Saracens
Home at last!!! Saracens 31 v 11 Exeter
By King Zak
February 18 2013
Wow!! What a great start to life at Allianz Park (AzP). Yes, there were some teething problems and they could perhaps have been foreseen by those in charge and dealt with slightly better. But regarding the real purpose of the day it was a resounding success!
AzP stood in all its glory as a full house (well, almost) basked in winter sun – it’ll be even better when the peripheral areas are completed. But it was home! After 15 largely nomadic years, we finally have our own ‘gaff’, and it seems to suit the players very well indeed. The much discussed ‘plastic’ pitch is surely the way forward for rugby. It promotes a much quicker game, allows off-loading to be a more realistic proposition; not least because the breakdown area can be cleared so quickly when players aren’t going to slip and slide in mud! One slight issue with the pitch seems to be that kicking at goal requires a small adjustment. I was informed by the knowledgeable PNH that the kicking tee sits fractionally higher on the ‘plastic’ than it does on normal grass. This results in the kicker striking the ball slightly lower than the normal impact point – giving more elevation but less forward momentum and accuracy. This was reflected in the first half efforts by both Hodgson & Steenson as they missed kicks well within their range.
Something else teams will need to be aware of is the relatively small in goal area – something Steenson failed to recognise as his kick through resulted in a scrum to Saracens back on Chief’s 10m line.
On a personal level (if I may be permitted), the most disturbing aspect for me was the thought that the players wearing the special edition ‘First Game at AzP’ shirts, had Jim55 written across their belly button – not a pleasant thought at all!!
In team news, Chris Wyles was feeling unwell so Ben Ransom came into full back. Ransom is one of those players who will undoubtedly benefit from the speed of game on the new surface. He made two or three excellent breaks, one notable effort in the first half resulting in opposite number Luke Arscott being sent to the sin bin and Hodgson missing a simple kick at goal! This was the easiest of three first half misses for Hodgson, but once he worked out the slight amendment necessary, he didn’t miss, hitting four conversions and one penalty.
Saracens totally dominated the first 25 minutes and could easily have been three tries to the good beforeExetertook the lead on almost their first foray into Sarries 22 – Steenson hitting the penalty for the Chiefs. Prior to that, Sarries had somehow failed to take advantage of their dominance; a result of excellent Chief’s defence, sloppy handling and, at times, trying to force the pass a bit too much. The most glaring example being a three on one overlap that should have seen Short stroll into the corner; but laboured passing from Powell to Tomkins, and then to Short saw the opportunity lost. They did finally manage to cross the try line through Hodgson who strolled through to score after the front row ‘union’ had punctured big holes in the Chief’s defensive line. This was not the last time that the ‘big three upfront’ would torment the visitors – they were much involved throughout the game and scored the next three tries.
The first half had been pretty much one way traffic; Sarries dominated possession and territory, yetExeterhad the chance to go into the break just one point behind, but Steenson missed a simple kick in front of the posts with the last action of the half. It had been breathless stuff and we felt that if the pattern continued, then Chiefs would tire and Sarries would make it tell on the scoreboard. And so it proved; Hodgson struck an early penalty to take the score to 10-3 and then Matt Stevens barged over from close range to take Saracens out to 17-3.
However, it may be a new stadium and pitch, but some of the old failings still exist. Sarries failed to deal with the restart and eventually conceded a penalty, allowing Steenson to reduce the arrears to 17-6. As if to show that it wasn’t just a Sarries thing though,Exetermade a mess of dealing with their restart too. Short did well, bundling the receiver into touch, giving Sarries a lineout on Chief’s 22m. A forward drive, a couple of phases and Mighty Mako barged through three would be tacklers to score the third try. His choice of music – ‘Smooth Operator’ seems somewhat more appropriate than his fellow prop, Matt ‘Born to Run’ Stevens. I confess I can’t recall the song for Charlie, but I can’t wait for Steve Borthwick to score a try!
