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This weekend of rugby saw fans witness the good, the bad and the absolutely mental things that the sport can bring.
In the Champions Cup and the various other global domestic competitions that went on, action was everywhere, and we were reminded why we love the sport so much.
Social media had plenty to say about everything happening and kept people up to date with all the goings on.
From a kickoff delayed because of a parachutist to records being broken in the Champions Cup, here are the best social media moments of the weekend.
Parachutist stuck
Toulouse vs Sale Sharks kicked off 40 minutes late for one of the most bizarre reasons ever seen in rugby.
A parachutist got stuck on the roof of the stadium on his way in and was left stranded for quite a while as the stadium looked on with confusion.
Areas under where he was had to be evacuated with tackle pads and later, inflatables being placed in case of a potential fall.
Luckily, the fire service managed to get him down as the crisis was averted and the game started as normal, with the 40-minute delay the only change.
Henco Venter eye gouge
Glasgow Warriors back row Henco Venter was awarded the Player of the Match award after a great performance in their win against Leicester Tigers, but it could have been so different for the South African.
In the buildup to the opener scored by Tigers, Venter appeared to gouge the eye of Leicester prop Dan Cole.
The referee and TMO either didn’t see it or didn’t deem it to be a major offence, so no intervention was made.
With the incident happening within the first five minutes, a potential red or at least a yellow could have changed the complexion of the game.
Tigers have since lodged a complaint to the commissioner, but no action taken will soften the blow of their heavy defeat.
Ange Capuozzo’s Try
Capuozzo showed his sublime self with a brilliant individual try against Sale Sharks, which all but secured the win for Toulouse.
He collected it very well in their air before leaving multiple defenders in his dust, weaving in and out of about five Sale players with some insane agility.
Sadly though, he got injured while placing the ball down, spraining his ankle.
It was feared that the injury might have spelt the end of the season for him, but it wasn’t a fracture as feared, and he will instead be out for five to six weeks.
Toulouse’s top try scorer in the Top 14 will be back, no doubt about it.
Castres late winner
What a game of rugby between Castres Olympique and Benetton.
The two most unfancied teams left in the tournament battled it out for the whole 80 minutes and a Castres win of only two points gives an indication of how close it was.
Despite a red card early in the second half for the French side, they fought hard and beat a team littered with Italy internationals.
Jeremy Fernandez’s try and conversion in the 79th minute sealed it, running over following a scrum from just metres out to make it 39-27 in their favour.
An unreal end to a back-and-forth game.
Damian Penaud Record
In possibly the least surprising news of the weekend, Bordeaux-Bègles winger Damian Penaud scored yet another try and finally beat Chris Ashton‘s record of 11 tries in a single Champions Cup campaign.
After only five games played, that is unbelievable.
Fitting of such a great player, his try came from some great pace and agility to run about 40 metres and past a couple of Ulster defenders.
There are potentially three more games for his team to play should they get to the final, so the record is likely to be extended even further.
Etonia Waqa Try
Super Rugby Pacific is arguably the most entertaining league in the world, and no team embodies that more than Fijian Drua.
Lock Etonia Waqa ran about 70 metres to score a try, with unbelievable pace and an audacious dummy to burst through the Crusaders’ defence.
The crowd went absolutely mental despite being nearly 20 points down after scoring, such is how good of a score it was.
Questions can definitely be asked of the defence, but that is all part of the joy of Super Rugby Pacific.
Dan Biggar Retires
While not strictly from the weekend, Monday saw legendary Wales fly-half Dan Biggar announce his retirement from rugby.
Twice a tourer with the Lions and with a mammoth 112 caps for Wales, he will go down as one of the greatest in recent memory in his position.
Often underappreciated at Test level, retirement provides the perfect time to reflect on just how good he really was.
A properly scrappy player and a brilliant kicker, it likely won’t be the last that we hear from Biggar given that he has started doing some punditry work.
READ MORE: Champions Cup Team of the Week – Munster trio shock Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle
