MATCH REPORT | Saracens Men 75 - 28 Newcastle Falcons
Saracens returned to winning ways in style with a scintillating victory over Newcastle Falcons.
On what was a monumental day for the club and their 400 appearance maker Alex Goode, the Men in Black put on a show in the StoneX sunshine to secure a bonus point victory that launched the hosts firmly back into top four contention.
The game started at a frenetic pace with the hosts firmly on the front foot. It did not take long for the pressure to tell and Saracens got their first points on the board. After a great half break from Fergus Burke, Saracens drew a penalty which Ivan Van Zyl took quickly. The scrum half found a gap before being hauled down inches short of the line, allowing Juan Martin Gonzalez to finish the job under the sticks.
The fun continued for the North Londoners. With the penalty count ticking up, Saracens found their way into the Newcastle 22 and after another infringement kicked to the corner. The catch and drive was effective and allowed Theo Dan to power over for the second score within the opening 10 minutes.
However, Newcastle were not rolling over and halved the deficit moments later. A slick first phase move allowed Alex Hearle to cut a line through the defence on halfway. The winger then managed to flick the ball back inside to Sam Stuart who, despite a strong cover tackle from Tobias Elliott, managed to find his way over the line.
Saracens soon resumed control with a strong defensive set that forced a knock on inside the Falcons 22. The hosts capitalised off the scrum, with Ben Earl peeling off the set piece, bouncing off defenders and going over the line for his first score since his British and Irish Lions selection.
The Men in Black then sealed the bonus point inside 30 minutes with a brilliant, free flowing move straight from the training ground. An inside ball from Nick Tompkins to Alex Goode unlocked a half gap for the man of the moment. Goode then flicked the ball to Tobias Elliott who turned on the gas before feeding Ivan Van Zyl on his inside, who raced under the sticks.
The momentum continued minutes later as Saracens scored again. This time it was another catch and drive from 10 metres out, finished by Maro Itoje to cap off an incredible week for the Saracens skipper.
In what was proving to be an action packed first half, it would be Newcastle who had the final say. After the hosts had a Tobias Elliott try disallowed for a previous infringement, the Falcons went from one end of the pitch to the other through multiple phases before wrestling over the line through Freddie Lockwood.
The second half began in similar fashion with Saracens’ dominance paying off inside the first 10 minutes. First, it was Nick Tompkins who found a hole for Juan Martin Gonzalez to race through. The Puma picked his spot, accelerated through the gap and rounded the full back to dot down for his second of the afternoon.
It did not take long for Gonzalez to complete his hat trick. This time it came through an opportunistic chance as the Argentine swept up a loose ball that spilled from the ruck and sprinted in unopposed for Saracens’ seventh try of the afternoon.
Falcons responded shortly after when scrum half Sam Stuart sniped from the base of a scrum inside the hosts’ 22. However, Saracens replied with a try of their own through replacement hooker Jamie George after another dominant catch and drive.
There was little time to catch your breath as Newcastle scored another well worked try just past the hour mark. After a half break from Brett Connon helped them find the outside edge, winger Ben Stevenson put his foot down and sped into the corner for their bonus point score.
As was becoming a common theme in the game, Saracens responded well to the Falcons try with one of their own. A penalty infringement gave Louie Johnson a chance to find the corner. Sarries looked to set up for the catch and drive but instead the ball fell to Charlie Bracken who raced over for his first Premiership score in Saracens colours.
Sarries then produced a moment of magic with five minutes left on the clock. Tobias Elliott plucked the ball out the air before finding a gap in the Newcastle line and racing through from half-way, despite being dragged down just before the line, the winger managed to pick out Ben Earl who walked it home into the corner.
The final score came through Tom Willis, another maul inside the Newcastle 22 splintered affording Willis the space he needed to rumble over the line to finish off an incredible day at the StoneX Stadium.
Saracens now head to Northampton next weekend for a must win game at Franklins Gardens before returning to North London to face top placed Bath in the final game of the season. Book your tickets and do not miss what promises to be a season defining match at the StoneX.
