By The Saracens
June 17 2021

So the last game of this strangest of seasons approaches. In all honesty this should be a coronation. Coming into the match with a 60-0 lead it would take something pretty extraordinary for anything else to transpire! But I am sure that even if we Sarries fans are expecting a party atmosphere, Mark McCall and the team will not. They will prepare for this as if it was 0-0 and everything to play for.

It was interesting to hear on some rugby podcasts this week, various “experts” suggesting our Lions will be rested or possibly on the bench. All I can say is they don’t know Saracens or Saracens’ players. I cannot image Faz or Maro or Mako or Elliot or Jamie (or Vincent for that matter) not wanting to play. These guys will not be taking anything for granted. They will want to play because they are Saracens and that is the ethos of their club.

Other rugby supporters expected our squad to disintegrate and our team to implode when our relegation was engineered, but they didn’t know Sarries. There are many, many quotes about how adversity makes you stronger. Here is one that I particularly like from Ronald Paul Pratt:- “You find yourself through adversity. The things that hurt us most today make us stronger tomorrow”. Yes we have hurt – hurt a lot, but supporters, players, coaches, club: we are all stronger because of it. We have taken our punishment, whatever you think about it, we can hold our heads up high.

Ealing were the victims last Sunday of the real Saracens. The giant as been snoozing for most of the season but last Sunday he was wide awake. Few teams in Europe, let alone the Premiership, would have been able to withstand Sarries last weekend. They played like the Champions of Europe they really should be. I really feel for Ealing. They are a good team, they could almost certainly follow the likes of Exeter and Bristol and thrive in the Premiership. But the same people who sealed Saracens’ fate, also sealed Ealings’. With the full might of Saracens bearing down on them they never had a chance.

Ben Ward clearly has concerns about exposing his team to another physical and bruising encounter. I doubt if ETF have ever experienced anything quite like it. “First of all there will be a lot of battered bodies there so we will have to go away and look at selection ahead of next week. Players who we think can go out there and give us a full 80 minutes, we need to go out there and just fire some shots, we’ve come this far how do we tale the next steps now. There will be a number of guys playing their last game in the Ealing Trailfinders’ shirt, and a couple who will be playing their last game of rugby. We will have to pick ourselves up and dust ourselves down, we can only learn from games like this.”

I expect Saracens to put out a very similar team to last weekend barring injury, so we will probably see something like:  Goode, Lewington, Daly, Tompkins, Maitland, Farrell, Davies, Mako, George, Koch, Itoje, Swinson, Rhodes, Wray, Billy. It looks like it will be Mike Rhodes last game so I’m sure his mates will want to give him a great send-off.

Once again a great set of Premiership-quality officials have been appointed with Luke Pearce (who I thought was excellent in the Heineken Final) in charge, ably assisted by Karl Dickson and Matt Carley along with Claire Hodnett in the TV van.

It is fantastic that there will be 2,500 fans at the StoneX hoping to celebrate along with the team. Little DG & I will be there too! Once again let’s hope the threat of COVID stays away and Sarries can finish the season on the pitch and seal promotion as the true Champions we all know they are.

IT’S THE FINAL COUNTDOWN……

Discussion started by TheSaracens.com , 17/06/2021 16:28

TheSaracens.com
17/06/2021 16:28

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2021:06:29:10:28:10 by Darraghgirl.

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Barty II
17/06/2021 16:38

Think I'd agree the Lions boys deserve a rest. Would be very daft to play them and for one to get injured! Perhaps we'll see some but not all.

Being a bit sentimental, and because we've earned the right to do this, I hope the likes of Rhodes, Whiteley, Sloan, Hooley start the game and have a chance to play infront of fans (some for the first time!!) and get the send off they deserve.

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HappySaracen
17/06/2021 17:16

Excellent piece.

I'm a bit conflicted with the team to be selected. Even with my natural pessimism it feels like loosing with a 60-0 lead is unlikely.

Having watched A J MacGinty ruled out of a finals game playing "pointless" minutes once the result was gone I have very mixed feelings about exposing the Lions contingent to the ravages of outrageous fortune. I also think that whilst OP is 100% right on: "They will want to play because they are Saracens and that is the ethos of their club" I'd also say the same is true for some of the less heralded players all of whom have been vital. Think of those that stepped up when the Internationals and Covidiots weren't available. Are they any less deserving of this "last" hurrah than the big names? Not for me.

I expect we will go all out but personally I'd prefer the team that put the early shifts in with the Internationals on the bench. I really hope that all the squad who are able to be there are at the game so regardless of who takes the field we can show our appreciation of their loyalty, passion, determination and professionalism.

I'd love to see something like:

RAH, Woolstencroft(c) Clarey, Hunter-Hill, Swinson, Venter, Rhodes, Wray, Davies, Vunipola, Segun, Tompkins, Morris, Lewington, Obatoyinbo
Mako, George, Koch, Maro, Billy, Whiteley, Farrell, Daly.

Another way to do it would be start the Internationals but give the subs 40 or 50 rather than 20 or 30? I get the feeling McCall will manage without my input

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jonnybrowne
17/06/2021 17:19

Great preview, DG, and appetite for Sunday even more whetted.

I agree that Smally and the boys won’t just be there for a party, and I think the Lions will play some part in the game, but it would be nice to say an on-pitch goodbye, as it were, to the players leaving us - especially Mike Rhodes.

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