Paul Gustard ‘gutted’ for Chris Robshaw after Stoop loss

Adam Kyriacou
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Harlequins boss Paul Gustard admitted Chris Robshaw’s final match at Twickenham Stoop had been ruined by the red card shown to Elia Elia that resulted in a 32-23 defeat by Wasps.

Quins were leading 20-8 when Elia was sent off for a dangerous tackle on Dan Robson with just under half an hour remaining and instantly the balance swung towards the Premiership title contenders.

It was a frustrating way for former England captain Robshaw to say farewell after 16 years at his only club before joining San Diego Legion.

“Chris’ record speaks for itself. Most people have been touched by Robbo,” head of rugby Gustard said.

“He’s been outstanding and I’m personally gutted for him that he didn’t win his final game at the Stoop.

“It’s obvious – the tackle was the vital moment. We conceded 24 points after the red card. At that point we were 20-8 up.

“They scored 24 points and we only scored three. You do the maths. The momentum was massively with us and then we lost that player.

“It was a late tackle. He felt he was committed to the tackle, but under the way it’s interpreted now you have to check out of that. I thought the referee did pretty well and I supported the decision.

“I’m gutted for the club because we put an awful lot of effort into the game. We had a tough start because we lost our starting hooker (Scott Baldwin) and loosehead (Santiago Garcia Botta) before the game.

“I’m gutted for Robbo and this would have been an important game for us in securing sixth and now we have more work to do.”

Wasps climbed up one place to second in the table and are in pole position to secure a home semi-final with only one round of the regular season remaining.

“In the first half they had the advantage, but our bench gave us a great impact. And you still have to go and win games when they go down to 14,” head coach Lee Blackett said.

“It’s the confidence of the group to come back. Did we play well? No. But it’s coming to the business end, so it’s about results now.”

 

Harlequins