Harlequins player ratings: Visitors suffer ‘humiliating’ defeat with few positives against Leinster
Dejected Harlequins players during their Champions Cup loss to Leinster.
After their humiliating 62-0 defeat against Leinster in their Investec Champions Cup encounter at Croke Park, here’s how the Harlequins squad performed on Saturday.
Backline blues
15 Leigh Halfpenny: Not a good day at the office for the former Wales full-back. He was off target with an early penalty attempt and offered little on attack from the back. Also missed some tackles on defence and eventually replaced by Luke Northmore in the 53rd minute. 4
14 Tyrone Green: The South African speedster showed his class on attack as he looked dangerous when he found himself in space and kept Leinster‘s defence on their toes with some solid runs. 6
13 Oscar Beard: He was in the wars as he left the field late in the opening half for an HIA which he passed and returned shortly afterwards. Like the rest of his team-mates, he did plenty of defending and missed a few tackles. 4
12 Ben Waghorn: Little to report here as he battled to give his team momentum with the few attacking opportunities and he was targeted in midfield by Robbie Henshaw and Garry Ringrose. 4
11 Nick David: The 26-year-old had few attacking opportunities and was restricted mostly to defensive duties and did well in that facet of play. 5
10 Marcus Smith: The England playmaker battled to get Quins’ backline firing as he was put under tremendous pressure by Leinster’s rush defence. With Leinster’s forwards holding an edge throughout, he saw much less ball than his counterpart Sam Prendergast and could not unlock the home side’s defence. 5
9 Will Porter: The 26-year-old battled behind a retreating pack and offered little on attack before leaving the field in the2th minute due to injury with Danny Care replacing him. 5
Forwards come off second best
8 Alex Dombrandt (c): The Harlequins skipper was arguably his side’s best player as he put in a huge shift for the full 80 minutes. He gave Quins momentum as a ball carrier during the early stages but became less influential as the match progressed. Continued to toil manfully on attack, while he also impressed on defence. 6
7 Will Evans: He was lively during the early exchanges, especially on defence where he put his body on the line, but forced off in the 28th minute for an HIA which he failed. 5
6 Jack Kenningham: Like the rest of the Harlequins team, he was restricted mostly to defensive duties and gave his all in that department and was also a willing ball carrier. 5
5 Chandler Cunningham-South: Despite starting in an unfamiliar position, the England back-row caught the eye with some strong carries without making a big impact. Eventually moved to the flank and was also solid in defence. 5
4 Joe Launchbury: The veteran second-row did what was expected of him in the lineouts and also got through plenty of work on defence. 5
3 Titi Lamositele: The Samoan international stood up well in his scrum battle against Andrew Porter and was solid in defence during a 59-minute stint with Simon Kerrod coming on as his replacement. 6
2 Jack Walker: He was lively during the early exchanges and impressed in the execution of his core duties but only lasted 59 minutes as Sam Riley eventually replaced him. 5
1 Fin Baxter: The England rookie gave a good account of himself his direct battle in the scrums with veteran front-row Rabah Slimani before continuing that good work against another experienced front-row in Ireland star Tadhg Furlong. Also put his body on the line as a ball carrier and in defence before being replaced in the 70th minute by Wyn Jones. 6
Replacements Like the visitors’ starting line-up, their replacements came off second best in most departments and failed to make the necessary impact required when the team was under the cosh. Their cause wasn’t helped when Northmore and Benson were yellow carded in quick succession late in the second half. 5
👀 READ MORE: 👉 Nigel Owens opens up on ‘hideous’ Bloodgate scandal and reveals the one thing he is ‘glad of’