MATCH REPORT | Saracens Men 99-27 London Scottish (PRC Rd 2)
A dominant performance including six tries from James Hadfield, saw Saracens Men secure a comprehensive victory over London Scots.
The hooker led the way as he equalled the record for most tries in an English men's club fixture, as the Men in Black ran in 15 tries to return to winning ways in emphatic fashion.
Both teams looked to test each other out in the backfield in the early exchanges, with a series of contestable kicks. Saracens quickly seized control though, after a wayward kick from the visitors put the Men in Black on the front foot. Olly Hartley and Izaiha Moore-Aiono made strong carries into the Scottish 22, and from there, Max Eke powered over for the opening try next to the posts.
London Scottish responded instantly, with Tom Wilstead slotting a penalty from halfway immediately after the restart. However, Saracens were soon back on top, with quick, slick play in the midfield pushing the hosts into their own 22. Once they were in sight of the line, Sarries made no mistake, as Hadfield capitalised from a quickly taken penalty, to cross for his first of the night under the sticks.
Scottish didn’t let up, with Will Talbot-Davies breaking through the Saracens defence and offloading to Dan Nutton for their first try but the visitors' resilience was short-lived.
Saracens quickly regained their dominance, with debutant Reggie Hammick making an immediate impact after being called on early due to a blood injury. A penalty secured by the replacement back rower, was kicked to the corner by Tim Swiel. From there, the pack produced the goods, with Nathan Michelow crashing over for Saracens' third try.
Saracens' defensive pressure continued to frustrate Scottish, and they capitalised when a loose pass was intercepted by Brandon Jackson, who hacked the ball forward and dotted down for the bonus-point try within the first quarter.
Shortly after, another penalty allowed Swiel to find the corner, and the Saracens forwards drove the maul forward, with Hadfield touching down for his second try of the night.
Hadfield wasn’t done there either. Another penalty for Sarries saw Swiel kick to the corner again, and Hadfield was on hand at the back of the maul once again, to barrel over for his hattrick, completing an incredible first-half performance.
Just before the break, Saracens added another try as Harry Wilson broke through the Scottish defence and hit the afterburners, before offloading to Callum Braley, who crossed under the posts to give Saracens a commanding lead at halftime.
The visitors started the second half with their tails up, getting their second score of the night five minutes in. Robbie McCallum’s initial break was backed up by quick thinking by Josh Bellamy who dotted down in the corner. To make matters worse for Saracens Braley was shown a yellow card for a breakdown infringement in the build-up, as Scottish started the second half the stronger.
Despite going down to 14, The Men in Black still managed to find their way to the whitewash. Once again it was set-piece that proved fruitful for Saracens, with Hadfield crossing for his fourth off the back of a dominant maul.
The night just continued to get better for the Saracens hooker as this time he ran in his fifth from 20 metres out. A wonderful initial break from Tom Parton near the breakdown did the damage, before he found his hooker on his outside. From there, Hadfield was able to stretch his legs, crossing underneath the posts.
London Scottish refused to roll over though. Moments after Hadfield’s fifth, the visitors broke down the touchline, Will Talbot-Davies made the most of the advantage knocking the ball down the touchline before regathering over the line for a well earned score.
The Saracens maul continued to be a sight to behold. After a brutal first drive was pulled down illegally by Matt Wilkinson, who was subsequently shown a yellow card, Sarries put themselves within range once again. From there, it was a case of copy and paste, as Hadfield burrowed over for his sixth of the evening!
Saracens refused to let up at this point, as they continued to pressurise the visitors. More defensive aggression from Sarries forced an interception on the halfway line. Strong breaks from Sam Spink and Brandon Jackson soon got the hosts to the line, with Izaiha Moore-Aiono producing the finishing touch, to cap a fine individual performance with a deserved score.
Minutes later Angus Hall was over for his first of the evening. The winger was the beneficiary of a sweeping backs move that allowed him to cross in the corner.
Moments later, Hall was in for a second and this was arguably the pick of the bunch, with replacement Tiff Eden casting a spell on the pitch to weave his way through the Scottish defence and feed his winger for a stunning score.
With ten minutes left to go, Brandon Jackson combined well with replacement Jack Bracken, who crossed for his first score in Saracens colours from 20m out.
Sarries weren't done there either, with Hammick crossing for a debut try from another driven maul.
It was London Scottish who would have the last say however. An initial break from Tom Marshall off the base of the scrum created the space for Wilstead to cross in the corner, to secure their try bonus score from a hugely entertaining match.
