Yachvili surprise at Stringer’s Irish KO

FRENCH star Dimitri Yachvili is mystified fellow scrum-half Peter Stringer is no longer part of the Ireland set-up.

Yachvili and Biarritz are preparing to face their old nemesis Stringer, man of the match for Munster against the French side in the 2006 Heineken Cup final, whenthe on-loan Irishman’s side Saracens host their Pool 5rivals at Vicarage Road on Sunday.

A Saracens bonus-point win in Watford will see the English club qualify for the quarter-finals with a game to go but an away win for Biarritz will send both teams into Round 6 with a chance of reaching the last eight.

Yachvili, three points short of becoming only the fourth player to score 600 Heineken Cup points, believes the qualification battle is far from over but has warned his side about the threat posed by rival number nine Stringer.

“Sunday’s match against Saracens will definitely be a decider because it will determine our future in the Heineken Cup this season,” Yachvili said.

“And we will pay extra care and keep a close eye on Peter Stringer because we know all too well how dangerous he can be. He has bounced back by joining Saracens, and he’s always been a very good player, so I don’t quite understand why he is no longer trusted in the Ireland squad. We will also be wary of players like Owen Farrell, Steve Borthwick, Jacques Burger and John Smit, among many others, as their team is really heavy duty stuff.”

Biarritz received a boost to their domestic campaign at the weekend when they hauled themselves out of the Top14 relegation zone with a 15-6 win at Agen.