THE celebrations of Harlequins at the end of a halting but occasionally compelling match as the second act of the double header were of an intensity normally associated with victory in the Premiership final itself. But there was clear evidence here that the grand old club, once of brigadiers and wing commanders and now of the people, is continuing its advance. Quins played with passion and pace, there was an exuberance about them even when they were trying to close the game down late on and they just about deserved their win.

As a spectacle, the match was bound to suffer. People ask me why I keep blaming the International Rugby Board for everything that is wrong with the game. First, because I like to. Second, because it is their fault. Their latest wheeze is to order referees to be stricter at the breakdown and Mr Barnes kept interrupting the action with a whistling concerto.

No blame is attached to him. He is acting on orders. If the IRB had demanded that the breakdown be refereed properly two years ago, we would have no need for the silly Experimental Law Variations (ELVs) and no use for a volume of hot air in their committee rooms which could power a fleet of zeppelins.

So, all in all, this was reasonably tasty. Quins had hot spots everywhere, notably in Danny Care at scrum-half and highly-promising centre Jordan Turner-Hall. He could well team up with Nick Evans, the accomplished All Black, to form a midfield dynamic duo.

The most striking Harlequin, however, was Ugo Monye on the wing. Monye is one of a horde of players whose careers have been held back by the fact that they were posted overseas for the England Sevens squad. Sevens is a game glorified by those who watch it and it is no coincidence that it always seems to be played in exotic locations. Monye is only just recovering ground after his sevens stint. Yesterday, not infallible but defending with a hammer in his tackle and scoring a breathtaking try, he looked like he had left behind the fields of exotica to excellent effect.

If Harlequins can achieve a little more continuity and if a rather underpowered front five can assert itself, they are top-four material. And if you can replace an All Black fly-half with a talented Fijian, Waisea Luveniyali, you probably have the depth for the job as well.

Saracens, based around the Pacific island that is Cencus Johnston, were bigger and better up front. They have a lineout of lighthouses and, even though the bizarre experiment of playing Chris Jack on the flank and allowing him to roam the wings was a mixed success, there is definitely a forbidding look about the Saracens pack.

However, they lacked continuity and shape and, if you took away the incisiveness of Adam Powell in midfield, they also lacked penetration. Glen Jackson’s kicking could never be called aimless, he does choose a kick as his first and second options and it remains to be seen if he has the gas and the devil to be an attacking springboard for the men outside him.

You got the early impression that here we had two teams bound to finish in the top half of the table and, given the final touches of teamwork and true concert, then at least one could figure at the end of the major competitions. It will be fascinating to judge the impact of the two gurus – Dean Rich-ards, the stolid, unfussy and nonloquacious Quins genius against the effervescent, outspoken and thoroughly engaging Eddie Jones of Saracens.

Jackson himself was off to the worst possible start as he dropped the Quins kick-off and conceded an attacking scrum. Care took off from the scrum, held the defence splendidly and put David Strettle over in the corner. One supporter of the ELVs (the only one in captivity in Europe and I will ensure that he remains in captivity) came over all excited, claiming this try was down to the extra gap between the two lines caused by the new offside law at the scrum. I was forced to point out that to drop the ball under your own posts often causes problems, whether or not you are playing under loony laws.

It was all Saracens could do to recover from this early shock, even though Powell and Neil de Kock made space and half-chances. Two penalties by Jackson kickstarted Saracens, but a penalty by Evans gave Quins an 8-6 half-time lead.

The second half took off. Powell burst between two defenders, sprinted on and allowed defenders to distract themselves with the supporting runners to score. Monye retaliated in terrific style. Quins attacked from a lineout, Care took the ball towards the midfield but, with Saracens expecting it to go wide, Monye came streaking up the middle, took a delightful pass and scored at the posts, celebrating before he had definitely negotiated the last two defenders.

Quins burst clear at 21-11 with a penalty and a drop by Evans and so it was against the run of play when Jack made a rare successful sortie as an imitation wing, flicked a pass out of a tackle and De Kock ran on to score. The conversion brought it to three points, but the tiring teams were now falling foul of the referee’s strictness and so Quins held out with a minimum of fuss.

Star man:Ugo Monye (Harlequins)

Referee:W Barnes (RFU) Attendance:52,087

Scorers: Saracens:Tries: Powell 43, De Kock 64. Con: Jackson. Pens: Jackson (3). Harlequins:Tries: Strettle 1, Monye 50. Con: Evans. Pens: Evans (2), Luveniyali. Drop goal: Evans

Saracens: D Scarbrough; F Leonelli (R Penney 56min), K Sorrell, A Powell, K Ratuvou; G Jackson, N de Kock (M Rauluni 70min); N Lloyd, M Cairns, (F Ongaro 77min) C Johnston (M Aguero 77min), S Borthwick (capt), H Vyvyan, C Jack, M Owen, D Seymour (B Skirving 45min)

Harlequins:M Brown; D Strettle, G Tiesi, J Turner-Hall (E Taione 70min), U Monye; N Evans (W Luveniyali 65min), D Care (A Gomarsall 79min), C Jones, T Fuga, M Ross (J Brooks 75min), O Kohn, G Robson, C Robshaw, N Easter (T Guest 75min), W Skinner (capt)