Posted by Is this what the Champions Cup is now? I both love and hate it in equal measure, if so.
Everything about Cardiff returning to the top table of European rugby with a huge trip away to reigning English champions Northampton Saints at Franklin’s Gardens should have been hugely exciting. A competition we haven’t played in for three years, a ground we haven’t visited since 2010 and an opportunity to test ourselves against one of the best teams around.
Unfortunately there is not the glitz and glamour around these ties that there used to be. A random one week interjection of Champions Cup action gets lost in the first block of fixtures. Some hype in the build up but as soon as it is here then it’s gone, immediately replaced by test window squad selection and put on the back burner for two months.
Then, specifically on this fixture, the scheduling contributed to an even worse scenario. A 5.30pm kick-off on a Sunday evening with Northampton having one of their biggest games of the season against rivals Leicester Tigers the following week on a six-day turnaround, and Cardiff having a hugely important home clash against Sharks just five days later.
The RFU and PRL represent the English sides in the EPCR room, similarly the WRU and URC are there for the Welsh. Can they not talk to each other and manage the fixture schedule accordingly? Let’s not even get started on Premier Sports’ role in all of this as the broadcaster of both the European competition and URC, just pure idiocy on their part.
So with that short turnaround in mind, Corniel Van Zyl chose to make a number of switches to the 23 that played away in Leinster the previous weekend as Liam Belcher, Teddy Williams, Alex Mann, Taine Basham and Le Roux Malan were totally rested, while Rhys Barratt, Javan Sebastian, Josh McNally, Callum Sheedy and Josh Adams took a seat on the bench.
With Scott Sio, Keiron Assiratti, James Botham, Ellis Bevan, Ben Thomas, Jacob Beetham and Cam Winnett either injured or not risked due to knocks, there’s no doubt that it was a different XV who took the field than most would necessarily see as the strongest side Cardiff could name.
It’s a shame because the Blue & Blacks worked hard to get back to European rugby’s top table last season, and in an ideal world the reward would be going as strong as possible in order to test ourselves against the best in the northern hemisphere (and South Africa) and attempt to progress in a competition in which we have a notable history.
However, the simple truth is that the Welsh side will have one of the smallest budgets of any side in the competition and the size and depth of the squad is just not enough to properly compete in the Champions Cup and ensure a second successive top eight United Rugby Championship finish. As per the season preview, it has been a noticeable issue for Scarlets and Ospreys balancing both.
Focusing on the league in this instance and attempting to continue to make the play-offs year-after-year is hopefully the route that will ultimately allow Cardiff to have a shot at challenging on two fronts as an established Champions Cup team alongside Welsh rugby potentially getting it’s act together and creating a competitive future.
So the pre-match excitement was perhaps not at the fever pitch it should have been, however, what the Blue & Blacks served up against a Northampton side similarly without big stars such as Alex Coles, Henry Pollock and Tommy Freeman but still containing a lot of quality, was nothing short of a magnificent effort.
It wasn’t all plain sailing. While the defence was largely solid and only broken up in the first half but two momentary lapses of concentration in the kicking/aerial game, and the attack threatened from midfield but got bogged down in the 22 somewhat, the biggest issue was a lineout that almost completely capitulated.
A very new forward pack, with Tom Manz and Semisi Paea both making their full debuts for the club, Taulupe Faletau starting his first game since March and Rory Thornton starting his first game of the season, no doubt contributed to the disjointed nature of the set piece, but a confidence drained Dafydd Hughes will still be disappointed with the wayward nature of some throws.
The Blue & Blacks didn’t let that totally derail the game though, and after getting to grips with the aerial game produced the best 20 minutes of the season in the period after half-time where two tries were scored and at least two more left out there but for some decision making at the last moment that will serve as a great learning curve for those involved.
Unfortunately after getting the score back to 14-12 things just got away from Cardiff once again. Some suspect refereeing did not help the cause, but largely the home side’s ability to bring on the likes of Fin Smith and Fraser Dingwall, as well as their experience of accelerating in the final quarter of games, helped them secure what was a much tighter win than the final score suggested.
That kind of brings this piece full circle to the frustration at the ridiculousness of the scheduling where it’s difficult to avoid the feeling as a fan of the Welsh side that if we had been able to go fully loaded for this fixture then there was a result there to be earned.
In the end it was a disappointment, but that in itself is a positive to come away ruing what might have been in a game where the Blue & Blacks were roundly written off as being likely whipping boys. There’s proof there that the squad depth is as good as it has been for many years and that Corniel Van Zyl’s side are worthy of being in the Champions Cup.
Now attention turns to Friday where the challenge is for the players returning to the matchday 23 to match the performance level of those at Franklin’s Gardens on Sunday and help ensure Cardiff are once again at the top table of European rugby next year.
The only way we’re going to remain at the business end of the game and get more competitive year-on-year is with the whole squad pushing each other in the same direction.
