That Christian Wade and Elliot Daly were not considered worthy of places in England’s World Cup squad was not easy to understand before the tournament and the manner in which the Wasps wing and centre combined to tear Gloucester’s defence apart in a game featuring two dismissals only increased the sense of bewilderment.
The prospect of the quicksilver Wade and the astute Daly combining with the new signing Charles Piutau on a regular basis is certainly a mouth-watering one, at least as far as Wasps supporters are concerned. Piutau was making his debut, at full-back, as one of four changes made by director of rugby Dai Young and the All Black’s knowhow, awareness, ability and power gave Young’s already dangerous back division another dimension.
“We want to play, we want to be exciting, we want to cause teams problems,” said Young, whose main gripe was his side’s failure to take advantage after Gloucester’s Tongan winger David Halaifonua was sent off for flattening Bradley Davies with a high swinging arm early in the second half.
“Elliot [Daly] did the simple things well,” Young said. “He drew people, put others into space and his kicking was excellent. We all know what a threat Christian is with the ball in hand and, while he makes the odd mistake, they are increasingly few and far between. The way they combined with Charles for the try, they really clicked and hopefully they can do that regularly this season.”
Gloucester welcomed Greig Laidlaw back from the World Cup to form a new half-back partnership with the 21-year-old Billy Burns, with (the brother of Leicester and England’s Freddie), James Hook moving to inside centre.
Laidlaw’s clearance kicking from hand, along with the close-quarter work of Matt Kvesic, was one of relatively few positives for the visitors during a first half in which they had plenty of ball but very few ideas. It started well enough, Kvesic winning an early turnover but, after Daly kicked a penalty from just inside his own half, given when Davies was tackled in the air after collecting a lineout, it was Wasps who kept the scoreboard moving.
Nathan Hughes almost burst clear after Gloucester over-threw a lineout and, after Jonny May contrived to drop the ball while in mid-gallop, Wasps scored the game’s first try. Wade began the move as well as finishing it, picking up the loose ball from a Gloucester clearing kick and accelerating into the open field before passing to Piutau. The Kiwi found Daly on the inside and the centre in turn put Wade clear under the posts.
With Daly continuing to slot penalties from halfway, Wasps went to the break 16 points ahead. Halaifonua’s dismissal shortly after the restart made life even harder for the visitors, though they dug in well, restricting Wasps to a penalty try awarded after George Smith, who made an impressive 15 tackles in the game, had marshalled a pack drive over the line from 15 yards.
“Going down to 14 sometimes has a funny impact. We stuck at it and felt perhaps we should have been awarded a penalty try of our own,” said Gloucester’s director of rugby, David Humphreys, though he had no complaints about the dismissal of Halaifonua.
A Wasps player also saw red after the intervention of the television match official. The prop Lorenzo Cittadini was sent off seven minutes before the whistle for what was, perhaps harshly, deemed to have been a punch in the face of the Gloucester captain, Billy Twelvetrees, at the bottom of a ruck.
“Our set piece was very good, we dominated territory and possession but we couldn’t score tries,” said Humphreys. “They scored a fantastic try, which is always possible with the back three they have.”
Wasps travel to the three-times champions Leinster next weekend, their first game in a European Rugby Champions Cup group which also includes Toulon and Bath. Young will be hoping the experience of Smith and Piutau will again come to the fore.
Wasps Piutau; Halai, Daly (Tagicakibau, 62), Jacobs, Wade (McIntyre, 79); Jackson, Simpson (Robson, 64); McIntyre (Bristow, 67), Festuccia, Cittadini (Cooper-Woolley, 52), Launchbury (Gaskell, 62), Davies (Gaskell, 45, Davies, 52), Haskell, Smith, Hughes (Thompson, 64).
Sent off Cittadini (74).
Tries Wade, Penalty. Cons Jackson 2. Pens Daly 3
Gloucester Sharples; Halaifonua, Twelvetrees, Hook, May; Burns (Purdy 45), Laidlaw (Heinz, 60); McAllister (Thomas 52), Hibbard (Brooker 76), Afoa (Doran-Jones 62), Savage, Stooke, Kalamafoni, Kvesic, Morgan (Rowan 64).
Sent off Halaifonua (45).
Pen Laidlaw.
Referee I Tempest. Att 11,649
