Rugby Union: Wasps seek respect from Greater Myopia

Lawrence Dallaglio's Wasps team have not lost a competitive game of rugby for six and a half months and if they beat Swansea tomorrow, they will head the Heineken Cup rankings as the only unbeaten side in the quarter-finals.

But as Chris Hewett discovered, the captain believes his men are getting a raw deal from the sceptics.

If old habits die hard, old prejudices are even more difficult to flush out of the system. To listen to the short-sighted partisans in the traditional English rugby union heartlands of the West Country and the East Midlands - soon to be rechristened Greater Myopia - last season was either a freak aberration or simply did not happen at all. Wasps? Champions? Only by default, apparently.

The blue-collar Londoners knocked the long-standing Bath-Leicester hegemony clean off its foundations by winning the 1996-97 Courage League title, but any grudging respect they might have received quickly disappeared beneath a tidal wave of knee-jerk excuses and pleas of mitigation. Bath's campaign had been undermined by boardroom acrimony, Leicester's comprehensively wrecked by injury and fixture congestion.

And what about that ridiculous Subbuteo pitch at Loftus Road, where the only route round Gareth Rees, Wasps' capacious full-back, was via the fish and chip shop in Shepherd's Bush High Street? "Wait until we get 'em on a full-sized paddock," muttered the vanquished.

Even now, almost two months into the new season, the doubters are still up there on their soapboxes. "Wasps have had it easy," they say. "No French club in their Heineken Cup group. They may be in the last eight, but they haven't played anyone yet." Lawrence Dallaglio, the inspirational England flanker who both embodies the Wasps work ethic and defines their all-purpose expertise, can be forgiven for feeling just a little cheesed off.

"Look, you play the teams you're drawn against," he said this week. "A lot has been made of our supposed favourable draw in the Heineken Cup, but we worked incredibly hard to win the Courage League last season and one of the rewards for that achievement was to go into the European draw as the number one English side. I think it was entirely right that we found ourselves where we did.

"I suppose it would be fair to say that had we been forced to play in France during the pool phase, we would have had to look very carefully at our preparation and "up" things a notch. But it's also relevant to point out that we played Toulouse in last season's competition and put 70 points on them.

"We're a very focused side at the moment, both physically and mentally, and while we treat all opponents as a serious threat, we don't hold anyone in awe. If and when we have to play a big French side, we'll relish the task."

For the moment Dallaglio is more concerned with making a decent fist of tomorrow afternoon's Pool B finale against the maverick under-achievers of Swansea. The Welshmen frightened the living daylights out of Wasps in the opening round of matches last month, but have been ensconced in cock-up mode ever since. Defeat at Loftus Road would almost certainly end their European interest for another season.

"It's a must-win game for them, but it's a must-win game for us too for one very good reason," said the captain. "This time last season, things were going very well indeed for us, much as they are now. Then we played a Welsh side, Cardiff, at home in the Heineken and messed it up. Not only did it effectively cripple our chances of a knock-out place, but it sent us careering off the rails for a while. I've had a feeling of deja vu all week and I'm not comfortable with it.

"Winning regularly has been wonderful for morale and confidence and all the other mental things that give a side an edge. We don't have a problem travelling away now - unlike many other sides, we take our form on the road with us - and as long as we keep our momentum, we'll be fine. Beating Swansea is central to maintaining that momentum and apart from anything else, it will ensure us a home draw for as long as we stay in the competition. It could be crucial."

That territorial advantage, so valuable in a tournament of this intensity, will be the main motivation for Harlequins when they tackle the implacable Munster hordes in Limerick tomorrow, although the issue will be settled in the Londoners' favour if the hit-and-miss Frenchmen of Bourgoin discover some away form and turn Cardiff over at the Arms Park this afternoon. The Pool D contest always looked likely to go the wire and the organisers' decision to keep the pot boiling by introducing a quarter-final play-off round is looking more inspired by the day.

Cardiff, who are developing a real taste for European competition, can still deny Quins the all-important top spot with a comprehensive victory over Bourgoin, who in turn are chasing a stay of execution as the best third-placed side from the five pools. Such is the broad sweep of possibilities that Marc Cecillon's side could even finish second. The odds are stacked against them, however.

The log jam in Pool E is even more reminiscent of a bad Friday night on the M25. Pau, the Challenge du Manoir champions and stone-cold certainties for a home quarter-final tie just as recently as a fortnight ago, have lost two on the bounce and are now fighting for their lives in a compelling four-way scrap with Llanelli, Treviso and Caledonia. The Italians genuinely fancy their chances after running in 96 points in their last 160 minutes of rugby, even though they must play in Pau this afternoon. "It's not over yet," said their captain, Alessandro Troncon. "We have nothing to lose and everything to gain."

One fixture towers above all others, however. Bath, their self-belief profoundly weakened by the hiding dished out by Brive last weekend, put their pool leader status on the line against a pumped-up Pontypridd side with the scent of blood in their nostrils. The Welshmen have suffered trials and tribulations of almost biblical proportions over the last five weeks, but are still in there with a puncher's chance, as Dale McIntosh might have put it. With victory equally important to both sides, the Recreation Ground atmosphere will be at its most gloriously neurotic.

Jon Sleightholme, transfer-listed by Bath this week, makes a rare appearance on the right wing and has a timely opportunity to impress any prospective new employers. Mega-rich Cardiff say they are interested in the England flier's services, although not at the six-figure price demanded by the West Countrymen, while Bristol, who have no money at all, insist they are in the market whatever the fee. It's a funny old game, getting funnier by the minute.

heineken cup standings

Pool A

P W D L F A Pts

Toulouse 5 4 0 1 162 102 8

Leicester 5 3 0 2 126 88 6

Leinster 5 2 0 3 118 129 4

Milan 5 1 0 4 82 169 2

Pool B

P W D L F A Pts

Wasps 5 5 0 0 214 76 10

Swansea 5 2 0 3 129 132 4

Glasgow 5 2 0 3 102 152 4

Ulster 5 1 0 4 80 165 2

Pool C

P W D L F A Pts

Bath 5 4 0 1 118 109 8

Brive 5 3 1 1 171 117 7

Pontypridd 5 2 1 2 144 124 5

Scot Borders 5 0 0 5 100 183 0

Pool D

P W D L F A Pts

Harlequins 5 4 0 1 182 118 8

Cardiff 5 3 0 2 158 140 6

Bourgoin 5 2 0 3 87 123 4

Munster 5 1 0 4 118 164 2

Pool E

P W D L F A Pts

Pau 5 3 0 2 147 82 6

Llanelli 5 3 0 2 113 132 6

Treviso 5 2 0 3 139 106 4

Caledonia 5 2 0 3 79 1158 4

Only the pool winners are assured of a place in the last eight. The five runners-up, seeded on pool performance, and the best third-placed side pair off in three sudden-death games to determine the remaining quarter- finalists. The four top-performing pool winners can look forward to a home quarter-final tie - Wasps are already guaranteed that advantage and Toulouse, Bath and Harlequins will join them if they win this weekend - and the same system will be used to decide on venues at the semi-final stage. After five weeks of bruising, blistering rugby, only three sides are definitely out of the running: Milan, Scottish Borders and Munster.