London derbies tend to offer up their fair share of drama, but the latest clash between Harlequins and London Irish stirred up a considerable level of animosity, directed predominantly towards the officiating team.

Tensions began to bubble when Irish, finding themselves three points to the good with a few minutes left on the clock, pinned their opponents back in their 22.

In an attempt to push on up-field, Harlequins spread the ball wide, giving possession to colossus André Esterhuizen. The centre was duly shepherded into touch but managed to fling the ball into the air and keep the attack alive.

London Irish’s Benhard Janse van Rensburg pounced on the loose ball, leaping into the air to reclaim possession. However, he was met mid-jump by Charlie Matthews, who took out the Irish centre, knocking him off-balance.

Van Rensburg tumbled to the ground, his head colliding with the turf below. While the player lay on the floor, visibly in pain, referee Craig Maxwell-Keys waved play on, allowing Harlequins to jackal the loose ball and march into the Irish half.

At this point, the TMO judged, having scoured through replays of the incident, there was no indication of foul play.

With the collision passed off as innocuous, Harlequins retained possession and soon won a penalty with the clock in the red, opting to kick for the corner rather than take the points to draw level.

The daring of the home side Harlequins paid off as the lineout was secured and a maul constructed off the back of it. Slowly a clump of Harlequins players rumbled towards the line as George Head touched down to steal the win. 

Cue utter delirium around Twickenham Stoop as Harlequins pinned yet another comeback win to their record book. 

“It's great to watch as a fan, but as a coach, jeepers, it's frustrating, especially the first half for us,” Harlequins head coach Tabai Matson said after the game.

“But ultimately it's such a tight competition, this was never going to be an easy fixture and to scrape away with a win in the 84th or 85th minute is probably the most important thing.

“It's really tough so to be composed right at the end and get the win, there'll be a few pats on the back.”

Feelings of injustice invariably began to creep in for the London Irish contingent. They had, after all, been the better side for large parts of the contest, carrying a 14-0 lead into the break.

Their first score came after a close-range lineout, So'otala Fa'aso'o was the beneficiary from the resulting drive off the set piece. The Samoan’s opener set in motion a spirited period of play for the visitors, which culminated in another try as Ben Donnell crashed over the whitewash with a powerful carry through flailing defenders.

Harlequins squandered a chance to get points on the board late in the half when Wilco Louw found a gap and stormed into space. Tommaso Allan, standing in at flyhalf in place of the absent Marcus Smith, attempted to deliver a miss-pass to George Hammond in the corner, but the ball was spilt, perfectly epitomizing the hosts’ messy first half performance.

Fortunately for the hosts, the start of the second period proved more fruitful. Three minutes in and they were off the mark, thanks in large part to Allan, who drifted through a gap and crossed over the line to score.

In the build-up to the try, Donnell shouldered Joe Marler’s head and saw red for a clear high-tackle offense.

Notwithstanding their man-disadvantage, Irish rallied and scored their third try when the in-form Ollie Hassell-Collins beat two tackles to finish smartly in the corner.

Harlequins responded with two of their own, the first a bruising carry from Alex Dombrandt, before Allan claimed his second of the afternoon to make the most of the man advantage.

However, the tide changed once again when Harlequins fullback Nick David became the second player to see red for an illegal tackle, this time on Luca Morisi.

When Paddy Jackson slotted a 70th minute penalty to put Irish back in front, the home support looked nervy but all that changed when Head crossed the whitewash, propelling Harlequins up to third in the table.

London Irish sit tenth, but will feel their true position lies higher.

“When you lose in the last play of the game it is disappointing, but what you have to do as professionals is let the emotions settle and deal with it,” London Irish director of rugby Declan Kidney said honestly.

“We know there are lots of things we can do better, but you can't be that disappointed if you are that close.

“It is very disappointing and there were lots of little bits in the last couple of minutes where the emotions were yo-yoing, so we have to take a look at what we can do better.”

Written by Stefan Frost