Danny Cipriani: A man on a mission...
1.
Bath 34-42 London Wasps Turned out to be a season defining 40 minutes for Guinness Premiership
champions, London Wasps. Three tries in 15 minutes blew Bath apart and
reignited the Londoners season while a young chap called
Danny Cipriani
notched up 24 points including a mesmerizing try.
2.
Stade Francais 10-15 Harlequins Not distracted by all the curvaceous cancan girls and pre-match razzmatazz, Harlequins became the first English side to beat the colourful Parisians in their own back-yard. The sheer ‘blood and guts,’ backs against the wall stuff, in front of 78,000 screaming fanatics was awe-inspiring. The last-gasp victory the following week in London wasn’t bad either!
3.
Wales 21-18 Australia November went right to the wire and ended with a scintillating victory
for the Grand-Slam champions. Stunning first half tries from Lee Byrne
and Shane Williams put the hosts in control before Digby Ioane’s late effort gave the Dragons a few nervy last seconds but Wales held
on.
4.
New Zealand 28-30 South Africa Hats off to the Springboks for ending the All-Blacks World Record 30-match unbeaten home run that stretched over ten years. High-tackles galore, Ricky Januarie’s try five minutes from time with South Africa down to 14 men was awesome. Plus the sub-plot with Craig Dowd calling Pieter de Villiers 'a puppet' gave us all a chuckle and complimented the dramatic thriller.
5.
Western Force 24-29 Crusaders 24-12 down, the Super 14 champions showed their mettle and finally produced a game worthy of the ELVs. Nine tries, off-loading of the highest quality, and Matt Giteau and Dan Carter trading the first blows of their great 2008 battles, gave us all hope that the new laws will create unmissable spectacles.