Fixture

First game back after Christmas and it showed! Very rusty and still in the festive mood, giving away possession like Christmas presents and playing like strangers at a party!

After six minutes a penalty conceded and three points given away, seven minutes later a failed clearance run gifted a (slightly dubious!) try to Dock's open side flanker and 8 nil without even realising hostilities had begun!

At last; ten minutes later Saints made their presence felt and a trade mark score for captain Mathew Lewis in the corner, opened the visitors account to stem the flow and redress the balance of the game to reduce the lead to three points at half time.

The second half had barely restarted before outside centre Mike Georgiau, seizing on a charged down kick, crossed for a try for the visitors and with the home side beginning to flag and concede a number of penalties Saints stretched their lead to eight points from two successful Geraint Jones penalties.

To their credit Quins kept battling and it was only a return of some of the flowing rugby witnessed earlier in the season from the visitors which began to turn the game in their favour. In a repeat of Mathew Lewis’s earlier score at the conclusion of some flowing interplay from the backs, an excellent try in the corner provided some breathing space and a13 points lead midway through the second half.

It was, however, only right at the death that the visitors could relax, when outside half Shane Morgan crossed for the fourth and bonus point score to settle matters, with Quins still resisting valiantly with every right to feel extremely satisfied with a fighting performance in difficult circumstances.