Nathan Hughes ignites Wasps’ return to form against self-destructing Quins

Wasps urgently needed something to brighten their season and finally there is light at the end of a depressingly dark tunnel. This five-try romp, their first win in six games, was partly overshadowed, however, by the indiscipline of two more of Harlequins’ England contingent with the national head coach, Eddie Jones, about to unveil his autumn internationals squad on Thursday.

With Jones in the stands, the prop Joe Marler contrived to pick up his second yellow card in Coventry in little over a month, this time for striking the home lock Will Rowlands with his forearm. At least Marler made it on to the field which is more than can be said for his team-mate Marland Yarde, dropped from the visiting squad for what was described by his club as “an internal disciplinary matter.” Yarde’s poor time-keeping and attitude are understood to be at the root of the problem, with the winger’s failure to turn up on time for the pre-match team run having stretched his coaches’ patience beyond breaking point. With Jones having travelled to the Midlands to check out his form before next month’s Tests, it was not the best of timing on any front.

England’s first-choice full-back, Mike Brown, also saw yellow for a deliberate knock-down but there was better news for Jones in the form of the No8 Nathan Hughes, the game’s most influential figure beneath the Sunday tea-time lights. With Billy Vunipola out injured, Hughes’ ball-carrying is once again a potent weapon and Wasps’ swarming defence and vigorous work at the breakdown also made a big difference against opponents who beat them 24-21 in the league here in mid-September.

Wasps’ director of rugby, Dai Young, had described it as a”massive game for both sides” before kick-off and it certainly looked as if his players had absorbed the message. Inside the first five minutes Hughes came rampaging off the back of a scrum down the blindside past a stranded Danny Care and put the nippy Dan Robson over untouched.

The home side were 14-0 up inside nine minutes, Wasps’ blitz defence catching Marcus Smith unawares as he went to put in a cross-kick. The ball was fly-hacked up the other end and, despite Smith’s desperate attempt to regather it, Christian Wade was quick enough to win the race.

It was only last week that Young was bemoaning the bad luck his side had been suffering; on this occasion the fates were proving rather kinder. Danny Cipriani’s enforced absence through injury has clearly not helped and, as proved by Australia’s weekend win over New Zealand, the now-departed Kurtley Beale also makes a massive difference wherever he plays.

Young, however, has been stressing the need for his side to be more “gainline orientated” and a galloping Hughes makes any team look and feel better. One huge hand-off by the No8 left Jamie Roberts sprawled in his wake and Quins spent the majority of the first 40 minutes struggling to make a similar impression.

Wasps had only 31% of possession in the opening 40 minutes but were far more penetrative, only Brown’s despairing hand saving his team from conceding a third try. It was Brown’s first yellow card in 67 games but the 14-man visitors were soon in even deeper trouble, a concerted lineout drive swiftly producing a rumbling score for Ashley Johnson.

The 18-point half-time deficit may have been a contributory factor to a minor flare-up between Marler and Johnson as the two sides headed for the dressing-rooms. The Quins’ prop has a bit of previous in these parts, the water-squirting altercation with his England colleague James Haskell having caused a few ripples in last month’s league game between the sides.

Within 10 minutes of the restart Marler duly sinned again to earn himself a further chorus of local boos. Jones likes his tight forwards to bristle but, equally, he wants them to stay on the field. With the ever-improving Ellis Genge in bullocking form for Leicester and Mako Vunipola impressing on a weekly basis for Saracens, loose-head props with too many screws loose are walking a precarious tightrope.

It did not greatly influence the result, with a striking try from Francis Saili’s first touch also not affecting the outcome. Wasps poured up the other end to secure a bonus-point fourth try through Josh Bassett and Wade, also recovering his sharpness after a relatively sluggish start, added a fifth with nine minutes left to take his side over 40 points.

The final whistle was delayed when Saili knocked himself out attempting to tackle Joe Launchbury but there was one additional statistic worth noting. The crowd of 12,806 was 2,500 fewer than turned up for last month’s Sunday Premiership fixture, which kicked off at 3pm, further ammunition for those who reckon kick-off times have a direct impact on attendance figures.

Regardless of the scheduling, however, the clock is now ticking on Quins’ European challenge after two consecutive defeats, with the leaders La Rochelle already looking ominous in Pool One.

Wasps Le Roux; Wade, Daly, De Jongh, Bassett; Gopperth (Miller, 71), Robson (Simpson, 69); Mullan (McIntyre, 61), Johnson (Harris, 71), Cooper-Woolley (Moore, 69), Launchbury (capt), Rowlands (Gaskell, 69), Haskell (J Willis, 61), Young (Thompson, 69), Hughes.

Tries Robson, Wade 2, Johnson, Bassett Cons Gopperth 4, Miller. Pens Gopperth 2.

Harlequins Brown; Walker, Marchant, Roberts (Saili, 51), Visser; Smith (Swiel, 64), Care (Lewis, 60); Marler, Gray (Glynn, h-t), Swainston, Matthews (Lamb, 61), Horwill (capt), Robshaw, Ward, Luamanu.

Try Saili Con Smith Pen Smith.

Sin-bin Brown 32, Marler 50.

Referee M Raynal (Fr). Attendance 12,806.