Aviva Premiership: Round 3 Review

After four rounds the table is looking a little different to how many would have predicted and our Aviva Premiership sides are heading to Europe with varying degrees of confidence after their Round 4 performances.

On Friday night the Twickenham Stoop turned on its floodlights as Harlequins hosted the Sale Sharks. As expected it was a tale of the fly halves as both Nick Evans and Danny Cipriani were instrumental for their sides. The opening half was dominated by the Sharks as they controlled the possession and territory courtesy of their 10 and it was his crossfield kick that was capitalised on by Dan Braid resulting in their opening try. For twenty minutes after the break Harlequins turned up to their own party and that was when Nick Evans showed his box of tricks. Nick set up Tim Visser for a score with a crossfield kick of his own helping Visser atone for the mistake that gave Dan Braid the opening score of the night and  the Kiwi also delivered accurately from the tee. However in the final quarter Harlequins fell back asleep and gave Conor O’Shea kittens until the final whistle. Sale, well they pressed and pressed, Sam James scored a second sensational try in as many matches and had Danny Cipriani’s radar been on form they would have taken the full four points. As it was, his penalty and a final drop goal attempt, both slid wide and Quins breathed a big sigh of relief. Full Time Harlequins 16 Sale Sharks 14

The Madjeski Stadium witnessed a drama fest as London Irish lost by 14 points to 45 against Bath Rugby. It was a tempestuous and at times ill mannered affair with a particularly potent period in the opening half. On 20 minutes Matt Garvey was yellow carded for pulling down the maul and a penalty try was awarded to London Irish. However after the TMO's intervention both decisions were reserved and the Exiles' Brendon McKibbin was given red for connecting his foot with the head of Henry Thomas. Try exchanges from Oli Devoto, who later received a yellow of his own, and Scott Steele followed and they left the game precariously poised going into the break however there was more bad news en route for Irish. Try scorer Steele left the field with a nasty looking injury and mean that for the remainder of the game they were going to be a man down and without a specialist scrum half on the field… less than ideal to say the least!! After half time Bath Rugby scored 14 unanswered points and exploited their advantage, Irish worked hard for their consolation score however in the end just couldn't cope. The result leaves the Exiles heading to Europe in search of their first victory and gives Bath a spot of confidence after what must have been a tough week. Full Time London Irish 14 Bath Rugby 45

Come May 2016 how important will this Round 4 victory be for the Worcester Warriors over the side that are currently bottom of the Aviva Premiership table the Newcastle Falcons? The Warriors did the damage in the first half with four converted tries including two from new man Bryce Heem. The second half didn’t produce the same number of points, in fact there were just three courts of the boot of Falcons' Tom Catterick.  Dean Richards’ described his side’s defence as ‘woeful’ in that opening half and watching his side fall off tackles and lose their defensive of shape will frustrate the Director of Rugby as much as their ill discipline. In contrast the Warriors were well organised and composed however Dean Ryan will have something to say about the fact that they didn't truly press on in the second after a positive opening half. Full Time Worcester Warriors 28 Newcastle Falcons 20

After scoring 19 points against the Northampton Saints in this fixture back in May, Owen Farrell continued to hurt Jim Mallinder’s side slotting everything off the tee and providing Saracens with their fourth victory of the season. The visitors totally spoiled the opening party for the new Barwell stand as their trademark defensive intensity that stifled the home side. By all accounts this match was far from being a vintage classic, instead it was a dogged eighty minutes of rugby with plenty of bite. Tom Wood had a industrious performance in Saints’ back row and on the other side Maro Itoje continued to remind us all of his immense talent. Saints had plenty of brawn but not quite enough invention to bang down Saracens' defensive brick wall and Jim Mallinder has a spot to ponder on before starting their European adventures. Full Time Northampton Saints 6 Saracens 12

At Sandy Park the Exeter Chiefs recorded their first win over the Leicester Tigers since the 2011/12 season. The Chiefs’ captain Gareth Steenson had a sensational match scoring all of his side’s points and being instrumental in their victory. Had Adam Thompstone’s try been allowed on 33 minutes then the game might have taken a different turn, however the TMO deemed him to have knocked on and the Chiefs slotted another penalty before the break. For the visitors Telusa Veainu looks like a fine signing as he caused issues from full back however as a collective they didn’t have enough cut through to topple the Chiefs. Richard Cockerill didn’t hold back with his post match assessment saying that his side were ‘beaten physically’ and that there were some ‘bruised egos’ in the changing room. On the other hand the Chiefs now head into Europe absolutely flying and sitting in second in the early Aviva Premiership table. Full Time Exeter Chiefs 19 Leicester Tigers 6

At the Ricoh Arena Wasps' recorded their second victory of the opening four rounds against the Cherry and Whites. Gloucester Rugby had a tough opening half and went into the back 0-16 down failing to score a point in a half for first time since October 2011. The moment of the opening forty was a beautiful combination between Wasps' backline as Wade, Piutau and Daly showed us their pace and hands. After the break David Halaifonua saw red for what referee Ian Tempest and his TMO described as a 'high swinging arm’. Even after that point Gloucester showed a spot of defiance and  had plenty of possession but just couldn't convert it to points. The drama continued until the very end as with 7 minutes to go Lorenzo Cittadini received a red card for a over zealous reaction towards Billy Twelvetrees mid breakdown however no further points were scored. Full Time Wasps 23 Gloucester Rugby 3