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The English champions are on the verge of Heineken Cup qualification but thoughts of ensuring a home draw in the quarter-finals will be at the forefront of their mind when they face Italian new boys Zebre. - 14/12/2012 08:45
The English champions are on the verge of Heineken Cup qualification but thoughts of ensuring a home draw in the quarter-finals will be at the forefront of their mind when they face Italian new boys Zebre.
Harlequins recorded a rampant 57-14 win over Zebre in Parma in their first leg encounter to return to England with all the points on offer to cement their position at the top of this Pool.
The aristocrats of English rugby are still unbeaten so far this season and are six points ahead of their nearest rivals in the Pool, Connacht. Quins will be looking for another bonus point victory over Zebre on Saturday.
The Premiership outfit have a fourth Heineken Cup quarter-final in their sights but the last time they reached the last eight of European rugby’s tournament was back in 2009.
New Italian franchise Zebre are in their first season of Heineken Cup rugby and are still looking for their first win in the competition. The prospect of Harlequins at the Stoop is a tough one for the Italians.
Match Facts
• Only Dan Parks (48) has scored more points in the tournament than Ben Botica (45) this season.
• Nick Easter has made more carries than any other player in the Heineken Cup this season. His total of 45 is seven more than his nearest rivals in the category.
• Harlequins have scored the most points per game so far this season. They have averaged 42 per game in the opening three rounds.
• Zebre have an 89% success rate on their own throw at the lineout, the best figure so far this season.
Harlequins made it four wins from four as they thumped Italian newcomers Zebre for the second week running. - 15/12/2012 16:54
Harlequins made it four wins from four as they thumped Italian newcomers Zebre for the second week running.
The English league leaders built on last Saturday’s 57-point success on foreign soil by securing another bonus-point win at the Twickenham Stoop.
Quins scored seven tries in total in their 53-5 victory, with centre Tom Casson handing them the perfect start after just three minutes.
A conversion and penalty from Nick Evans had the home side 10-0 to the good but Zebre hit back in style with a try of their own from Ruggero Trevisan to cut the gap to five points after 26 minutes.
A second Evans penalty made it 13-5 just past the half hour before a penalty try three minutes before the break gave Quins some breathing space at half time.
And it was all Quins in the second period as they raced away to a straightforward win thanks to a 42nd minute try from Ben Botica and a 50th minute effort from No8 Nick Easter.
Sam Smith added a fifth seven minutes later before Danny Care and Karl Dickson took them past a half century yet again.
Quins have now picked up just one point short of the maximum 20 with two thirds of the pool stages behind them having also secured five point tallies last week and against Biarritz Olympique in Week 1.
Qualification is now a near certainty for Quins, with this latest success moving them 10 points clear of second-placed Biarritz.
Conor O’Shea’s men face the reigning Amlin Challenge Cup winners in France in the final pool game in January, a week after they host Connacht in London in Round 5.
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