MATCH REPORT | Bristol Bears 35-37 Saracens Men

Alex Lozowski’s 83rd minute penalty secured Saracens Men an incredible 37-35 victory over Bristol Bears at Ashton Gate.

Sarries trailed heading in to the closing stages but showed incredible character to overturn the deficit and register a memorable  win in the West Country.

Bristol made the perfect start and opened the scoring with just two minutes on the clock. A penalty was kicked to the corner, and then a neat move from the lineout saw Fitz Harding cross with their first attack of the match. The conversion went wide, but the Bears were 5-0 up early on.

Sarries were looking to get the ball in their hands and almost found an opening when Josh Hallett and Elliot Daly combined to give Rotimi Segun some space but the ball popped out of his grasp on the left wing.

A penalty from AJ MacGinty then extended Bristol’s lead to eight points, and it threatened to be more when Harry Randall found space from Toby Fricker’s inside pass, but fortunately for the visitors the ball went forward.

Sarries needed a route back in to the match and it almost arrived through Tobias Elliott who gathered off a lovely set move from a scrum and ran 30 metres down the wing but he was brought down just short.

They struck from their next attack though as they took advantage of the extra man straight after Gabriel Ibitoye was sin-binned for killing the ball. The penalty was kicked to the corner, and Hallett went close but from the next phase Theo Dan bundled over to get the visitors back in to the match. Alex Lozowski’s conversion cut the deficit to just one point.

Bristol then struck out of nothing though to restore their early advantage. A loose ball broke free on the wing, and in trademark fashion Harry Randall was on the inside shoulder to race through from just inside the 22. The missed conversion meant their lead was 13-7.

Sarries then had a huge chance to get back in it, but Dan was held up as he went for his second try and the Bears cleared.

Hugh Tizard then intercepted and started a move which ended in a second try in sensational style.  The second-rower spotted a pass and then made it up in to the Bears half, the ball was then recycled from right to left and found Segun who went in and out and then finished brilliantly. Lozowski’s touchline conversion put Sarries 14-13 in front with 25 minutes gone.

Theo McFarland then almost strolled over from another smart lineout move, but play was called back for obstruction and the Bears got a let-off.

Toby Fricker then nearly put the hosts back in front just before half time but an incredible cover tackle from Daly dragged him in to touch with the line at his mercy.

They did get ahead with three minutes left of the first half though, a break from Santiago Grondona took them up to the line and then Harding carried from just a metre out to dot down under the ticks. MacGinty’s conversion gave them a 20-14 advantage.

Lozowski kicked a penalty in the final minute of the opening half, meaning Sarries went down the tunnel trailing 20-17 at the break.

It was a nightmare start to the second half for Sarries as Harding completed his hat-trick just two minutes after the restart. Ibitoye broke from the kick-off and then after multiple phases they went coast to coast, with the ball ending up in the hands of the captain who scored in the corner. The conversion extended their lead to 10 points. Alex Goode was also sent to the sin-bin for a deliberate knock on in the build up.

It got worse just two minutes later, as Fricker scored from more turnover ball to put the Bears in control. The ball popped up for MacGinty and he dummied back inside before launching a wide pass to the winger who was never going to be stopped with a clear run to the line.

Sarries needed a response urgently and that is exactly what they got. Straight from the kick off they regathered the ball, and then a huge carry from Dan opened up some space for Daly who somehow stepped his way to the line. Lozowski’s excellent conversion made it 32-24 with 30 minutes remaining.

Lozowski then kicked his second penalty of the day after a cynical bit of breakdown work from the Bears, crucially getting Sarries back to within one score.

Defence was then required as Bristol enjoyed some possession, and then a chance came when the ball popped up for Elliott but he was chased down by Ibitoye and the ball came loose. From that phase the hosts got a penalty, and MacGinty kicked it to put the Bears eight ahead again.

Bristol then had a huge chance to put the game to bed with a five metre lineout, but an incredible steal from Nick Isiekwe on his 150th appearance gave Sarries some much needed ball.

Just when it looked as if the points would be heading to Bristol, Sarries came alive with just seven minutes left to take it down to the wire. Daly sent Brandon Jackson in to space and he charged in to their half before returning the ball back to Daly who could run clear from just outside the 22. Another touchline conversion from Lozowski made it a one point game in the closing stages.

The final moments were as hectic as they come with both sides having a free-for-all at the breakdown as they looked to secure the win, and a penalty arrived three minutes in to the red to give Lozowski the chance to win the game.

That’s exactly what he did to spark wild scenes and secure Saracens an incredible victory at a stunned Ashton Gate.

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