Cipriani inspires Gloucester to victory over Saints

PREMIERSHIP SATURDAY WRAP: Summer signing Danny Cipriani inspired his new side to victory as Gloucester overcame Northampton Saints in a compelling encounter at Kingsholm.

Cipriani didn’t notch a try himself but he pulled the strings from flyhalf in a scintillating attacking display and produced an early contender for pass of the season with his pinpoint looping assist for Charlie Sharples’ first-half score.

James Hanson had dotted down to give Gloucester the perfect start and although Piers Francis and Courtney Lawes crossed for the visitors, Billy Twelvetrees out-duelled one of Saints’ marquee signings, Dan Biggar, from the tee.

That ensured a positive beginning to the Premiership season for the Cherry and Whites and their re-tooled backline looks good enough to hold its own against any in the league.

Meanwhile, Wasps have now won nine in a row against Worcester Warriors in the Premiership, but they had to do it the hard way in this dramatic season opener at Sixways. Wasps edged the match 21-20.

In Saturday’s other matches, Ben Tapuai’s debut double helped Harlequins to a 51-23 bonus-point win over Sale Sharks in Paul Gustard’s first competitive match at the helm.

At Sandy Park, Exeter Chiefs kicked off their bid to regain the Premiership title with a commanding bonus-point win against Leicester Tigers.

Exeter Chiefs 40-6 Leicester Tigers

Olly Woodburn, Sam Simmonds, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Henry Slade, Matt Kvesic and Ian Whitten all crossed for tries as last season’s beaten finalists started in style.

George Ford had kicked the Tigers into a six-point lead but Exeter hit back, putting to bed memories of their final defeat to Saracens in May with a clinical display built on raw power.

Leicester, who missed the Premiership semifinals for the first time in 14 years last season, started strongly at Sandy Park with flyhalf Ford successfully converting two penalties in a tight opening.

But the Chiefs slowly worked their way into the game, with wingers Woodburn and Santiago Cordero finding plenty of space out wide.

Woodburn, who got nine tries last season, got his side’s first of the new campaign with an athletic finish from Kvesic’s pass, before Simmonds powered over from close range just before the break.

Leicester trailed by just eight at the break and kept Exeter at bay for the first 20 minutes of the second half – but eventually, the home side’s power was too much.

Cowan-Dickie powered his way over before Sam Skinner darted through the Tigers’ defence and supplied Slade for a simple try.

Kvesic and Whitten added further scores late on as the former champions sent out a message of intent.

The scorers:

For Exeter Chiefs:
Tries: Woodburn, Simmonds, Cowan-Dickie, Slade, Kvesic, Whitten
Cons: Steenson 5

For Leicester Tigers:
Pens: Ford 2

Teams:

Exeter Chiefs: 15 Phil Dollman, 14 Santiago Cordero, 13 Ian Whitten, 12 Ollie Devoto, 11 Olly Woodburn, 10 Gareth Steenson, 9 Nic White, 8 Sam Simmonds, 7 Matt Kvesic, 6 Don Armand, 5 Sam Skinner, 4 Ollie Atkins, 3 Tomas Francis, 2 Jack Yeandle (captain), 1 Alec Hepburn.
Replacements: 16 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 17 Greg Holmes, 18 Harry Williams, 19 Toby Salmon, 20 Sean Lonsdale, 21 Stu Townsend, 22 Joe Simmonds, 23 Henry Slade.

Leicester Tigers: 15 Telusa Veainu, 14 Adam Thompstone, 13 Manu Tuilagi, 12 Matt Toomua, 11 Jonny May, 10 George Ford, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Sione Kalamafoni, 7 Brendon O’Connor, 6 David Denton, 5 Will Spencer, 4 Mike Fitzgerald, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Tom Youngs (captain), 1 Greg Bateman.
Replacements: 16 Tatafu Polota-Nau, 17 David Feao, 18 Gaston Cortes, 19 Harry Wells, 20 Mike Williams, 21 Sam Harrison, 22 Kyle Eastmond, 23 Jordan Olowofela.

Referee: Wayne Barnes
Assistant Referees: Paul Dix, Anthony Woodthorpe
TMO: David Rose

Harlequins 51-23 Sale Sharks

Ben Tapuai got the first try, AJ MacGinty and Marland Yarde then responded for Sale before Nathan Earle got his debut score in the corner.

After the breakthrough it was all Harlequins as Joe Marchant, Marcus Smith and Max Crumpton all touched down to round off a perfect opening day for the London side.

The season-opener at Twickenham Stoop began with Sale dominating much of the territory but Smith put Harlequins ahead after MacGinty conceded a penalty inside the 22.

MacGinty levelled on 17 minutes but then a measured Smith kick resulted in a period of home pressure that eventually saw Tapuai smash his way over five minutes later.

