Forget Northampton, this felt like a defeat for all of English rugby. England’s champion club, 10 points clear at the head of a Premiership otherwise vibrant in its competitiveness, were subjected to a hammering, pure and simple, so utterly without remorse or ray of sunlight that it is hard not to see it as a slap in the face to anyone who thought English rugby might be on the up.
It felt like that in the heat of the moment. A more sobering, boring assessment might be to remind ourselves of this very same Clermont Auvergne team’s hammering at the hands of Saracens in last season’s quarter-final – and Clermont are nothing if not wild in their inconsistency.
But Saracens’ win was a clinical defend-and-parry display against a side who just could not land a punch. This was an utter annihilation.
http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/a ... tch-report
Northampton Saints, the English champions, saw their European dreams turn into a nightmare as they were completely outclassed by a rampant Clermont Auvergne side who underscored their status as serious contenders for the inaugural Champions Cup with a display of utter brilliance.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyu ... h-out.html
What unfolded was one-way carnage. France wing Noa Nakaitaci scoring two tries before half-time and Nick Abendanon, the ex-Bath and England full-back, capped a masterful display with a break-away try from 90 metres out. All the while, Brock James kept cranking up the points tally with supreme goal-kicking.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/rugbyu ... z3WQRZ5ptr
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les Rosbeefs.
