Play-off fever hits Quins and Gloucester as they battle it out at Twickenham

Victory for Quins over the Cherry & Whites at Twickenham this weekend will guarantee the former a spot in the play-offs and a shot at defending their current title. 

One can thus expect Tabai Matson’s men to throw the kitchen sink at their opponents in this match-up, which promises to yield plenty of spark. 

At the same time, Gloucester currently occupy fifth spot on the log – just one point behind Northampton Saints – and, therefore, also have an opportunity to secure a semi-final berth. All things considered, the contest has the makings of a humdinger. 

It will be Gloucester who carry winning momentum into this game after they thumped rivals Bath 64-0 at Kingsholm last weekend: 

Quins tasted the bitterness of a one-point defeat in the previous round as they fell the Saints away: 

"I think our game against Gloucester earlier this season was probably one of our grittiest of the campaign,” Matson said, referring to the Round 12 fixture in which his side left Kingsholm with a 3-point victory: 

"You have to be at your best when you play a team like that,” Matson continued. “They way they play, they are really pragmatic and have a fantastic scrum. 

"Their maul is the best in the league. It will be more of the same on Saturday. It will be a contrast of styles and we'll need to make sure we don't let them into the game early and suffer the consequences." 

This from Gloucester boss George Skivington: 

"They're a quality team. They're the champions of England. They've got some quality players and they look like they enjoy what they do. 

"There are threats across the board and I don't see them as a team with a particular weakness. They seem to be very well connected and, as I said, they look like they enjoy what they are doing which is really important when you're doing this profession. I have a lot of respect for them and I've watched a lot of them so we know the challenges that are coming. 

"There are also some quality players in there who can do some things that you can't plan for. You've got to be ready for anything."