The two sides have not met in the Premiership since that night back in April 2005, when Harlequins lost at Headingley, a result which effectively sealed their fate and relegation, to Division One. Leeds Tykes, themselves travelled that same road the following season, but with securing there promotion and a new club sponsor, as part of their link with Leeds Metropolitan University, they have now metamorphosed into the equally oddly named Leeds Carnegie.

Quins got their season off to a flying start last Saturday at Twickenham, with a fine 35-27 win over London Irish; - it must have been a result of our new sponsor. They also finished the weekend in 4^th place in the Premiership, on points difference. With a little more discipline in defence to prevent those late Irish scores, Harlequins could have been 3^rd in the table. This week’s game will be just as crucial and it is vital that Quins maintain their momentum by playing well and winning well. With Bath playing away at Leicester, another five point victory could elevate Harlequins to the top of the Premiership on Saturday night, which would delight us all. With that game finishing before Harlequins kick off, the team will know exactly what they have to do to achieve that goal.

The way the team came out and played was a revelation, Quins don’t normally start he season like this! In the first half Quins totally dominated the Irish with some very good team and individual performances on the field, and perhaps it was a little disappointing that Quins were unable to capitalise on all their scoring chances. Had they done so the game would have been over by half time. Harlequins were far better prepared for this derby match than London Irish, and they must have played about 85% of the first half well inside the Irish territory The overall team performance needs to be a little more polished and those poor line outs will have needed some serious attention this week. The concerns of the supporters regarding, missing players due to World Cup commitments, injury, player recruitment and some indifferent pre season performances were all swept aside last Saturday, with four great tries from Kohn, Turner Hall in the first half and Luscombe and Williams in the second. Malone s kicking was sublime, throughout the match and he thoroughly deserved to be man of the match.

Despite being early days in a new season, Dean Richards assertion that there is quiet confidence in the squad, looks to have been well placed. The only real concern after the game was how bad were the injuries to Brown and Care, who both played their full part in the victory until they were taken off. It appears that Mike Brown, was just “superficial”, whilst Danny Care’s injury will take four or five weeks to heal. He must be desperately disappointed not being able to play on Saturday against his old team, as well being unable to show just how well he can play, and forcing Gomarsall and So’oialo to prove their selection on merit when they return from France. We wish Danny a speedy recovery. His injury had left Quins with a problem at scrum half, Keogh ably filled this position last Saturday. Indeed this situation was recognised by the club, as far back in June when Mark Evans addressed the Quinssa AGM, he said “ It is likely that Steve So’oialo and Andy Gomarsall will be going to the World Cup which would leave us with only Danny Care as a specialist scrum half so we might need to look at a short term signing for a few weeks. With all due respect, it’s unlikely that Samoa would progress past the pool stages so Steve will probably be out for only four games - then again the way England are playing…So we might need scrum half cover for the first three games”. Care’s injured ankle has forced Dean Richards to recruit a third player in as many weeks to provide short term cover. Quins announced earlier this week that Billy Fulton was returning to the club to provide some experienced cover. It is expected he will make his return debut on Saturday. Richards has said that ” Fulton has a vast amount of experience, he knows the club and I expect him to fit in well.” Fulton was previously with Quins back in 2003, and is expected to stay until our World Cup scrum halves return, hopefully uninjured.

Leeds too, are not without their injury problems after their first week back in the Premiership. They suffered a double blow as two of their players are out for a number of weeks. Italian Alberto Di Bernardo and Hendre Fourie both picked up injuries in their opening match against Gloucester Summer signing Fourie who signed from Rotherham in the summer is out for up to four weeks with a torn biceps muscle. Di Bernardo faces up to six weeks out after breaking a bone in his hand in the first tackle of the match. Despite this injury he played on and proved a thorn in the side of Gloucester, kicking 11 of their points in the 49 - 24 defeat, before being replaced. On reporting the news, Leeds director of rugby Stuart Lancaster said, "We will look at our options this week during training before we head to Harlequins on Saturday but we have every confidence in our squad, as this is the strongest squad we have ever assembled at Leeds."

He may be right. The Leeds team is unknown and unproven in the Premiership, and should not be written off just yet. Unlike Quins when they were relegated, Leeds were unable to keep the majority of their squad which has had to be built up from scratch. A lot of their signings have come from Rotherham, it could be debatable as to whether they are Premiership calibre, and we need to remember, that David Strettle and Chris Hala’ufia also have a Rotherham pedigree. Despite conceding eight tries in the game and losing 24-49, Leeds actually went in at half time 19-18 ahead. Throughout the game they showed spirit and they were able to score points, against a much stronger side, who were last years Premiership winners of the regular season. Leeds must also have been heartened by a record crowd of 10,600 for a proper (union) rugby match at Headingley, however that defeat means that Leeds currently lie at the foot of the Premiership.

Leeds fans noted that one of their positives this season is Di Bernardo, so his loss is great as he has good control with his kicking. The Leeds scrum was poor on Saturday and they looked short in their back line, with their defence cut to pieces by a rampant Gloucester. Out wide they were given acres of space, and conceded a large number of points from cross field kicks. Leeds fans also believe they are short of a quality centre as Richard Welding is better on the wing rather than inside centre.

Harlequin’s first proper home game of the season has to be targeted as a home win with a bonus point for four tries. Leeds put in a spirited performance last weekend and they should not be underestimated. Quins cannot be complacent and need to start strong once more and establish control of the game. They will certainly have the crowd behind them, so there will be far more atmosphere than there was at HQ last Saturday, and that home advantage will count.

Come on you Quins!

This weekend fixtures:

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