SRRIES END UNINSPIRED REGULAR SEASON

I have not always found it easy to write up a game, but one is particularly difficult to grasp. The game started so well, with George Ford placing the kick out on the full.  Scrum half-way, Sale infringe, then infringe again, and with two minutes on the clock only two players have touched the ball in play, George Ford to kick off and Ivan van Zyl to put into the two scrums.  Now a third is to have a touch, Eliot Daly as he lines up for a kick for three points.  Austin Healey, beginning one of his most inconsequential afternoons in the commentary box, which is quite an achievement, given how low he sets the bar, in my opinion, notes that Eliot has been missing, wide, his practice kicks before the game, and Eliot duly misses now

I have absolutely no reason to think, from what has been seen already, that Sale are far more interested in this game than Sarries seem to be.  However, my pre-match thoughts seem to have been prescient from now on. No squad coached by Alex Sanderson is going to roll over and die, but it is quickly apparent that the early scrummage infringements by his team are not to be the norm today.  Sanderson’s Sale are definitely here with every intention of taking a semi-final berth. Bevan Rodd, in particular is in combative mood, solid in defence and hard-driving on Sarries ball.  Sometimes the Sarries ducks don’t line up, and for much of the game there is a great deal too much quacking and a too little focus on delivery at most such moments.  I do not understand why, but the teal blue coloured shirts seemed to be ascendant.  Sarries struggled in the front row, had parity in the middle, and in the set-piece perhaps shaded the struggle.  However, in the loose, astonishingly, the Sarries back row of Gonzalez, Earl and Willis played as three talented individuals, whilst Curry, Dugdale and du Preez played as a team of three, multiplying the overall impact of their game by their understanding of each other’s probable action in attack of defence.

 For 20 minutes, nobody troubled the scorer, but a smart diversion from attacking up the middle was initiated by smart thought from George ford, quick hands in the centre, and space for Tom Roebuck on the right wing.  He had work to do, but created doubt about his pathway through the defence and was able to score untouched by the posts.  His team deserved the lead, although Owen did cut into it with a penalty shortly afterwards. 3-7

 The next ‘score’ should have been an actual one, with Luke Cowan-Dickie first to react to an overthrow on the Sarries 5 metre line. However, he lost contact with the ball for a fraction of a second before touching down.  Ford did widen the gap again with a penalty, but half-time saw the teams go in at 3-10.

 Sarries had been flat, under-cooked for so much of the half that it seemed likely that Mark McCall would have had plenty of topics to discuss over the oranges, but the second half brought little change.  Marco Riccioni replaced Christian Judge, a necessary replacement given the latter’s difficulties with Bevan Rodd.  Ford opened the gap to 3-13 after another scrum penalty.  Shortly after, a long Sam James kick for territory saw the remarkable sight of the ball travelling forward, well covered by Daly and Lewington, but kicking off the landing at right angle to its direction of travel.  Sale were already ready to pounce on the pick-up, but instead The ball was fumbled to Rob du Preez, who needed to do little to earn a try, then converted.

 At 3-20, Mark McCal was bound to change as much as possible, Theo Dan, Eroni Mawi, Nick Isiekwe, Theo McFarland and Billy Vunipola all arriving to freshen the scrum and Alex Goode to the same for the backs.  The 6-2 replacements split looked to have been a good selection decision, with several of those going off looking shell-shocked.  Dan was quickly typically energetic, seeming to make more carrying metres than the combined total of the entire starting pack, excluding Ben Earl.  Equally, Alex Goode showed again that speed of thought, and accurate thought, can be more effective than what had been before.  We began to see intermittent patches of what we know Sarries can do, but not enough to suggest that a win was on the cards.  A try did come, well scored by Riccioni, but in the end Sale did enough in the closing minutes of this onslaught to close out the game at 10-20

 Looking back, and sitting through the sorry need to replay the recording, I was very much struck by the lack of emotional and physical energy that Sarries brought to this game as a whole.  Perhaps I should not be surprised, it seems as though Sarries have indeed acquired this season a painful habit of falling off the horse.  Nobody wants to recall the first two games of the season, nor indeed the tame fold against Saints at the Stonex in week 8.  An 18 weeks’ schedule allows no room for such luxuries as bad days at the office.  A few favourite players do continue to deliver, week after week, notably Gonzalez and Cinti, Dan and Earl, and the two elder statesmen, Daly and Goode.  Willis and Parton are bedding in nicely, but you need more than eight consistent performers if you want to get anything out of the season.

 And finally, supporters are influenced by what is happening on the pitch, whilst layers are influenced by the level of support.  That connection seems to me to have become a bit frayed in recent times, so that support is lively when all is well, but muted, almost apathetic, when things are not going well on-field. 

 SARACENS:

Daly, Lewington, Cinti (Goode), Tompkins, Parton, Farrell, Van Zyl (Davies), M Vunipola (Mawi) George (Dan), Judge (Riccioni), Itoje, Tizzard (Isiekwe), Gonzalez (MacFarland), Earl, Willis (B Vunipola)

 SALE SHARKS

Carpenter, Roebuck (Reed), Robert Du Preez, Tuilagi (James), O’Flaherty, Ford, Warr (Quirke); Rodd (McIntyre), Cowan-Dickie (Taylor), Harper (John), Wiese (Bamber), Andrews (Van Ryhn) Curry, Dugdale, Jean-Luc Du Preez

 SCORERS:

Saracens: Try: Riccioni, Conv: Farrell; Pen: Farrell

Sale Sharks: Tries: Roebuck, R Du Preez, Conv: Ford (2) Pen Ford (2)

 Referee: Luke Pearce