Harlequins unbeaten run continues as they defeat Connacht Rugby: 2011/12 Heineken Cup – Rugby News
London based English professional Rugby Union outfit, Harlequins, have extended their 2011/12 season’s winning streak to 11 games as they defeated the Irish Professional Rugby Union side, Connacht
Rugby, in their opening encounter of the 2011/12 Heineken Cup competition.
Quins beat the visitors 25 – 17 at Twickenham Stoop in a Pool 6 encounter of Europe’s premier knockout tournament. The eight point defeat denied Connacht from securing even a losing bonus point
in the match.
Harlequins’ started the match as favourites following their impressive performance in the 2011/12 Aviva Premiership competition. Besides this, the hosts were playing at their home ground and
in front of their home ground.
Quins started the match strongly as they established and early control over the ball. They sent their fly half Nick Evans to score his first penalty in the 5th minute of the game
to register their first points on the scorecard. Connacht replied with their fly half Miah Nikora’s penalty. Evan’s ninth minute penalty again put the hosts in the lead.
Visitors were able to gain territory and managed to penetrate through the Quins defences to send their winger Tiernan O’Halloran to score the first try of the game in the 12th minute.
Nikora followed with his conversion to give visitors a four-point lead in the game.
For Quins, Evans 19th minute penalty reduced the lead to just a single point as both sides entered into a relative quiet passage of play characterised by both sides fighting for
ball possession.
Harlequins sent their scrum half Karl Dickson to score their first try of the game in the 30th minute. Evans followed with his conversion to put the hosts in six points lead. Evans
scored his fourth successful penalty of the game in the 37th minute, which took the scorecard reading 19 – 10 that remained the same until the end of the first half.
Connacht started the second half trailing by nine points. Both sides played the first quarter of the second half scoreless as they both fight to establish their control over the proceedings.
Connacht came back strongly as they sent their fullback Gavin Duffy to score their second and match’s last try of the game in the 57th minute to reduce their deficit to just four points.
Connacht’s substitute fly half Niall O’Connor followed with his conversion to take the scorecard reading 19 – 17 in favour of the hosts. Both teams again played a quarter without a score,
as both team remained in quest to register a victory in their Heineken Cup opener.
However, Quins managed the last laugh as Evans kicked two consecutive successful penalties in the 75th and 78th minute of the game to extend their lead to eight points.
Connacht Rugby tried their hard to manage some sort of the comeback. However, they failed to do so and fail to save the losing bonus point as both teams left the field with scorecard reading 25 – 17.
Evans scored 20 of Quins 25 points, comprising of six penalties and a conversion.
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