Two tries by the excellent Huw Harries could not conceal the fact that Harlequins for all their outward trappings of success have some way to go before they can finally shed the old image.Harlequins: S Pilgrim; D O’Leary, G Connolly, W Carling, S Bromley; P Challinor, H Harries; J Leonard (capt), K Wood, L Benezech, A Snow, G Llewellyn (I Pickup, 80), G Allison, B Davison, L Cabannes.Leicester: J Liley; S Hackney, L Lloyd, W Greenwood, R Underwood; N Malone, A Healey; G Rowntree, R Cockerill, D Garforth, M Johnson (capt), M Poole, J Wells (W Johnson, 45), E Miller, N Back.Referee: B Campsall (Halifax).. Cardiff 23

Pontypridd 37
As A dress rehearsal for their Heineken Cup semi-final against Brive on Sunday this was nothing short of a disaster for Cardiff. It was also the worst possible result for them in their quest for another League title.No wonder a grim-faced Cardiff coach, Terry Holmes, admitted after the game that his side had “lost the plot”. He felt his team had tried too hard to entertain the 12,000-strong crowd at the National Ground.”We tried too hard to be entertaining and lost any control we had. Sometimes you have to be negative to be positive and there were occasions we should have kicked the ball long behind them rather than try to run through them,” Holmes admitted.”It’s all very well trying to play a fast game, but you have to build pace into your game rather than just try to manufacture it. Brive will be a different ball game.”The whole key to next week is the control we showed against Bath and Wasps.

We imposed our will on those matches and we must do that again in Brive.”The return of the captain, Hemi Taylor, to the side will be important this weekend and he will want to see a better return from his line-out, and fewer unforced errors, when his men travel to France.When they return, they will find themselves more or less out of the reckoning for the Welsh title. Pontypridd, with only one defeat in 11 games, are now only three points behind Swansea and, on this showing, are comfortably the best team in Wales There is no club around to match them for pride and passion. Few can match their organisation and nobody has a pair of half-backs to match Paul John and Neil Jenkins.John was rightly voted man of the match and Jenkins won his outside- half duel with Jonathan Davies. Although he finished one point behind him in the match tally with 17, he scorched past him to set up a try for Jason Lewis in the second half and directed proceedings brilliantly.This was Pontypridd’s third win this year at the National Ground – the match was transferred from the Arms Park next door because of a frozen pitch – and they are now the team to beat.Even though Cardiff managed to reach the interval with their noses in front, 13-10, Pontypridd hit back with three second-half tries to comfortably take the points and notch a huge psychological blow.Jenkins maintained it was the fact Cardiff had 15 internationals in their side that spurred on his men to such a great deed. Perish the thought that anyone should suggest Ponty are an unfashionable side after a year in which they have won the Swalec Cup, the Champions Challenge and hammered Cardiff at the holy of holies.Cardiff: J Thomas; S Hill, M Hall, L Davies, N Walker; J Davies (capt), R Howley; A Lewis, J Humphreys, L Mustoe (D Young, 69), J Wakeford, D Jones, M Bennett, E Lewis, G Jones.Pontypridd: C Cormack; D Manley, J Lewis, S Lewis, G Lewis; N Jenkins (capt), P John; N Eynon, P John, A Griffiths (C Martine, 14), G Prosser, M Rowley, M Spiller, M Edwards (R Collins, 68), M Williams.Referee: P Adams (Ebbw Vale).. In the end it was all a bit of a let-down.

True to pre-match hype, Francois Pienaar turned up for his Courage League debut with Saracens Orrell, their opponents, were also there. In the corporate lounge a troupe of Zulu dancers were strutting their stuff at a lunch attended by South Africa’s Deputy High Commissioner and 17 members of staff, as well as a large gathering of Saracen big wigs, all of whom were ready to greet Nelson Mandela’s favourite sportsman. But Pienaar finished up working out in an impromptu training session after the match was called off half an hour before the scheduled kick- off. The ground was deemed too hard, the temperature too low and the consequent risk too high.

Referee Tony Spreadbury, having arrived 10 minutes earlier, was in no doubt about what he should do. It left the former Springbok captain as frustrated as the fans who had assembled for the match, some of whom had flown in from South Africa.
Pienaar, who left South Africa in temperatures of 80F to be greeted by freezing conditions on his arrival, said: “I have never seen snow falling before and I have never driven in it so yesterday I left home in Ascot two hours before I needed to to make sure I got to training.”That was only Pienaar’s second training session and he was perfectly candid about his physical condition. “I’ve been training hard in South Africa,” said Pienaar, who will turn 30 on Thursday. “You have to play a couple of games to get up to match fitness.

And I am telling you now, my match fitness is suspect.”The postponement means Pienaar, who led South Africa in all 29 of his international appearances until he was dropped for his country’s recent tour of Argentina, will have the toughest of debuts next Saturday at Bath. “That will be quite a christening,” said Pienaar, who revealed that it was Nerine, his wife of 10 months, who persuaded him to accept Saracens’ reputed offer of pounds 500,000 for two and a bit seasons with the North London club.”It wasn’t a money issue It is an adventure to come here and an opportunity. We want to see shows in London, do some travelling in Europe It’s a great opportunity. But leaving South Africa and the family was hard.”He clearly likes what he has seen of Saracens so far.