Premiership Rugby Back With A Bang!

Friday nights will not be the same again as Premiership Rugby made a comeback on Friday evening. And in Premiership Rugby fashion the opening double-header did not disappoint as viewers were kept on the edge of their seats by some exciting display of footy tonight. 

Kicking off a little earlier Gloucester Rugby hosted Leicester Tigers at Kingsholm. In the end it was Gloucester who came out on top as they beat Leicester 36-13. The pick of the players in this game were:

Ollie Thorley - Gloucester

While the season is still far from over, many were already claiming this game to be Thorley's try of the season. He might have had a quiet first half but it was his turn of pace right after half time that put him through a gap set up by another start performer tonight, Danny Cipriani, to crossover for his sides bonus point try. It was his second try that put the nail in the coffin and secured him the man of the match award. Having turned over the ball five metres from their line, Ben Morgan did well to keep the ball alive and eventually the ball ended up in Thorley's hands. The winger showed great signs of pace and agility as he weaved his away in and out of the Leicester defence to cross over for a 75 metre try. 

Jason Woodward - Gloucester

Another one who would have taken the break well and you could just feel that he was edging to get back into the thick of things. His named appeared amongst the three first half try scorers as Gloucester got off to a fast start.  Credit must also go to his aerial skills as he showed no signs of nervousness under the high ball. His ability to hit the line at pace often mesmerized the opposition defence having them in sixes and sevens. As a result of his running lines he was able to break the defence, setting up numerous tries. 

It was another one sided game at Twickenham Stoop as the Harlequins successfully defended their home ground to bring down the Newcastle Falcons 20-7. While it might not have lived up to the earlier game in terms of action, it was not too far off with a good defensive effort by both sides. As a result the spectators could only sit and watch the whitewash being crossed over three times. In the end the key performances in this game were:

Marcus Smith - Harlequins

With each and every passing game this 19 year old seems to be growing in stature. It was another mature performance tonight that showed that he has come of age. Two penalties and a conversion contributed to Harlequins running away with it in the end. His ability to keep the defence guessing and his tactical kicking were instrumental to his sides victory tonight. While he might have a small frame he managed to stand his ground and put in a good defensive shift this evening.

Dave Ward - Harlequins

As his career reaches its dawn he might feel disappointed not to have earned an international cap as he showed promising signs as a junior. However his performance tonight earned him some well-deserved respect both from the specators and his opposition. It took the away side 65 minutes to cause any harm to the scoreboard and it was a solid defence like Ward's that made scoring seem impossible. His huge hit on Sinoti Sinoti in the dying minutes of the game must've sent vibration deep into the grandstands.