Quins keen to toe official line

Harlequins have called in top English referee Wayne Barnes in a bid to solve the disciplinary problems that have contributed to their poor start to the season.

Conor O'Shea, Quins' director of rugby, asked the RFU's elite refereeing department for help after Ollie Smith and Tomas Vallejos received yellow cards in the 21-17 loss at Sale last Friday.

O'Shea has also been angered by the frequency of penalties conceded by his players.

"I spoke to the RFU referee's department and asked if we could have one of their elite officials and Wayne Barnes took part in our training session," said O'Shea.

"We wanted them to look at what we were doing at the tackle area and the break down because we have been giving away too many penalties."