Bust-ups, off-loads and ex-pats - Prem talking points

By

BBC Sport rugby union news reporter

Apparently Dean Mumm is Exeter's unofficial ambassador Down Under.

The former Australia second row spent three seasons at Sandy Park, extending his deal year-on-year as he was enjoying life in Devon so much.

When he returned to the New South Wales Waratahs in 2015, word spread that if you were a Wallaby looking to make the hop into the Prem then the sun and sea of the South West were a good bet.

Since then, Nic White, Lachlan Turner, Scott Sio and Len Ikitau have arrived at Exeter, but Tom Hooper is already up there among the best Australian imports.

A nuggety, niggly back row with bags of energy, he had another superb game against Newcastle.

The 24-year-old has said he is open to prolonging his own stay. It would not be a tough negotiation.

Given the Chiefs, fourth in the table, have a seven-point cushion over fifth-placed Bristol, this campaign at least looks like being longer than Hooper might have expected when he signed on in the summer.

Campbell Ridl was a lower-key arrival in the Prem. The 21-year-old was born in Tooting in London, but relocated to his parents' native South Africa as a young boy.

He came back to the UK partly to study at Exeter University, but an injury to Immanuel Feyi-Waboso has given him a chance to show off his rangy running and hot-stepping ability.

Ridl has opted to represent England at under-20 level and, at 6ft 5in, has qualities that will have been noted by senior selectors.

Amid all the big collisions, a gentle shove and a not-so-gentle rebuke generated the most headlines over the weekend.

Leicester head coach Geoff Parling took exception to TNT Sport presenter Liam ‌MacDevitt kicking for goal while his players were under the Villa Park posts warming up to take on Gloucester.

Parling's angry reaction - he pushed presenter Craig Doyle and swore - was broadcast live. In the wake of Leicester's 36-17 win, all parties apologised, with TNT sorry that the ball was booted and Parling regretting his response to it.

"We want to sell our game as a product and we will work hard with TNT to get that right next time," Parling told BBC Sport.

Mid-match interviews with coaches, cameras inside dressing rooms and in the midst of celebrations, and an F1 grid-walk access-all-areas presenting style certainly sets rugby apart from many other sports on screen.

It is in everyone's interests for that to remain, and for relationships and players not to be harmed in the process.

The fixture, which was pretty much over as a contest as Tigers wrapped up a four-try bonus point just after quarter of an hour, is played for the Ed Slater Cup.

The former Leicester and Gloucester second row has motor neurone disease and the match raises funds for the charity he set up to support families affected by the condition.

There were lots of delicious moments as Northampton shaded the 'Showdown' against Saracens at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Tobias Elliott scattering tacklers like a Tasmanian devil on his way to the line for the hosts' second try; Tom Lockett, the Northampton lock, casually plucking a one-handed pick-up from off his ankles; and George Furbank and referee Anthony Woodthorpe's increasingly strained conversations - "I am not going to argue about every decision with you" - were among the goodies.

Henry Pollock, who signed a new representation deal with boxing impresario Eddie Hearn earlier in the week, celebrating Archie McParland's match-winning score with a blizzard of fresh-air jabs was another.

But none matched 21st-plus prop Rhys Carre, whose dummy, dart and dance to the line for Wales against Ireland was one of the scores of the Six Nations, continuing his backline side-hustle.

After bouncing Rory Hutchinson earlier in the game, Carre stretched and produced a sumptuous soft-hand sky-hook offload out of contact to set Nick Tomkins running.

Saracens, who started the season with three wins in their first four games and marked each with a social media video poking fun at the opposition, have had to lean on such in-match action for their viral moments recently.

They have won only two of their past eight matches in the league.

The Champions Cup returns this weekend, with Harlequins hosting Sale in an all- English last-16 tie.

It is an intriguing match.

Harlequins reacted to the getting clarity on their coaching situation by beating Bristol in Cardiff, a measure of revenge for the Bears pooping their own stadium spectacular in December.

Had Quins not had such a wretched season, more of the spotlight might have been on Sale.

The Sharks, who have made the play-offs in four of the previous five seasons, have won only three of their 12 league games this season.

Injuries have hindered them. Hooker Nathan Jibulu was deployed in the back, rather than front, row in the 31-26 defeat by Bath.

Sale's recruitment has been steady rather than spectacular for next season, with Nicky Smith, Alex Lozowski, Christ Tshiunza and Tomas Francis among those to arrive in the summer.

For owners Simon and Michelle Orange, who have sunk considerable capital into the club, a European run would at least be some return on the season.

This weekend was the Prem's Big Match Bonanza, with a total of about 115,000 filling out Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Villa Park and the Principality Stadium as Saracens, Gloucester and Bristol shifted home games to bigger stages.

Overall, this round of action is thought to be the third-largest in top-flight history, with the two above it boosted by festive turnouts, including Harlequins' annual Big Game fixture drawing near-capacity crowds to Allianz Stadium.

The backdrop of bigger crowds definitely helps sell the game, but a less frequently mentioned benefit is how the lighting sells the product.

Under the best-in-class floodlights at Tottenham, the finale of Saracens v Northampton played out in HD technicolour compared to the relative gloom of Kingston Park and Exeter's win over Newcastle Red Bulls.

Newcastle's home is far from the only ground which suffers in comparison to football's glare.

Interestingly, Prem Rugby revealed last week that the power of floodlights would be one of the criteria that clubs need to meet on a more extensive checklist for the league's franchise-style future.