With 25 minutes remaining it was now really all about the try bonus point. It eventually arrived after 70 minutes, but given the one-way nature of the game it spoke volumes for the defence ofExeter. They tackled themselves to a standstill, but when Strettle found Vunipola with yet another offload from the floor, they had simply run out of defenders. Hodgson’s kick made it 31-6 – job done, 5 points in the bag! Four tries scored and it really could have been so many more. The final word went the way ofExeteras captain Baxter forced his way over from close range. Referee Martin Fox referred the decision to the TMO as he suspected their may have been an obstruction from Scaysbrook on Joubert. In the context of this game it meant little, but in a closer game it would have been a much more controversial score; Scaysbrook clearly dragging Joubert out of the way for Baxter to score.
I confess that I was less than impressed by the ‘Fat Lady’ gag three minutes from time. The game was still in progress and I found it hugely disrespectful to an Exeter team who had tackled their socks off – making over 100 tackles in the second half alone! I did wonder if it was the reason Matt Stevens had been substituted, so he could get into make-up; a less charitable Fez Boy suggested that the Three Counties commentator may have been involved (not something I would second at all!!).
The most amusing moment for me – no, not the ‘Fat Lady’! It was the referee and his assistants constantly trying to ‘mark’ the scrum, lineout, penalty with their boot on the ‘unmarkable’ surface. I have this vision that officials in the future will carry a piece of chalk or spray paint for the purpose!
The only unbeaten home record in the Premiership was maintained and, for a couple of hours at least, Sarries moved to top of the table. As forExeter, they worked tirelessly, but to be honest were simply outplayed. They are going through a difficult period and coach Baxter will need to work hard to get them back into contention for Heineken Cup rugby next season.
Man of the Match was unsurprisingly awarded to Mighty Mako. He was excellent in every facet; he does the basics of his job so well (i.e. scrummaging), his work rate is first class, he makes his tackles, carries so well and even indulged in a ’Census sidestep’ at one stage. Amongst an excellent all round team performance, special mention again to Will Frazer and Jackson Wray. They were a constant threat toExeterat the breakdown, and Frazer in particular carried the ball very well.
All-in-all, a fantastic start to life at Allianz. The style of play was adapted to suit the conditions, something we will clearly see a lot more of. It bodes well for an entertaining end of season, although I suspect a couple of other teams will also enjoy the style of rugby this particular surface permits – ‘Quins to name just one. That game on 24th March will be a cracker – get your tickets now!!
Saracens: 15 Ben Ransom 14 James Short 13 Joel Tomkins 12 Adam Powell 11 David Strettle
10 Charlie Hodgson 9 Neil de Kock 1 Mako Vunipola 2 John Smit 3 Matt Stevens 4 Steve Borthwick © 5 Mouritz Botha 6 Jackson Wray 7 Will Fraser 8 Ernst Joubert
Replacements: 16 Jamie George 17 Nick Auterac 18 Petrus du Plessis 19 Alistair Hagreaves
20 Justin Melck 21 Richard Wigglesworth 22 Nils Mordt 23 Joe Maddock
Exeter: 15 Luke Arscott 14 Jack Nowell 13 Ian Whitten 12 Jason Shoemark 11 Matt Jess
10 Gareth Steenson 9 Will Chudley 1 Ben Moon 2 Neil Clark 3 Hoani Tui 4 Dean Mumm
5 Damian Welch 6 James Scaysbrook (C) 7 Richard Baxter 8 Kai Horstmann
Replacements: 16 Jack Yeandle 17 Carl Rimmer 18 Alex Brown 19 Tom Hayes 20 Aly Muldowney 21 Haydn Thomas 22 Ignacio Mieres 23 Phil Dollman
Referee: Martin Fox
Attendance: 9,999 (apparently)
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Thanks King Zak for the Exeter match report. We had a great time yesterday and look forward to the many more sellouts!
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2013:03:05:09:36:46 by TonyTaff.
It's a long time since Sports network paid anything!
Quote:Jim 55
Oi.....
Sorry, couldn't get the thought from my mind......
Nous sommes l'armée noir et rouge !
However great match, great report; shame about some of the other stuff
Quote:sam0327
I know its slightly off this , but Jim Carter ( the butler from Downton Abbey) was just behind me in the east stand
Was he delivering the pizzas at half time?
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