Challenge Cup, Round Four roundup
Saints alive!
Northampton got Round Four of the European Challenge Cup underway with a classy 22-7 victory in Narbonne on Friday night; Bayonne bagged a predictable 45-6 win over Bucuresti.
NARBONNE 7-22 NORTHAMPTON
An inspired performance from second-string scrum-half Johnny Howard led Northampton to a classy 22-7 victory against Narbonne in France on Friday night.
Howard came into the side for the injured Mark Robinson and was behind most of the Saints' best play as they effectively knocked Narbonne out of the European Challenge Cup at Parc des Sports l'Amitie.
Winger John Rudd's early try put the visitors on the front foot and three penalty goals from New Zealand fullback Bruce Reihana helped the Saints to a 14-7 lead at half-time, despite the loss of England hooker Steve Thompson to the sin bin.
Reihana banged over a fourth penalty goal from long range to settle his side's nerves in the 48th minute and things looked good for the English club when Narbonne's inspirational back-rower Christian Labit was sent to the sin bin.
England winger Ben Cohen scored in the corner after some good work from Jon Clarke, and Labit's second yellow card and one to former Test prop and Narbonne try-scorer Franck Tournaire ensured Saints returned home with the points.
With Bristol expected to dispatch Italian minnows Viadana on Sunday, pool one should be decided on January 14 when Saints host their English rivals at Franklin Gardens.
BAYONNE 45-6 BUCURESTI
Bayonne bagged a predictable 45-6 victory over Romanian club Bucuresti at Stade Jean Dauger on Friday – but the French side must beat Gloucester at Kingsholm in the final round to have any chance of topping Pool Three.
Winger Vincent Noutary and hooker Christophe Laurent both scored try doubles in the one-sided match.
CONNACHT 22-21 WORCESTER
Connacht kept their hopes of a quarter-final place alive after securing a last-minute win in over Worcester.
Shane Drahm was almost once again was the hero as he landed some nerveless kicks in a tense final quarter, after Worcester turned around an 11-10 half-time deficit to lead 21-17.
But instead it was Connacht's John Fogerty who crossed the Worcester whitewash deep into injury time to steal the spoils.
Drahm opened the scoring with an early penalty, but a yellow card for Wales Chris Horsman followed it, and David Slemen equalised.
No sooner had Horsman returned than he was able to help hooker Chris Fortey over the line for a Worcester try, which Drahm converted.
Connacht scored eight points in first-half injury-time for their interval lead, a Slemen penalty quickly followed by a breakaway Conor McPhillips try.
Warwick landed two penalties to Drahm's one to make the score 17-13 going into the final quarter of the match, but with Connacht scrum-half Chris Keane in the bin, the Irish were not able to sit on their lead, and Drahm followed Thinus Delport's try with another penalty to take Worcester four ahead.
Then came the Fogerty late show, to keep Pool five wide open.
OVERMACH PARMA 20-11 PAU
Parma heaped the season's misery on Pau with a shock 20-11 win at the Stadio de Rugby.
The Italians were too good for the team currently staring relegation from France's top flight in the face and fully deserved the win, but neither team was in contention for a quarter-final place.
A penalty try and the boot of full-back Ezio Galon did the damage for the home side in front of 200 loyal fans.
GLOUCESTER 66-5 TOULON
At Kingsholm, Gloucester extended their pool three lead with a 66-5 mauling of French minnows Toulon in front of 9,000 fans.
South African backrower Jake Boer and England winger James Simpson-Daniel scored try doubles as the Cherry and Whites ran riot.
They took a 28-5 lead into the break and scored six second-half tries to approach the 74-3 scoreline they racked up in France last weekend.
The hard-working Boer and Simpson-Daniel are in stunning try-scoring form, with Boer bagging four in his past two European matches and Simpson-Daniel snatching six in the past three.
Gloucester's home Cup match against Bayonne next month will decide who tops the pool.
AGEN 24-32 LONDON IRISH
Former Australian RL star Paul Franze snatched victory from the jaws of defeat for London Irish as the Exiles grabbed a crucial win over Agen on French soil.
Having struggled to stay ahead through the combined boots of Riki Flutey and Barry Everitt in the first half, the pool two leaders found themselves falling behind in the second spell as Agen picked up two tries to turn their 12-1 interval deficit into a 24-12 lead.
But Everitt chipped away at the lead with two more penalties, one in the 78th minute, before an amazing injury-time revival.
Franze’s run, which took him past four defenders in a 30-metre stretch, took Irish to within a point and left Everitt needing only to hit the mark with a conversion in front of the posts to take his side back into the lead.
To add insult to the French club’s injury, fullback Delon Armitage intercepted an Agen pass two metres out from their line as the Frenchmen tried to find a way back into the contest and he ran in for another try.
Everitt converted to make it 17 points in the final 12 minutes and make it four wins out of four for Irish to virtually guarantee them a quarter-final slot.
BRIVE 34-28 BORDER REIVERS
Border Reivers' slender hopes of squeezing into the knock-out stages of the European Challenge Cup were finally snuffed out by a 34-28 defeat to Brive on Saturday.
Steve Bates and his squad had made the trip to France in confident mood in the wake of last weekend's well-merited triumph over the same opponents at Netherdale.
Their quest was to claim a famous away win and set up a possible make-or-break showdown with Newcastle before facing Italian whipping boys L'Aquila on home territory.
But, after mounting a stirring fightback which took them to within a point of Brive, they were denied the glory in a frantic finale.
NEWCASTLE FALCONS 90-14 L'AQUILA
Newcastle ran 14 tries past Italian side L'Aquila for a second time in just over a week as they cruised to a 90-14 win in the European Challenge Cup at Kingston Park on Sunday.
David Walder kicked 10 conversions in a one-sided match at Kingston Park as Newcastle moved to the top of Pool Four, seven points clear of Brive.
Robbie Morris touched down first with Mathew Tait, Walder and Cory Harris following him over to secure the four-try bonus point within 18 minutes.
Peirluigi Gentile replied with a 70-metre interception try but normal service was resumed as Jamie Noon went over.
Mark Mayerhofler, Owen Finegan and James Grindal then crossed as Falcons ended the first half 54-7 ahead.
James Hoyle got in on the act with a try just after the break before Noon sent in Matt Thompson.
Substitute Mike McCarthy came off the bench to touch down twice and Tino Paoletti and Thompson completed the Falcons scoring.
L'Aquila fullback Martin Acuna managed to claim another consolation for the visitors.
CATANIA 37-34 MONTPELLIER
In Sunday's other Pool Five match in Italy, Amatori Catania upset Montpellier 37-34 at Santa Maria Goretti – but both sides are dead in the water.
BRISTOL 89-5 VIADANA
Bristol also ran riot against Italian opposition on Sunday, hammering Viadana 89-5 at the Memorial Stadium to move top of Pool One.
Outside-half Jason Strange passed the 500-point mark with his first conversion of the game and went on to score 20 points.
Bristol scored their bonus-point try in only the 16th minute, and wingers David Lemi and Lee Robinson both ran in first-half hat-tricks as the English club led 61-0 at the break.
Lemi added a fourth at the start of the second half and Samoan veteran Brian Lima touched down before earning a yellow card for a high tackle.
His sin-binning made little difference as the hosts followed up with another four tries.