The Sharks were in no mood to submit and a delightful MacGinty step earned a first try before Yarde broke down the left and then recollected to register a superb try on his return to the Stoop.

MacGinty added another penalty before Aaron Morris sliced through the Sale defence from a quick line-out to allow Earle to touch down in the corner.

Harlequins led 24-20 at the break and the two flyhalves exchanged penalties before the Londoners registered the bonus point with Marchant bursting over the tryline.

Sale rallied and dominated possession for 15 minutes but Harlequins produced a sting in the tail when Danny Care’s pop pass found Smith without opposition to cross the whitewash.

And the home side didn’t stop there, as replacement Crumpton powered over from short range two minutes from time to seal an impressive six-try win.

The scorers:

For Harlequins:
Tries: Tapuai 2, Earle, Marchant, Smith, Crumpton
Cons: Smith 6
Pens: Smith 3

For Sale:
Tries: MacGinty, Yarde
Cons: MacGinty 2
Pens: MacGinty 3

Teams:

Harlequins: 15 Mike Brown, 14 Nathan Earle, 13 Joe Marchant, 12 Ben Tapuai, 11 Aaron Morris, 10 Marcus Smith, 9 Danny Care, 8 Renaldo Bothma, 7 Luke Wallace, 6 Chris Robshaw (captain), 5 Dino Lamb, 4 Matt Symons, 3 Will Collier, 2 Elia Elia, 1 Joe Marler.
Replacements: 16 Max Crumpton, 17 Mark Lambert, 18 Phil Swainston, 19 Ben Glynn, 20 James Chisholm, 21 Charlie Mulchrone, 22 James Lang, 23 Paul Lasike.

Sale Sharks: 15 Byron McGuigan, 14 Denny Solomona, 13 Sam James, 12 Luke James, 11 Marland Yarde, 10 AJ MacGinty, 9 Will Cliff, 8 Jono Ross (captain), 7 Ben Curry, 6 Tom Curry, 5 James Phillips, 4 Bryn Evans, 3 WillGriff John, 2 Rob Webber, 1 Ross Harrison.
Replacements: 16 Cameron Neild, 17 Alexandru Tarus, 18 Joe Jones, 19 Josh Beaumont, 20 Josh Strauss, 21 Gus Warr, 22 Mark Jennings, 23 Paolo Odogwu.

Referee: Craig Maxwell-Keys
Assistant Referees: Simon McConnell, Roy Maybank
TMO: David Grashoff

Worcester Warriors 20-21 Wasps

The Warriors burst into an early lead thanks to the boot of Duncan Weir and Ryan Mills’ early try.

But the visitors fought back through Billy Searle’s goal-kicking and tries for Joe Launchbury and Tommy Taylor.

And while Sam Lewis scored in the second half for Worcester, it was a late Searle penalty that proved enough as Wasps repelled a furious late Warriors surge for the narrowest of victories.

The Warriors started brightly and two Weir penalties opened up an early 6-0 lead. And the season was only 17 minutes old when their first try followed soon after.

It was Mills who got it, and it was far too easy as the centre attacked on a short inside ball and shrugged off Searle and Christian Wade on his way to the line.

With Weir’s conversion, the Warriors were 13-0 to the good and Wasps needed an immediate response.

Searle’s first penalty was pulled wide but he made up for it soon after to get the visitors on the board.

Elliot Daly’s long-range effort then fell agonisingly short but Searle slotted a second and it was 13-6 at the interval – although both sides finished the first half at breakneck speed with Josh Adams going close for the hosts and the TMO denying Joe Atkinson at the other end.

The video referee was again in action at the start of the second half to deny Juan De Jongh a score, but Wasps soon made their pressure count as Launchbury burst over with Alafoti Fa’osiliva in the bin for the hosts.

But the Worcester response was almost immediate, Weir pulling the strings to get the Warriors backline moving before Lewis broke through down the left for their second try.

Back came Wasps though and after a quick tap from Dan Robson, Taylor dived over in the left corner.

Searle could not add the extras however, and the Warriors led 20-18 as the game entered the final quarter.

Searle’s 69th minute penalty put Wasps in front however, and that was how it stayed as they fronted up manfully in defence to deny the surging Warriors and claim their seventh win in their last eight games at the venue.

The scorers:

For Worcester:
Tries: Mills, Lewis
Cons: Weir 2
Pens: Weir 2

For Wasps:
Tries: Launchbury, Taylor
Con: Searle
Pens: Searle 3

Teams:

Worcester Warriors: 15 Chris Pennell, 14 Bryce Heem, 13 Francois Venter, 12 Ryan Mills, 11 Josh Adams, 10 Duncan Weir, 9 Francois Hougaard, 8 GJ van Velze (captain), 7 Sam Lewis, 6 Alafoti Faosiliva, 5 Darren Barry, 4 Anton Bresler, 3 Nick Schonert, 2 Niall Annett, 1 Callum Black.
Replacements: 16 Joe Taufete’e, 17 Ryan Bower, 18 Simon Kerrod, 19 Andrew Kitchener, 20 Cornell du Preez, 21 Jonny Arr, 22 Jono Lance, 23 Ashley Beck.

