Nick David at the double as Harlequins put on a show against Gloucester | Premiership

On such a miserable losing run, the last thing Gloucester needed was a trip to Twickenham to face a Harlequins side intent on putting on a show. It was not flawless from Quins but true to form andamid the pyrotechnics and party atmosphere, they put Gloucester to the sword.

Nick David scored two of their five tries while Danny Care, Marcus Smith and Alex Dombrandt all showed up well – as they tend to on these occasions – with injuries to Joe Marler and Dino Lamb the only cause for concern with the Six Nations looming. For Gloucester it was a club record-equalling eighth straight defeat in the league and though they rallied late on it is already a desperate campaign for the Cherry & Whites, propped up only by Newcastle who remain without a win this season.

Quins, meanwhile, remain firmly in the hunt for a top-four place. They didn’t need to be at their most polished but with André Esterhuizen repeatedly punching holes and both David and Oscar Beard coming up with fine try-saving tackles in each half, they built a big enough lead to withstand Gloucester’s fightback.

Harlequins like to make a song and dance whenever they make the short trip across the road. Tickets were a fair bit cheaper, the annual fixture is well marketed and provides a welcome excursion when only the most dedicated are still tucking into the turkey, but it is no small feat to attract nearly 77,000 spectators – significantly more than England managed on their last appearance here.

As a result, tries were expected despite the gloomy weather and given Smith’s waywardness from the tee, Harlequins dealt exclusively in five-point scores in the first half. They went into the sheds at the interval with three, two of which were finished by the ever-sprightly David while Dombrandt was on target with the other.

The first came after eight minutes of dominating territory and possession until Care darted towards the line and shipped on to Esterhuizen before David was released. It was to some surprise when Gloucester responded with an opportune try finished by Adam Hastings but with Ruan Ackermann playing the leading role, coming up with a well-weighted chip before providing the final pass.

Normal service was resumed for Harlequins when Smith dummied his way past a Gloucester defender before releasing David down the left and Dombrandt added the third after more excellent work from Care. The veteran scrum-half measured his kick over the onrushing Gloucester defence to perfection with Dombrandt charging ahead to gather, bumping off his England rival Zach Mercer on his way to the line. Smith struck an upright for the second time with his conversion attempt – those misses and Joe Marler’s shoulder injury were the only blots on Harlequins’ first-half copybook.

Lamb, one of the more impressive performers of the season to date, added the bonus-point try early in the second half with a sharp dash down the left wing after Dombrandt’s pass but the Italy forward injured his shoulder in the process of scoring and gingerly made his way off the field. It would be a great shame for him and Italy if his availability for the Six Nations is affected as a result.

His departure – coming not long after Marler’s – seemed to take the wind out of Harlequins’s sails. Indiscipline crept in and Gloucester capitalised with the hooker George McGuigan, who has consistently shown he knows the way to the try-line, burrowing over for his side’s second from close range. Hastings’s conversion brought Gloucester back to within eight points.

Harlequins’s response was emphatic, however. Smith’s second 50:22 of the match gave them a lineout in a threatening position from which Esterhuizen bulldozed over the gainline and soon enough Care was sniping his way over under the posts. They huffed and puffed for another but found no way through so Smith notched a drop-goal before Jonny May, just on to the pitch as a replacement, ran in Gloucester’s third try of the evening. A penalty try – awarded for Tyrone Green’s deliberate knock-on to deny a seemingly certain try on the left – made for a nervous couple of minutes for Harlequins, but Gloucester were unable to snatch the victory they would have scarcely deserved.