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| Saracens 37- Harlequins 17 |
As
Saracens staged a spectacular show at sunny Wembley, it was one that
secured its place in history, with the largest attendance for any
club Premiership match, at 83,889. But while supporters relaxed and
enjoyed an Elton John Tribute band before kick-off, the pressure must
have been mounting for the Harlequins.
It
was a must win game for them. Yet looking at the team sheet, it
seemed to be Saracens who had put out their strongest side, with Owen
Farrell back in the squad after his return from Six Nations duty but
the likes of Chris Robshaw, Danny Care and Mike Brown all missing
from the Harlequins squad. At such a crucial time in the Aviva
Premiership, was this to prove a wise move for the Quins?
It
was clear from the outset that the two tussling sides were mindful of
their game plan, each seemingly attempting to analyse the other’s
within the first ten minutes. It's safe to say it was a lax and
languid start and when David Strettle was knocked unconscious by a
swinging arm from Maurie Fa'asaaluv in the first 5 minutes, play
stopped and the Mexican wave began.
This
static style continued but minutes later, Wembley had cause to roar
as a high pass from Nick Easter to Ugo Monye saw an intuitive
interception from Saracens’ Chris Ashton who sprinted 80-metres
down the pitch and swallow-dived across the line in true trademark
fashion. Wembley came alive as Sarries came off the starting blocks!
Apart
from this, there was nothing enthralling about the first quarter of
play; the crowd providing the light-hearted momentum and continuity,
especially when a knock-on by Ashton brought a collective cry of
'Whey!’ Then the Quins finally found themselves in the Saracens’
22 and with a penalty kicked by Nick Evans … on the board.
But
it was the Sarries’ defence, counter-rucking and several
constructive kicks to touch from Owen Farrell, which kept them firmly
in the driving seat. And as George Kruis broke through the defensive
line with ease to score under the posts, they appeared to have found
their form. But not regaining their composure quickly enough, it fell
to Karl Dickson with a little show-and-go a couple of minutes later,
to put Quins back in the game.
At
this point, great fluidity between the Saracens’ forwards and backs
saw them steering the game to what looked like a safe victory even
before half time. Their ability to make considerable ground was
reflected in the score line and their control was compelling. And
when Quins’ Nick Evans threw a long, high pass out wide from within
his 22, Owen Farrell seized the gift-wrapped interception opportunity
with both hands, reaping the rewards of both try and conversion and
all on half time!
HT
20-10
The
Quins returned to the pitch with courage and conviction, further
buoyed by the sin binning of Steve Borthwick two minutes into the
second half, for taking a man out in the line-out.
Luke
Wallace then set up a strong rolling maul and although the forwards
pack stumbled just short of the try line, a short pop by Wallace saw
Sam Smith score in the corner. Their attacking play looked fast and
furious – and that was the problem, there was no consistency.
Again,
it became all too easy for the Saracens and it wasn’t long before a
sizzling side-stepping Schalk Brits beat several dazed Quins
defenders, with a quick off-load for Jacques Burger to score.
The
final blow came four minutes from full-time when Marcelo Bosch found
a break in the line and took the Saracens back to the top of the
Aviva Premiership Table.
This
stop-start game, however, contained no continued structure. The
penalty count for both sides was too high, the play wasn't really
creative or clinical in any way and it was frustrating to watch.
The
Man of the Match went to Owen Farrell and I concur that his confident
composure controlled the game well but for me he lacked flair, so my
Man of the Match was Luke
Wallace; A lone star in a lost galaxy. His work-rate, tackles,
awareness and focus, preventing Quins from suffering an even more
demoralising scoreline.
Overall,
a poor performance from the Harlequins - at times looking lost and
scrappy with no conviction to win. Quite honestly, Quins defence was
poor. The back line just weren't taking the ball on at pace and their
inability to break the Saracens defensive line was sacrificial. The
pack looked worn with individual efforts but no team consistency
today. With the play-offs just around the corner, let’s hope they
tighten up and show some tenacity in the coming weeks.
Conor
O'Shea told me after the match, 'We threw two intercept passes and
that effectively is how the game changes.' 'We were completely
written-off but this groups likes a challenge.'
I
just hope this team step forward and use their character to take this
challenge head on with five games left to play.
As
for Saracens? Mark McCall quite rightly said 'At times we did some
good stuff but I don't think we were our best today.' 'When we got it
right today we were pretty clinical but there were some frustrations
as well.'
Undoubtedly
they're real contenders for the Aviva Premiership title if they
maintain consistency entering the last five rounds of this
Premiership.
FT
39-17
