Harlequins secured their place in the Champions Cup after a hard-fought 20-17 victory over Leicester Tigers, who had already qualified for the playoffs.
Cadan Murley’s try and a penalty try gave Quins a 17-7 halftime lead, but Julian Montoya leveled the score.
Tigers played the second half with 14 men due to Chris Ashton’s red card for a high tackle, but Handre Pollard’s penalty reduced the gap.
Marcus Smith’s penalty made it 20-10, but Quins had to hold on after Tommy Reffell’s late try.
If Ashton’s red card is upheld, he will likely miss the playoffs, and this would be his last professional rugby union match as he retires.
Following Ashton’s tackle, Joe Marler was furious and had to be restrained.
INCIDENT:
SOCIAL REACTION:
One fan wrote: “To paraphrase Malcolm in Macbeth ‘nothing defined his career like the leaving of it….'”
A second commented: “Chris Ashton‘s last act in professional rugby before he retires is a red card tackle for Leicester Tigers in the last game of the regular season banning him for a potential final..”
Another said: “That would be such an unfortunate way to end off an incredible career like his.”
Fans rank the 5 most overrated rugby players of the professional era
The labels ‘overrated’ and ‘underrated’ in rugby discussions are highly charged because they extend beyond the players’ on-field abilities.
These labels are based on the amount of fan adoration, leading to the possibility of exceptional players being branded as overrated and average players as underrated.
This judgment has nothing to do with the players themselves as they cannot control how fans hype them on social media beyond their actual performances.
Although examining the ‘most overrated rugby players in history’ is a contentious issue, we are not deterred from doing so. Our focus is on the fans, as the voters at thetoptens.com have expressed their opinions.
Most overrated rugby players ever:
#5. George North (Wales)
One fan wrote: “He had a few good years between 2011-2013 and then he has died down. Hasn’t looked good as the commentary teams make him out to be.”
Another commented: “George bloody North!”
A third said: “I think it’s important to separate the player he was back in 2013, with the player he became once injury and loss of form hit. Definitely overrated though, but I think that’s the media’s fault.”
