It might have been disappointment for Harlequins in front of the Twickenham Stoop faithful, but Joe Marchant is hoping their Singha Premiership Rugby 7s run has helped build momentum for the coming season.

Marchant skippered the side that made it through to Friday's final, but they came unstuck in their first encounter and were downed 31-26 by Gloucester Rugby.

That defeat set up a plate semi-final with Sale Sharks, but they were once again unable to make an impact as James Mitchell inspired the Sharks to a 45-24 win.

However, while Marchant admits the result was a disappointment, he says Quins' young guns have learned plenty from the experience.

“It was tough for us tonight. It’s always frustrating coming here to the Twickenham Stoop and not getting the result we wanted,” he said.

“But we worked hard right until the end, and it’s a tough blow that they scored right at the end.

“There’s always next year, and hopefully we can take some momentum away from our performances here going into the season.

“I think we just lost our communication there at the end, and in 7s rugby that is absolutely key. But sometimes things just don’t go your way on the pitch and you can’t do a lot about it.

“The Singha 7s definitely gets you in the right place ahead of the season. It is obviously towards the end of preseason, and the chance to get out there and just play to express yourself is a good way of getting things going. It opens doors for a lot of people.”

Marchant meanwhile has done his reputation no harm after being the shining light for Quins during the competition and he is hoping that will be enough to earn him some first team rugby this year.

“I’ll try and take a lot from this. There’s the leadership experience, as last week was my first time as captain and then obviously I was tonight as well,” he added.

“And then you learn little things here and there every time you play in this kind of environment. So the whole thing is very useful.

“It’s nice to be able to compete for silverware in front of our own fans, but of course we feel like it is a big shame we weren’t able to do it.

“In terms of the 15s, I’d love to get a few first team appearances in the Premiership. I’ll be playing in the Championship as well with London Scottish which will be nice, and then I’d like to have a good season in the Six Nations and World Cup with the England U20s.”

Richmond and Twickenham Times:

Richmond and Twickenham Times:

Richmond and Twickenham Times:

Richmond and Twickenham Times:

Richmond and Twickenham Times:

Richmond and Twickenham Times:

Richmond and Twickenham Times:

Richmond and Twickenham Times: