MATCH REACTION | Alex Austerberry (AP15s Rd15)

Alex Austerberry was pleased with the spirit shown by his side, as they edged to a bonus-point victory over Exeter at StoneX Stadium.

The victory moves Sarries to within one more win of securing a play-off berth and kept them in the hunt for a home semi-final.

Despite the close scoreline, Saracens were always in control of the tie, with Austerberry praising the way his side managed to unpick the Devonians.

“Exeter are a very good side. They’re tough and they’re physical, so to break them down in that way and stay in the fight was fantastic. In all honesty, I thought that a couple of their tries were very opportunistic. They worked hard for their tries in the second half though, but I’m pleased with what we put out there.”

In what was a first league match in over two months, there were also going to be some signs of rustiness. Austerberry though, was keen to stress the importance of the five points for his side.

“It was our first game back as a group. It wasn’t going to be perfect, but we put ourselves in positions to take our chances and that was good. There are a lot of learnings to take from it, but five points at home is something you can’t complain about.”

At this stage of the season, it’s all about winning. Austerberry laughed when admitting he didn’t mind who the wins came against but explained that all of his squad wanted to be playing in matches with something riding on them.

“I don’t mind who we get wins against, as long as we get them! Today was a big day and these are the sort of games that you want to be involved in. To come out with the win is brilliant, but we need to keep getting the wins.”

After going twelve points ahead of the stroke of half-time, Saracens conceded a slightly fortuitous try. Whilst Austerberry explained that there was disappointment at half-time, he praised the attitude of his side and the way they responded in the second half.

“That score at half-time was a bit of a kick in the teeth. To score two tries relatively quickly after the break was testament to the focus of the players. There are learnings to take from the last fifteen minutes though. We invited pressure and gave away some silly penalties. We got the important bit after half-time pretty much spot on and that allowed us to consolidate what we’d built in the rough patch at the end.”

In a match that saw a number of impressive performances across the park, backrow Sharifa Kasolo was named as Player of the Match. Kasolo has enjoyed a breakthrough season this year and Austerberry believes that he has only scratched the surface of her potential.

“I saw Shaz play last year and thought that there was a special play there. She’s physical, but she loves the offloads and the ball in hand stuff too. She’s so exciting and we’re only scratching the surface of what she can do. She was our player of the cup campaign, and it doesn’t surprise me. We have such a talented backrow, and she doesn’t look out of place there. It’s so exciting to think about where she can get to.”

Next weekend, Saracens are on the road to Worcester Warriors. Austerberry is expecting another tough game and challenged his side to focus on their transition work in the run-up to the match.

“Hopefully we can build on the energy and physicality from today. We need to tidy up our execution and our transition through the different areas of the pitch. Worcester are a dangerous side, and they like to throw it around. They always cause us problems and Jo runs a talented ship up there. There are going to be tests every week, so we need to back up this performance. We need to get that play-off spot and then see if we are able to push for a home semi-final.”