Saracens 15 Wasps 20

Millions of words must have been written over why some sports teams suddenly seem incapable of doing things that would be considered simple not so long ago. The worst of them generally comprise clichés along the lines of "we didn't turn up on the day" or "early season blues."

Saracens added their own worthwhile example with a sterile performance that condemned them to being the eighth of the past twelve Premiership Champions to lose on the following opening day.

It wasn't as though the ingredients that contributed to that first title weren't present at Twickenham again. A scrum that caused problems for the Wasps pack all afternoon, the abrasive defence of twenty-year old Owen Farrell and the attacking potential of James Short, David Strettle and the loose forwards were all evidenced in the opening minutes. Would that it were sufficient.

The day started brightly enough. Within the opening six minutes, Wasps were staring down the barrel of an eight-point deficit after an infringement by Tim Payne and Farrell snagging scrum half Charlie Davies behind the game line.

While on the subject of clichés, only ‘sucker punch’ could aptly describe the next few minutes of play as Wasps scored twice against the run of play; first a rare penalty from a scrum, then after a dubious penalty allowed Nicky Robinson to kick Wasps deep into Saracens territory, a devastating display of quick hands from centres Riki Flutey and Chris Bell put Christian Wade over in the corner.

Saracens’ nerve was not completely shot, but a series of errors and the determined rush defence of Wasps began to undermine their initiative. First Schalk Brits threw too long at the lineout, not for the last time that afternoon. Danger was narrowly averted. Then a period of sustained crisp passing ran into the face of the Wasps defence. Saracens were fortunate to get away with three points when the ball squirted out of a ruck and several loose passes were recovered.

Saracens at least produced some dogged defending of their own when the ball was turned over and a kick ahead caught Alex Goode out of position. The chasing defender dragged the full back over the dead ball line but the Saracens scrum repelled the attack and won the turnover.

Farrell left the field ten minutes into the second half with an inscrutable expression as he made way for Charlie Hodgson. The young fly half gave played to his strengths once again, with a good record from the tee and in defence. His options in attack were limited by the slow progress at the breakdown, but not much was ventured and accordingly, little was gained.

The arrival of Hodgson and George Kruis on the other hand injected a much needed burst of energy and Schalk Brits worked an overlap for Alex Goode, whose inside pass was deflected away from the eager hands of Ernst Joubert by a backtracking Tom Varndell. From the next phase of play Saracens won a penalty, allowing Hodgson to kick the team to within a point of the away side. A big hit for Melck and Carstens then welcomed Billy Vunipola to the game. The resulting lineout ball was needlessly kicked away but Hodgson soon had the opportunity to add another penalty to take Saracens into the lead.

Having used ‘sucker punch’, I shall have to make do for now with ‘you’re at your most vulnerable when you’ve just scored. After a spell of aerial ping-pong, Strettle made a scything break through the midfield. The ball was slowed down by the Wasps back row, impressively at its most fierce in those last twenty minutes, before Jonathan Poff ripped the ball from Jackson Wray’s hands. Payne was on hand to pick up and break before offloading to Tom Varndell, who didn’t need more than a sniff of the tryline to steal back the lead.

Sarries’ continuing attacks seemed merely to underline their impotency, although I would argue that the cause was not so much a lack of adventure as composure. The ball was frequently not made secure, or popped out when the chance of a turnover seemed most likely, or diverted away from the forwards to be stolen. The look of anguish on Mark McCall’s face spoke volumes of a slow-motion collapse.

Chances persisted in presenting themselves. Borthwick elected to have Hodgson take three points from a penalty within the 22 with eight minutes to go but the kick was dragged horribly wide. A loose ball, hacked on by debutant Duncan Taylor bounced unkindly and a missed pass from Hodgson that almost fell into the hands of Varndell instead released Taylor again, whose kick ahead just eluded Joubert.

Wasps, however, were not without their own chances and Charlie Davies in particular caused hearts to leap into mouths. Their pre-season and the absence of expectation have clearly done them a world of good. Organised in the lineout, frustratingly effective in the ruck and quick to spot gaps in defence, they were well worth the victory.

Nonetheless, it was a game of very few clean breaks, won by two breakaway tries. Saracens were below par in so many areas that it is hard to resist calling for wholesale changes. The most obvious would be Brits, whose lineout throwing let the side down badly, and Farrell, simply because Hodgson cut a much more confident figures (though his woeful tackle on Varndell raises old concerns). Indeed, Farrell might benefit from a spell outside Hodgson, were it not for the ever-reliable Brad Barritt. Many of the younger players gave good accounts of themselves from the bench, but the likelihood is that there will be few changes for Bath next week. Wasps have shed the unwelcome clothes of past glory and replaced them with ambition. Saracens, hopefully, will not wear theirs for any longer than they have to.