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Varndell breaks record in Bristol mauling, Bath snatch victory
By Peter Thompson
Tom Varndell became the Premiership's record try-scorer but Bristol were hammered 42-8 by Harlequins, and Rhys Priestland's last-gasp penalty gave Bath a dramatic win over Northampton Saints.
Varndell equalled Mark Cueto's record tally of 90 top-flight tries last month and broke new ground when he went over 18 minutes in at Ashton Gate, but the wing was unable to continue after taking a knock when touching down.
That proved to be the only try the bottom side could muster as Quins ran riot in the West Country, scoring four of their five tries in the second half to move up to fifth spot.
PIC: The moment @Tom_Varndell became @premrugby's leading try scorer of all time (via @jmpuk_sport). #BRIvHAR pic.twitter.com/ciXy5faKW3
— Bristol Rugby (@Bristol_RFC) February 10, 2017
Joe Marchant dotted down under the posts after only two minutes and eight points from the boot of Ruaridh Jackson gave the London club a slender 13-8 half-time advantage.
Quins ran away with it following the interval, with Mark Reddish, Charlie Mulchrone, Matt Hopper and James Chisholm adding five-pointers to keep sorry Bristol at the foot of the table.
Bath are up to third after Priestland held his nerve under pressure right at the end to snatch a 32-30 victory at The Rec.
Semesa Rokoduguni marked his 100th Bath appearance with a 48th try for the club, sandwiched between a Paul Grant score and a penalty try, but Saints came storming back with tries from Ben Foden, Api Ratuniyarawa and Jamie Gibson after going 22-9 down early in the second half.
Fly-half Priestland had the final say, nailing the decisive penalty just after missing from the tee to ensure Saints slip down to sixth.
Sale Sharks claimed their first Premiership win since October by edging out Newcastle Falcons 26-24 despite a hat-trick from Vereniki Goneva, who was also sin-binned in the first half.
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Hard to disagree with the 5 points - with the exception that Wilson should be a squad member but, depending on the other loose forward selections, is not yet a shoo-in. McReight is. Aussie is looking a lot better this year and JS has some selection options. Also, Havili’s tendency to get caught, charged down is also a liability at times but he seemed focused (mostly) and is definitely a consideration for utility back-up. Still feel Reihana is a better prospect at 1st five for Saders.
Go to commentsThink it was a great defensive performance by Northampton. They didn't have stage fright in the first half, the Nienaber defense smothered them. They limited Leinster to 15-3 in the first half. It could have been over by then. A great try from Leinster in the start of the second half looked to have sealed it. But Byrne missed another conversion. Northampton started trying little kicks behind the Leinster wingers. Leinster messed one and Smith brilliantly made the conversion. Leinster decided to tighten the game after Byrne missed a straight forward penalty. A few errors got NH into the 22 and they scored and converted with a few minutes left. Another brilliant steal from Lawes saw NH have a final attack which was turned over by Conan. A classic semi final. World record attendance of 82,300. Leinsters 3 week preparation warranted for this one.
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