Rugby community never fails to unite

Amongst all of the top class rugby at the weekend we had the tragic news of Anthony Foley’s death that put everything else that was happening on the pitch into mass perspective.

The rugby world came together to unite in grief as rugby lost one of its true legends. A leader of men and an inspiration to many with his heart on his sleeve mentality that made him so popular, not only in Limerick and Ireland but all over the rugby world.

The chilling yet emotional rendition of Fields of Athenry from the Munster faithful outside of the gates of the Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir will live long in the memory; a poignant and fitting tribute to the great Irishman who delivered them to their own piece of heaven when he lifted the Heineken Cup in 2006.

Saracens cement their place at the top of the European tree

It is genuinely difficult to envisage what Saracens cannot achieve this season as yet again they showed why they are regarded as the best club side in the Northern Hemisphere at the moment.

Their first half display in Toulon was nothing short of exquisite as Owen Farrell looked like he hadn’t spent a day injured this season with his sharpness and dead eye goal kicking.

Sean Maitland’s finish whilst Ma’a Nonu and Leigh Halfpenny were trying to put him into the first row of the Stade Mayol was also particularly impressive.

Toulon inevitably fought back with gusto, but Saracens’ sheer determination and will to win saw them inflict Toulon’s first ever home defeat in the Champions Cup. An impressive accolade to have.

Connacht showing Champion credentials

Connacht’s revival from their worse than horrendous start to the season hit a new high at the weekend with a stirring comeback against European giants Toulouse.

Looking down and out at one stage, the men in green turned around a ten-point half time deficit to win by two points, courtesy of a late Bundee Aki try and superb touchline conversion by Craig Ronaldson.

Possibly more impressive was they saw out the final 14 minutes of the game with the greatest of ease as Toulouse slowly but surely had their attacking life knocked out of them.

Tigers tamed by Warriors’ class

This encounter was what European rugby is all about. Feisty, confrontational but high in class. It started quite fractiously and Matt Toomua was probably lucky not to have an early bath due to his dangerous tackle early on, but that seemed to just flick a switch for the home side at Scotstoun as they obliterated Leicester for 60 minutes.

The Pro12 outfit had a very disappointing time in trying to defend their title last season and this season has been up and down as well but finally they seem to have hit their strips and playing to their full potential.

They simply blew the Tigers away as Leonardo Sarto stole the show for the home team. The potential of this team is off the chart and when you are watching young props like Zander Ferguson holding his own against Marcos Ayerza then you know that whoever inherits this squad next season will have a good base to work from.

Young Joey gives Castres the hop

Anyone worried about Johnny Sexton’s absence at the RDS over the weekend needn’t have been concerned, as a young 20 year old stole the show whilst wearing the famous blue number ten shirt.

Auckland born fly-half Joey Carberry served up a feast of attacking rugby as Leinster rolled Castres over by 33-15.

The names on the score sheet may have predominantly been forwards, with Sean Cronin bagging a brace of tries himself, but the way that Carberry cut the Castres defence open on several occasions gave them the field position to allow them to dominate.

He ran the ball 14 times in all, beating 11 defenders on the way as he fell just shy of 100 personal metres gained.

Definitely one to keep an eye out for in the future.

Welsh midfield headache for Howley

Most would assume that Jamie Roberts would be one of the first names on the Welsh team sheet this Autumn, but there is a rather special relationship blossoming in Llanelli that could stand the test of time.

Jonathan Davies and Scott Williams are forming the sort of partnership that could well scare the Southern Hemisphere this autumn. Not just that, it would also be a real shift in the way Wales play to pick both of them and may be seen as a risk, but this would definitely be a risk worth taking.

Plenty of subtle guile and understanding between the two means that they can interchange inside and out whenever they see fit and confuse the opposition with their supreme ball handling ability.

One offload in particular from Williams after a Davies break had Ugo Monye purring in the commentary box.

All change in the midfield for Wales this autumn? Must be worth a try.

Andy Daniel
Follow Andy on Twitter (@scrum5ive)

Photo by: Patrick Khachfe / Onside Images