POOL TWO Wasps 25 Castres 11: WASPS MADE a telling point as they finally won at home this season. Individuals may create headlines and command attention, but teams win trophies.
It will long be a case of Danny this and Danny that, with the club's outhalf a media favourite at the age of 20, but yesterday's success against another side languishing at the wrong end of a table had its origins in selflessness.
Castres, with one victory all season and an extensive injury list, may not have posed the greatest of threats but, as the difference of opinion in training last week between Danny Cipriani and Josh Lewsey highlighted, Wasps' greatest battle is with themselves.
Wasps were still below their peak, fading in the second half as the referee scrutinised their approach at the breakdown, but they had done enough in the opening 30 minutes when they unnerved Castres with jaw-shuddering tackles and their confrontational approach with ball in hand.
It was as if Lewsey's punch on Cipriani had cleared the heads of everyone and the likes of Phil Vickery, Tom Palmer, Simon Shaw and Tom Rees looked the Test players the asterisks besides their names indicated.
Cipriani looked quicker off the mark than before his ankle injury last May and the new laws have not compromised his ambition, but his execution was at times flawed and it was his chip out of his own 22 that gave Castres their try at the end, when the ball bounced into the hands of the visiting hooker, Romain Terrain, who initiated a move that ended with Lionel Nallet crossing the line.
Another Cipriani chip had made the game safe for Wasps after they had led 20-3 at the interval. This time it was into the Castres 22: Sebastien Tillous-Borde lost the pick-up under pressure and Lewsey won the race for his own hack ahead.
He celebrated by embracing Cipriani and the two indulged in a brief bout of shadow boxing, Lewsey having offered his hand to the outhalf at the end of the opening period.
"The problem is we need to stop them kissing each other at training as well," said Ian McGeechan.
Castres struggled to cope with the home side's early intensity and were two tries down by the end of the opening quarter. The wing Paul Sackey scored the first, chasing Riki Flutey's clever diagonal kick, although a knock-on in the build-up went undetected, and Tom Voyce picked up the second.
Cipriani kicked two penalties to go with his conversions and stayed on the pitch for the duration.
If not quite delivering a knock-out blow, Wasps showed they will pack a collective punch.
• Guardian Service
WASPS: Staunton; Sackey, Lewsey, Flutey, Voyce; Cipriani, Reddan; Payne, Ibanez, Vickery; Shaw, Palmer; Haskell, Rees, Worsley. Replacements: Robinson for Reddan (59), Webber for Ibanez (59), Barnard for Vickery (67), Birkett for Shaw (63), Leo for Haskell (68), Betsen for Rees (74). Not Used: Walder. Sinbinned: Lewsey (62).
CASTRES: Bouquie; Mazars, Christophers, Sanchou, Carballo; McIntyre, Tillous-Borde; Lensing, Terrain, Ducalcon; Gaston, Nallet; Malonga, Nell, Faure. Replacements: Bonnefond for Sanchou (46), Senio for Tillous-Borde (59), Forestier for Lensing (60), Giorgadze for Ducalcon (76), Capo for Gaston (54), Tomiki for Faure (63). Not used: Legardere. Sinbinned: Nell (34).
Referee: Carlo Damasco(Italy).
