Rugby union: talking points from the weekend’s Premiership action

1) Quins’ next coach left with a wreck

Harlequins have been linked with so many coaches since the announcement last week that John Kingston will leave after the season that they could they could set up a sideline transporting supporters. After their recent tie-up with New Zealand, names such as Tana Umaga and Scott Robertson have been mentioned and if Quins take that route it would mean that only three clubs would be headed by an Englishman next season – Exeter, Newcastle and Sale – compared with six at the start of this one. Whoever takes over has a salvage operation: Quins slumped to another defeat, three Gloucester tries in the final 10 minutes gilding their 37-9 victory, and with Worcester next, 11th place is in view. Paul Rees

• Robert Kitson: No surprise as Harlequins call time on Kingston
• Worcester lifted by Te’o’s pledge to see out contract next season

2) Pivotal reunion looms for Leicester

It has been one of the more wacky Premiership seasons. In the past couple of months, Leicester won at Saracens, who in turn indulged in a feeding frenzy at Northampton and Saints savoured league success at Leicester for the first time in 11 years. With two rounds to go, Worcester have yet to secure their top-flight status but have won at Exeter and Leicester. Home comforts are not what they were: Leicester have lost four of their 10 games at Welford Road, their worst run since 2003-04, when they had the excuse of World Cup absentees; that was the campaign when they fired Dean Richards as director of rugby, and a fifth against his Newcastle next week will surely end a 14-year love affair with the play‑offs and complete the circle. Paul Rees

• Match report: Leicester 21-27 Northampton

3) Tireless Graham strengthens his England claim

Star performers were plentiful in Newcastle’s 35-30 win against Sale in one of the most thrilling games of the Premiership season. But special praise should be reserved for Gary Graham. It was a surprise indeed when he first appeared in one of Eddie Jones’s squads but his form since returning from a neck injury certainly seems to justify his place on England’s radar. The national side’s back-row problems are well documented and, with Courtney Lawes and Nathan Hughes both set to miss the summer tour to South Africa, Jones could do worse than looking at Graham. He relishes the hard yards and that abrasive edge will be crucial against the Springboks. Gerard Meagher

4) Irish coy on Ulster pair

London Irish are now all but mathematically relegated courtesy of Exeter’s latest six-try show of strength. A swift return to the Championship is the last thing the club needs, with financial losses stacking up and their best players set to depart. Declan Kidney offered a polite “no comment”, however, when asked if the Exiles would consider employing either Paddy Jackson or Stuart Olding, who both had their Ulster contracts revoked, and the Chiefs have rubbished claims the latter might find new employers in Devon. Their forwards coach, Rob Hunter, is more concerned with ensuring Exeter finish top for the first time. “We want to come top and then we’ll worry about the semi-final after that,” Hunter said. Robert Kitson

• Match report: London Irish 5-45 Exeter

5) Vunipola shines – but should not have played

Eight carries for 16 metres for Mako Vunipola during his hour on the pitch against Bath, and eight tackles to boot in another impressive display from the England loosehead prop. Why he was on the pitch at all is another matter entirely. Based on Vunipola’s workload during the Six Nations and according to the terms of an agreement between the RFU and Premiership Rugby, Saracens were obliged to rest him for one of the four weekends after the championship. They had not done so before this weekend, so put simply, he should not have played against Bath. The argument goes that Saracens have next week off anyway, but what is the point of the agreement if it is not adhered to? Judging by the scoreline, it seems fair to suggest Saracens would have coped without him, and at best it was an ill-judged risk to select him. GM

• Match report: Saracens 41-6 Bath
• Saracens pick Mako Vunipola despite mandatory rest period agreement

6) Kitchener’s accident leaves Gopperth with raw deal

The ridiculous sanctification of the airborne player continues. Wasps had a bonus-point try disallowed because replays on the big screen showed Andrew Kitchener go up for a high ball with Christian Wade earlier in the passage and land awkwardly. Jimmy Gopperth was in the vague vicinity and may have laid a finger on the hulking lock. He emphatically did not cause the accident. But in this current climate someone has to be punished if an airborne player hurts himself, and Gopperth saw yellow. Luckily, Wasps intercepted for their fourth in the next play, but it could have cost them dearly. More to the point, when is the scapegoating of honest players going to stop? Michael Aylwin

• Match report: Wasps 30-15 Worcester

7) A first for Italian sides in Dublin

The result of the weekend? How about Leinster 15-17 Benetton, the first time any Italian side has managed a league victory in Dublin. The visitors not only fought back from 12-5 down at half-time but saw off a Leinster side featuring a sprinkling of Irish Six Nations grand slam winners. A weakened Scarlets also shipped 50 points to Edinburgh before this week’s European Champions Cup semi-finals; the days of leading sides still being able to win Pro Rugby games with a second team would appear to be over. It came on the same weekend it was announced that SA Rugby’s chief executive, Jurie Roux, and director of rugby, Rassie Erasmus, have both joined the Pro14 board, a move that will not go unnoticed among those plotting the future shape of the English Premiership. RK