Harlequins’ 17-10 win over Saracens last weekend might be the crucial turning point they needed.
It had been 1,723 days since they had beaten their bitter rivals, but they managed to rewrite the narrative at The Stoop.
But in breaking an eight-game losing streak against Sarries, Quins showcased a new side to them - a team capable of blending moments of fantastic flair with pure grit, and more importantly, one that can win tight, physical contests.
Yes, a standout try from the exciting Lennox Anyanwu and the effective kicking game of Marcus Smith helped Quins to victory but the real story lay in their defensive resilience.
Last season, Quins shipped 90 points in both Premiership meetings against Saracens but the recruitment of Australian defensive coach Jason Gilmore appears to be paying off.
"In the past, we’ve got the emotional bit wrong against Saracens..."
Stephan Lewies and Harlequins haven't beaten their fierce rivals in any of the last 8? #GallagherPrem meetings.
But the South African is desperate to set the record straight on Sunday...??… pic.twitter.com/yuT1OLWUgj
In simplifying the approach, he looks for players to strengthen their commitment on the field and that was embodied by the likes of Will Evans, Jack Kenningham and Fin Baxter.
In total, Quins made 229 tackles and missed only 27 and even when they were reduced to 14 men following James Chisholm’s early yellow card, they showed maturity and poise.
The aforementioned Baxter made four dominant tackles and once again highlighted why he is one of the best-emerging props in the country.
The 22-year-old looks to have built on the baptism of fire he experienced during England’s summer tour of New Zealand. Last week’s display against the six-time Premiership champions has only enhanced his claim to start against the All Blacks again when Steve Borthwick’s side begin their Autumn Nations Series campaign on November 2nd.
His intelligent score in last Sunday’s victory only added to the physicality and energy which Baxter usually brings and he will be a huge asset to Quins when they face Bath this weekend.
Come full-time on Saturday, Danny Wilson’s side would have played all of last season’s top four - Sale Sharks, Northampton Saints, Saracens and Bath - so victory over the Blue, Black and White would not only consolidate last weekend’s win over Saracens, but it would leave Quins in a healthy position after a tough start to the season.
This corresponding fixture last term was arguably one of the games of the season.
In typical Quins fashion, they dazzled to lead 40-7 just after half-time but Bath roared back and scored 29 unanswered points to set up a grandstand finale in South-West London.
In the end, the hosts held on but maybe that high-octane brand of rugby we have been used to seeing from Quins will once again be mixed in with the relentless and suffocating defensive effort we saw against Saracens.
Club captain Alex Dombrandt will return from injury to face Bath and will join two of last week’s standout performers - Evans and Kenningham - in the back-row while Smith remains at 10.
Full-back Tyrone Green, centre Luke Northmore and new Argentinian winger Rodrigo Isgro are also named in the starting XV, which all only add to the belief generated from last Saturday’s win over Saracens.
However, Bath are more than capable of bursting the bubble and are fully loaded to take on Quins with the likes of Ollie Lawrence, Alfie Barbeary, Finn Russell and Ben Spencer all selected.