Wasps: 15 Rob Miller, 14 Christian Wade, 13 Elliot Daly, 12 Juan de Jongh, 11 Josh Bassett, 10 Billy Searle, 9 Dan Robson, 8 Nathan Hughes, 7 Joe Atkinson, 6 Nizaam Carr, 5 Will Rowlands, 4 Joe Launchbury (captain), 3 Will Stuart, 2 Tom Cruse, 1 Ben Harris.
Replacements: 16 Tommy Taylor, 17 Zurabi Zhvania, 18 Kieran Brookes, 19 Charlie Matthews, 20 Ashley Johnson, 21 Joe Simpson, 22 Gaby Lovobalavu, 23 Marcus Watson.

Referee: Karl Dickson
Assistant Referees: Peter Allan, Philip Watters
TMO: Stuart Terheege

Gloucester 27-16 Northampton Saints

Billy Twelvetrees gave Gloucester an early lead from the tee and 3-0 soon became 8-0 as an attacking line-out was comfortably secured and an inexorable driving, rolling maul ended with powerful hooker James Hanson falling over the line.

Dan Biggar – the top scorer in PRO14 history with former side Ospreys – got his Premiership tally up and running with an 11th-minute penalty before Twelvetrees immediately cancelled that out when Saints were caught offside.

But the Saints first try of the game went to the visitors and was created by the brilliance of Ahsee Tuala.

The Northampton fullback bulldozed down the left touchline from a standing start, handed off a prospective tackler and produced an offload out of the back of his hand to set Piers Francis up for the simple score.

Biggar missed the conversion but after trading three-pointers with Twelvetrees, the Welsh international demonstrated his defensive value as he tracked across the pitch to make a brilliant covering tackle on Matt Banahan with the tryline beckoning, before Lawes assisted shoving the powerful wing into touch.

But it was Biggar’s opposite number Cipriani who produced the moment of the first half – launching a long, looping 21-metre pass over multiple teammates’ heads straight into the bread basket of Sharples, who briefly juggled the ball before collecting and sliding over the line.

Twelvetrees’ conversion ensured a 21-11 half-time advantage for the Cherry & Whites and following a cagey start to the second period, the Gloucester centre nailed his fourth penalty just after the hour mark.

Tom Collins was eventually hauled down by Tom Hudson after a scything 67th-minute break but the Gloucester replacement failed to release in the tackle and was sent to the sin-bin.

And Northampton immediately took advantage by kicking the penalty to the corner before an unstoppable driving maul concluded with Courtney Lawes dotting down in the corner to reduce the deficit to ten points with ten minutes remaining.

However, Gloucester held firm and Twelvetrees slotted one final penalty in the closing stages to seal an impressive opening-day triumph.

The scorers:

For Gloucester:
Tries: Hanson, Sharples
Con: Twelvetrees
Pens: Twelvetrees 5

For Northampton:
Tries: Francis, Lawes
Pens: Biggar 2

Teams:

Gloucester: 15 Jason Woodward, 14 Charlie Sharples, 13 Henry Trinder, 12 Billy Twelvetrees, 11 Matt Banahan, 10 Danny Cipriani, 9 Callum Braley, 8 Ben Morgan, 7 Lewis Ludlow, 6 Ruan Ackermann, 5 Mariano Galarza, 4 Ed Slater (captain), 3 Fraser Balmain, 2 James Hanson, 1 Val Rapava Ruskin.
Replacements: 16 Franco Marais, 17 Josh Hohneck, 18 Ciaran Knight, 19 Freddie Clarke, 20 Jake Polledri, 21 Ben Vellacott, 22 Tom Hudson, 23 Owen Williams.

Northampton Saints: 15 Ahsee Tuala, 14 Nafi Tuitavake, 13 Luther Burrell, 12 Piers Francis, 11 Tom Collins, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Teimana Harrison, 7 Heinrich Brüssow, 6 James Haskell, 5 Courtney Lawes, 4 David Ribbans, 3 Ben Franks, 2 James Fish, 1 Alex Waller (co-captain).
Replacements: 16 Dylan Hartley (co-captain), 17 Francois van Wyk, 18 Ehren Painter, 19 Api Ratuniyarawa, 20 Lewis Ludlam, 21 Alex Mitchell, 22 James Grayson, 23 Ken Pisi.

Referee: Matthew Carley
Assistant Referees: Jack Makepeace, Greg Macdonald
TMO: Trevor Fisher

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