A Fine Exhibition......

In place of what would have been a Premiership fixture against the ill-fated Wasps, we were being treated to a friendly against Scarlets who by my recollection we hadn’t played since the Champions Cup pool stages back in 2016-17, Chris Ashton’s final season with Sarries. It was a sparsely populated StoneX when we arrived, with the North and South Stands closed and the piazza by Gate A bereft of food – it didn’t look like much of a crowd was expected but then it was a cold night, it was Friday evening and in all fairness we only live half an hour’s drive away with neither myself nor Mrs Jonny working on a Friday anymore. Still, a bit of a shame though. In very fitting style, as always at StoneX, a respectful tribute was paid to the legendary Andy Hill, who I'm old enough to remember as part of the Llanelli XV who beat the touring All Blacks 9-3 in 1972 - some achievement for any team let alone a club side and which bore testament to the strength of Welsh rugby at that time.      This was in fact our second visit to StoneX in 48 hours as we’d had a wonderful evening on Wednesday celebrating the career of Sarries legend and absolute gentleman Jackson Wray. Sarries squad for the game was a mixture of highly talented youth, experience and a couple of returnees from long-term injury in need of some game time - Roti Segun who’s only been back for a couple of weeks, and Dom Morris who was making his first appearance of the season.   

Sarries’ straps were hit hard as they dominated proceedings in the very early stages and it was no surprise at all when such a good start was rewarded when Hartley got over after 3 minutes following excellent work from Boon and De Haas, with Vunipola calmly adding the extras for 7-0.

The early shock seemed to wake Scarlets up, though, and it was not too long before Sarries fell behind, as first Thomas drove over from a maul, a try successfully converted by a youthful-looking Jones, Jones, and then after a nice spell of play Tuipulotu grabbed the lead for  the visitors, with Jones again kicking successfully to turn things round at 7-14.

This already looked like it was going to be a good match.

We were out of our seats – and we of mature years were glad of the exercise - when we thought Hallett had a chance but the ball had gone forward.

Both teams looked determined to give the smaller crowd than this game deserved what a Scarlets fan sitting next to me when they last played here in 2016 (another cold evening as a I recall) very memorably described, in a lilting baritone that wouldn’t have shamed Richard Burton, as an “exhibition of the finest running rugby” (he was talking about what Llanelli’s  finest would inflict on Sarries in the second half, which they did).

After by my watch 25 minutes, Knight got us on to our chilled feet for good reason this time when he collected the ball after a well-worked lineout, shimmied through a gaggle of defenders and accelerated for the line at searing pace, with the unerring Vunipola levelling matters at 14-14.

More searing pace from the Sarries tyros was on show when Harris (who many of you know I rate very highly) scorched over the line after great work from Segun and Vunipola in the corner, the latter maintaining his good kicking form on the night to restore Sarries’ lead to 21-14.

Sarries’ night got even better when Lewis placed himself well enough to cross the line after a nice spell of play, with Vunipola finishing the action for the half with his fourth successful conversion and shortly afterwards the players hurried off for a warming half-time cup of something with the score at 28-14.

Morris, entirely understandably, looked a little ring-rusty but he would soon shake that off with more game time – it was good to see him back.

In fact it was Morris who featured in the early stages of Act Two for all the wrong reasons when he received a yellow card, shortly before yet another jet-heeled young Sarrie, Michelow, notched up Sarries’ fifth score of the night by slaloming through the Scarlets defence, with Vunipola’s impressive right boot taking our lead to 35-14.

The hour was marked by a trademark Sarries driving maul from a lineout following a penatly provided a platform for Lewis, clearly enjoying his night, to power over for his second and Sarries’ sixth try. Vunipola’s kicking let him down for the first time but still, a 40-14 lead over a decent Scarlets side was not to be sniffed at.

The game moved into the last quarter of an hour when Knight was the recipient of an invitation to warm himself in the sin bin following a series of penalties awarded against a Sarries side perhaps losing a little focus.

Scarlets shortly afterwards demonstrated that they weren’t done yet as following a good period of pressure Shenton crossed the line, although Jones failed to convert leaving the score at 40-19.

The nerves that have plagued the StoneX faithful all season started to jangle ever so slightly when with 10 minutes left the impressive Jones got on the end of a clever piece of play following a lineout to find a gap and score Scarlets’ fourth try of the game – converting himself to take his side to within 14 points at 40-26…surely they couldn’t go on to snatch it....

Sarries managed to hold on, though, and as the game drew to a close, Jackson, who has something of Sean Maitland about him, wrapped things up after a deft piece of play from Morris out on the left set him up to glide over, with Vunipola ending the match as he’d begun, potting the pill between the posts – 47-26 and it’s back into the warm for us all….

A thoroughly entertaining match with both sides playing with freedom, and I have to say that if this is the future for Sarries, I gotta, to paraphrase Timbuk 3, wear my transition lenses….

SARRIES TEAM:

15 Olly Hartley; 14 Ben Harris: 13 Dom Morris: 12 Josh Hallett; 11 Rotimi Segun

10 Manu Vunipola; 9 Ruben de Haas; 1 Eroni Mawi; 2 Ethan Lewis (c); 3 Christian Judge

4 Cameron Boon; 5 Kaden Pearce-Paul; 6 Max Eke; 7 Nathan Michelow; 8 Toby Knight

Replacements:

16 Samson Adejimi; 17 Robin Hislop; 18 Eduardo Bello; 19 Alex Wardell  

20 ObinnaNkwocha; 21 Sam Bryan; 22 Brandon Jackson; 23 Francis Moore