MATCH REPORT | Newcastle Falcons 12-50 Saracens Men
Saracens Men climbed up the Gallagher Premiership table once again after a dominant 50-12 victory over Newcastle Falcons to register their third consecutive win in the league.
The Men in Black were at their clinical best with some wonderful attacking rugby from start to finish, scoring seven tries in total to warm up the fans at a chilly Kingston Park.
It was the Falcons that came out of the blocks fastest, and they wasted no time as they opened the scoring with just four minutes on the clock.
Brett Connon’s brilliant 50:22 gave them a five metre lineout, and after going through multiple phases right on the line the ball eventually came to Sebastian de Chaves who stretched over to score. Connon then converted after a quick TMO check to give the hosts a 7-0 lead.
Sarries started to click in to gear however, and showed signs of getting themselves on the scoresheet. Alex Lewington’s half break threatened the line, and then from the next attack Falcons full-back Elliott Obatoyinbo was sent to the sin-bin for a deliberate knock on.
The North Londoners then took full advantage of the extra man with a try just one minute later. A penalty was kicked to the corner, and then Theo Dan marked his first start of the season with a score as he latched on to the back of a powerful maul to dot down. Alex Lozowski’s conversion made it 7-7 with 15 minutes gone.
More chances followed for Sarries who were looking to turn the screw. Sean Maitland’s break down the right saw him kick in-field but the bounce popped up for the Falcons, and then an extraordinary break from Dan who ran round four defenders almost set Lewington free but he was hauled down just short.
Alex Goode then showed all of his experience as he was alert to an Adam Radwan kick ahead which could have caused all sorts of bother, but he managed to get there just in front of the speedster in the in-goal area.
The pressure told as we headed towards the half hour, as Elliot Daly used all of his footballing ability to score a brilliant try. Another maul edged towards the line and then the ball was shifted quickly from left to right, allowing Daly to get on the outside of his man and dive over in style. Lozowski’s conversion meant the visitors had a deserved seven point lead.
That lead was then extended just before the break as some more lovely hands in the wide channels set up a score for Lewington in the corner. Dan burst away from the back of a maul and his audacious offload to Daly saw the England man draw in the final defender and release Lewington who was never going to be stopped from five metres out. Lozowski’s excellent touchline conversion made it 21-7 with just moments until half time.
Although there were only minutes left, that was enough time for one more before the break as Dan crashed over for his second to secure the try bonus point. Yet again the trusty rolling maul powered towards the line, and Dan who was having a storming game was there to burst through in the final play of the half. Lozowski kept up his 100% record from the tee, and ensured that Sarries went down the tunnel with a 28-7 lead at the break.
Saracens showed no signs of letting up in the early stages of the second half, and an early penalty from Lozowski brought up the 30 point mark as the scoreboard pressure continued to mount.
Newcastle refused to lie down though, and reignited their hopes when Bryan Byrne dotted down from a maul to get their second of the afternoon, cutting the deficit to 19 points with 25 minutes remaining.
Any hopes of a comeback for the hosts were ended though courtesy of Tom Willis who continued his fine start to life at Saracens with a thunderous finish to put further daylight between the sides. Daly, who was again in the thick of the action crept up towards the line and then it went out right to the number eight who bulldozed his way over in the corner for try number five.
Lewington was then inches away from his second as he ran on to Daly’s looping pass at pace, but Radwan was able to scramble back and force him in to touch.
Ollie Stonham was then sent to the sin-bin for a high tackle, but it wouldn’t stop the visitors who added another brilliant try to their collection for the day. Nick Tompkins broke through the defensive line and released Gareth Simpson inside him, who offloaded to Juan Martin Gonzalez who marked his debut with a memorable try. Goode’s extras made it 43-12 as further gloss was being added to the scoreboard.
Manu Vunipola then ended proceedings by applying the cherry on top of a big cake with a fine individual score, and Goode’s conversion brought up the half century on a fine afternoon in the North East.
The win gives Sarries further confidence ahead of a mouth-watering local derby against Harlequins at the Twickenham Stoop next Saturday evening.
