After Bloodgate comes anaemia. Harlequins scored 18 tries in their first six matches last season but they have managed just four this time as the fallout from the fake blood affair goes on. Another blank on Saturday left their head coach, John Kingston, "bloody angry"‚ his mood darkened further by persistent, irrelevant questions about whether his side should be playing in this season's tournament.
"Move on," he urged his interrogators, but if only his side could move the ball. Quins enjoyed most of the territory in the second half, as they should have with the Blues losing three forwards to injury, but having opted to give their three senior England squad players their mandatory week off on a European rather than a Premiership weekend, they were without the suppliers of three of their tries this season. The scorer of the fourth, Gonzalo Camacho, limped off with a hamstring strain before half-time.
So Quins lacked a player on the field in the second period who had scored a try this season, and it showed. They missed the tackle-breaking Nick Easter at No8 and lacked poise when they neared the Blues' line. Trailing 13-6 with 10 minutes to go, they laid camp in the enemy 22 but were held up when driving close and made unforced errors on the rare occasions they went wide.
The game turned with a couple of minutes to go, when Quins were penalised for holding on, inches out. The Blues second row, Deiniol Jones, had flopped over on the wrong side, off his feet. It would have been a penalty to the attacking side in the Premiership, and a yellow card, but they do things slightly differently in the Magners League and it was to the Blues' advantage that they had an Irish referee.
It was not a question of bias, but familiarity. The Blues knew what they could get away with at the breakdown in a way that Leinster and Munster, who lost to London Irish and Northampton respectively, did not with French officials in charge. To add to Quins' despair it was Jones who helped decide the match when he fielded a loose kick in stoppage time and hoofed the ball up field, for Leigh Halfpenny to beat Mike Brown to the bounce and score.
"The Blues played to the referee very well," said Quins' captain, Will Skinner. "They stopped us from getting quick ball in the last 10 minutes and we got frustrated."
The Blues, who also went into the match with just one win behind them, defended stoutly and deserved their victory for their greater ambition. Their first try, at the start of the second half following a dire opening 40 minutes, displayed a spatial awareness Quins lacked. The Blues also had two players who rose above the general mediocrity – the back-rowers Xavier Rush and Sam Warburton. The leg-pumping Rush gave his side an impetus the Londoners lacked without Easter.
Toulouse beckon for Quins this weekend but their priority has to be the Premiership and qualification for the next Heineken Cup. The Blues are emerging from a different kind of bloody hell, a plethora of injuries. They can aim higher.
Cardiff Blues Blair; G Thomas (Halfpenny, 25), Shanklin, Roberts, James; Norton-Knight, Rees (Cooper, 80); Yapp (Hobbs, 76), Williams, Filise (G Powell, 67), Davies (Jones, 36), Tito (capt; Sowden-Taylor, 40), A Powell, Warburton, Rush.
Tries James, Halfpenny. Cons Blair 2. Pens Blair 2..
Harlequins Brown; Strettle, Tiesi, Masson, Camacho (Lowe, 40); Evans, So'oialo; Jones, Fuga (Brooker, 61), Lambert (Andress, 61), Stevenson, Evans (O'Connor, 61), Robshaw, Skinner (capt), Guest.
Pens Evans 2.
Referee A Lewis (Ireland) Attendance 11,127.
