Former All Blacks player Nick Evans and new father Danny Care starred as Harlequins got the revamped European Rugby Champions Cup season under way on Friday with a 25-9 win over French side Castres.
The two Pool 2 sides were level 3-3 at the break after a penalty each from Castres’ South African-born Rory Kockott and flyhalf Evans for the London club.
In the second half, Evans added six more penalties, and set up England scrum-half Care’s try, which the New Zealander duly converted.
While the home side enjoyed much of the possession in the first period, Castres held their own with a determined defensive display, making 81 tackles before the break.
Four minutes after the restart, Evans put Quins ahead.
After he had kicked two more penalties and two from Kockott, the game entered the last quarter delicately poised at 12-6 to Quins.
A sublime chip over his namesake Max Evans set up Care, who became a father for the first time last week, for the first try of the new Cup campaign in the 66th minute.
He celebrated with a baby-rocking gesture celebration performed by Bebeto and Romario at the 1994 soccer World Cup.
Evans converted and got a couple more penalties to get Quins off to a solid start to Pool 2.
Now known as the European Champions Cup, the tournament has been pared down to 20 teams (seven English, six French, three Irish, two Welsh, one Scottish and one Italian) in five pools, the product of more than two years of political wrangling between the English, French and Celtic nations.
Only the five pool winners and the three best pool runners-up will qualify for the knockout stage.
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