Rugby Union Commentary: Barnes makes most of Andrew's error

THE MILK and water of the Divisional Championship turned to wine at Gloucester when the South-West beat London. This was Kingsholm not Cana in Galilee but a minor miracle none the less.

Those of us who had laboured under the apprehension that this competition was not simply flawed but in some senses meaningless found ourselves abruptly chastened. For this we can thank the South and South-West (West for short), just as it was the previously divided division that we could blame for its bygone futility.

If you have only four contestants and one is not taking it seriously, it is no contest. But all of a sudden, even the Bath players are treating it as their conduit towards the England team (whether it is or not) and even Stuart Barnes wants, sort of, to play in it.

So after seven long and often tiresome years the divisionals signify something. We already knew about the value of combining players out of their club context and the theoretical benefit of seeing the best 60 in England in three successive Saturdays. But now, praise be, we also have a contest on our hands.

The West moved two-thirds of the way to the ADT trophy by squeezing out London 26-24 on a bog of a pitch in an ultimately thrilling match attended by a sizeable, animated crowd. If Gloucester folk cannot forbear to cheer for Bath players, as they vociferously did on Saturday, things really have changed.

When a West team including 10 from Bath took the field here in 1985 they were booed, leading one London official to wonder whether in 1992 the locals might rather get behind the visitors than another team with 10 Bath men in it. Not quite. One thing worse than Bath in these parts is a Londoner: when Mark Bailey played at Kingsholm in 1988 he was called a 'London fairy'. In fact he was born in Wakefield, Yorkshire, though he is a Cambridge don.

The addition of London's scalp to that of the North, beaten 29-9 at Kirkstall a week earlier, leaves the West needing to draw with or beat the Midlands at Leicester next Saturday to become champions. Never before had they beaten the North; never before had they won away; never before had they won two matches in a season. Never before have they won the Divisional Championship.

It had taken some doing to be so bad while picking principally from Bath, Bristol and Gloucester. The old chestnut about ancient enmities seldom applied when the latter two combined as Gloucestershire in the old days of the County Championship.

'We have never made promises. We have suggested we may have promise, and there's a subtle difference,' Keith Richardson, the coach, said. He puts much of it down to Barnes's leadership. Barnes puts it down to long overdue self-analysis and self-criticism by each and every player.

'Will and commitment carry you across the threshold; that hasn't always been the case with the South-West,' the captain said, in rebuke for what went before as much as enthusiasm for what is occurring now. (In common with most of his players, he would never admit to liking divisional rugby even if it is not as objectionable as it was.)

'People didn't enjoy it. The South-West felt the poor relations compared with London and the North's preparation and training, but the players have to take some responsibility. People have looked at it as a series of trials and have come into games thinking 'as long as I can perform, that will be OK because it's a trial'.'

And now? 'The players have clearly played for one another and not for themselves. We have worked very hard on team spirit and each one of the 15, be he playing to keep his England place or be he a contender, has had to work for everyone else. It can only work if the players want it. We have to look each other, 1 to 15, in the eye.'

The evidence was there against London, though it was slow in being adduced. The head to head between Barnes and Rob Andrew, of which so much had been made, was going relentlessly Andrew's way while London built a 14-3 half-time lead to which Alex Snow contributed a try when one of many wayward Richard Hill passes fell in his favour.

After half-time Andrew's fourth penalty extended the margin to 14 points, making the West's mountain 'Alpine as opposed to Himalayan' in Barnes's words. So they took up their rope and crampons, and climbed. Andy Robinson flopped on to a terrible line- out tap for one try. Nick Beal revealed the highest class to outflank the cover for another after a glorious piece of invention involving Morris, Webb, De Glanville, Clarke, Hill, Barnes and Webb again.

With a couple of kicks by Jon Webb the West were dramatically in the lead and, though Andrew went 40 yards for a fine solo try ('I was hoping, and looking, for support') which he converted, his puny drop-out presented Barnes with the opportunity to create a try for Jeremy Guscott and, five minutes from time, Webb's touchline penalty won the match.

Afterwards Geoff Cooke, the England manager, more or less confirmed that Andrew had done enough in the individual confrontation, even if the player was modestly vague: 'You can't judge on one game. The debate will continue.'

At the whistle, with London's aspirations gone West, the winners raised their arms heavenwards. They actually cared. 'I would equate it with a boxer who is getting a right rollicking on the ropes,' Richardson said. 'We were going to lose; there was no question we were out. Then I thought 'why aren't we on the floor?'

'It was a very good London performance but it didn't get us down for the count of 10. The whole team hung on and then came up with the killer punch. It's something that hasn't happened before.' And therefore no South-West coach has been able to say so before.

South-West: Tries Robinson, Beal, Guscott; Conversion Webb; Penalies Webb 3. London: Tries Snow, Andrew; Conversion Andrew; Penalties Andrew 4.

SOUTH-WEST: J Webb (Bath); N Beal (Northampton), J Guscott, P de Glanville (Bath), S Morris (Gloucester); S Barnes (capt), R Hill (Bath); C Clark (Swansea), K Dunn (Wasps), J Mallett, N Redman (Bath), A Blackmore (Bristol), J Hall, B Clarke, A Robinson (Bath). Replacement: D Crompton (Bath) for Mallett, 8.

LONDON: A Buzza; S Pilgrim, F Clough (Wasps), D Hopley (Cambridge University), D O'Leary (Saracens); R Andrew (capt), S Bates (Wasps); J Leonard, B Moore (Harlequins), J Probyn (Wasps), A Snow, R Langhorn (Harlequins), M Skinner (Blackheath), D Ryan (Wasps), J Cassell (Saracens).

Referee: G Black (Ireland).