Harlequins v Stormers: Five takeaways as visitors ‘refusal to enlist top players’ resulted in ‘exhibition’ display while back-row trio ‘deserved’ standing ovation
Harlequins vs Stormers: Five takeaways as visitors 'refusal to enlist top players' resulted in 'exhibition' display while back-row trio 'deserved' standing ovation
Harlequins came through their Investec Champions Cup round three fixture unscathed on Sunday against an understrength and overwhelmed Stormers, winning 61-10.
Here are our five takeaways:
The top line
On a chilly South West London afternoon, Quins warmed up the vocal cords of their loyal fans first, striking through openside flanker Jack Kenningham. Cadan Murley shortly followed, bombing it down the wing after a brilliant catch and pass from Luke Northmore.
Alex Dombrandt was up next, crashing through the Stormers’ defensive line to extend the early lead. The captain seemed destined to score again just minutes later, but after a chaotic try-line dash, it was Chandler Cunningham-South who cashed in on a spilt ball.
Nick David was the last to score in the first half when Northmore broke the line once again to set up a chain of passes that would see the winger dive over in the corner.
Quins’ dominance continued in the second half. On another one of his barnstorming runs, Cunningham-South broke through the line, with David eventually finishing in the corner for his second. Minutes later, the talented winger was back for his third, taking advantage of yet another Stormers mistake. Zach Carr was next, collecting a chipped ball to take the side beyond the half-century.
The Stormers weren’t about to be beaten down quite yet, though, as two quick-fire tries came via Imad Khan and Dylan Maart.
Murley helped put the smiles back on the faces of the Quins faithful by putting replacement Jarrod Evans through to finish the evening with a try of his own.
Understrength Stormers
Numerous big-name players were missing from the Stormers lineup. There was no Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, no Cobus Reinach to name just a couple. You can’t blame the players, but who do you blame? The coaches? The organisers?
Sadly, the result was written before the match had started. Despite the large South African fan base at the Stoop on Sunday afternoon, there was never going to be a fairytale underdog story here.
A full-strength Stormers side would have created quite the match-up against the all-action Quins, but their refusal to enlist their top players led to what was essentially an exhibition display of one-sided rugby.
There were periods of quality play from the visitors, particularly with the emergence of their bench, but they were simply ‘periods’, and games can’t be won without sustained quality.
Back-row leading from the front
Dombrandt is out of favour in the England camp at the moment, but with the Six Nations on the horizon, and Tom Willis set to move to France, this performance felt like a real statement.
Speaking to Planet Rugby last month, the Harlequins captain told us that he still has a “burning desire” to return to the England squad, and off the back of this performance, it’ll be hard for Steve Borthwick to ignore.
The same can be said for both Cunningham-South and Kenningham, who also had terrific matches – the latter even being named as the Player of the Match. Kenningham is yet to win a senior cap, despite featuring in the wider Autumn Nations Series squad, but if he continues to put in performances like this, he should expect full international honours soon.
CCS proved once again just how much of an impact he can make on both sides of the ball. He was ferocious in the tackle, slamming Stormers players into the turf with every available opportunity, whilst shaking players off with ease when he decided to stretch his legs with the ball.
With the job done, two of the back row trio received a well-deserved standing ovation when they exited the field midway through the second half.
Efficient to the end
From a purely statistical point of view, the Stormers were highly competitive. They led the possession stats, weren’t too far behind on territory, won all of their scrums, and had an impressive 94% lineout success rate.
But, as we all know, statistics don’t lie; you just need to know where to look.
First of all, Harlequins’ post-contact metres were astronomical compared to their visitors, particularly when you compare how few carries they had. Quins made 31 fewer carries than their South African opponents, but made 127 more metres thanks to their remarkable 18 line breaks.
The other major stat to look at was the number of turnovers that were gained and lost by either side. Quins were hot on the ball, with 12 turnovers won, whilst Stormers failed to look after their possession, losing it a shocking 17 times.
A message to the fans
It’s well known that Quins are struggling domestically, but this performance in Europe will have done the world of good for the club and their fans. Just a few days after the club sent out a statement to address their recent lack of form following the exit of their former coach, Danny Wilson, Harlequins were back playing like the Premiership-winning team of old.
The support lines were hyper-accurate, offloads were crisp, sidesteps were instinctive and the tackles were hard. Although it was arguably against a weak side, the impact that this demolition victory will have cannot be understated.
As I sit here in the Investec events room after the game, the atmosphere is more cheerful than it has been in weeks. Fans are already swapping stories from the game and planning their next European adventure.
Although it all feels a tad premature, this performance has brought back the optimism that this club thrives on.