time. It was unusually quiet in the dressing room at half-time as that try knocked the stuffing out of us.
“We were beaten by a better side in most areas, and what you can’t do against quality sides is help them to use their firepower, and I believe we did that on a few times tonight.
“They are well ahead of us in terms of foundation, and there isn’t a quick fix as we have to start virtually at the bottom.
Good night for Harlequins
Meanwhile, Harlequins head coach Danny Wilson – who was previously employed at Cardiff – was far less cynical about his former employer’s form.
“Cardiff have been playing well lately, and they should have beaten Bath, so we came here knowing how dangerous they can be,” Wilson said.
“They obviously came with an aerial gameplan, and they got a fair bit out of us using that tactic in the first half, but we adjusted well.
“We got set-piece dominance and played a strangling game with our driving line-out going well before we were able to execute our customary DNA.
“I lost here when I came back with Glasgow, so it’s nice to return with a 50-point win, and it was a good night all round.”
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