Three wins from three after a summer overhaul, maximum points and the only 100% record in the Premiership – Saracens is a happy place to be at the moment. Against Exeter they did not quite rack up the kind of score you thought they might after a dominant first-half performance but Mark McCall could ask for little more from his side’s opening matches as Saracens thrive in life after Owen Farrell and the Vunipola brothers.
No one quite sums up how Saracens have restored a fun factor to their squad than Alex Lozowski. He endured a miserable time last season with a serious knee injury but such high-profile departures have meant he has stepped forward in terms of influence and he has been rewarded with a place at England training on Monday.
“Alex has always been one of those players who plays his best games in the biggest ones,” said McCall. “He is desperate to try and get back into the international arena. There’s really good energy in the group at the moment. It’s come from the playing group: everybody agreed that we want to enjoy what we do. Enjoy it week to week, maybe more than we had done last season.”
Steve Borthwick was in attendance to see Lozowski stake his claim for a first England cap in six years this autumn while Ben Earl – who scored two of Saracens’ five tries – and Tom Willis were others to impress. Arguably, however, it was 21-year-old Tobias Elliott who most caught the eye. Saracens lost a host of stars over the summer but another may just have been born. Elliott was among their try-scorers – taking his record to three in three matches – and he set up another two.
Maro Itoje was absent with a knee injury – he will meet up with England this week – but as a guest on TNT Sports he said: “He is a special player. He has amazing feet. He has been grinding, he has been working hard and I remember the coaches telling me last year that this kid is ready. This kid is well and truly ready.”
McCall is clearly happy with his side’s start but quickly points to how “it is still very early days”. He also admits that there have been “no bumps in the road” but there appears to be one on the horizon.
England want Phil Morrow, Saracens’ team manager, who recently signed a new four-year contract, to be their head of performance. Saracens and the Rugby Football Union want him to job-share but the rest of the Premiership have blocked that proposal on the grounds that it would lead to a conflict of interest.
Whether Morrow leaves Saracens is likely to depend on Borthwick’s budget and McCall – who had suggested last week it would be “small-minded” if the clubs put their foot down – opted for diplomacy on Sunday. Something will have to give, sooner or later.
Regardless, Saracens are performing in a manner that Exeter can only look upon in envy. This was a third disappointing defeat. As against Northampton, they were considerably improved in the second half but Rob Baxter will not be pleased about how easily they allowed Saracens to build a telling lead in the first.
Exeter were game in defence in the opening exchanges but Saracens got ahead at the set piece – their lineout defence was particularly impressive – and opened the scoring with a driving maul, with Jamie George credited with the score. Elliott was next on the scoresheet, receiving the ball inside his own half before slipping past two defenders and blasting past the Exeter full-back Josh Hodge.
Another catch and drive, finished off by Earl, and Saracens were in cruise control. It was threatening to get messy before an opportune score for the Chiefs through Hodge, but Fergus Burke scored Saracens’ bonus-point try before half-time – Elliott the provider on the right.
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Things went further downhill for Exeter after the restart with Ben Hammersley shown a yellow card for a high tackle on Andy Onyeama-Christie before Earl had his second on the right, Elliott again with the assist. Exeter, at least, did not let the game get away and Hodge added another after sharp hands from Olly Woodburn but that was as good as it got for the Chiefs.
“We can get the messaging on at half-time, talk about the importance of it, and we start doing it and it makes us so much more competitive,” said Baxter. “That is our challenge, that’s why there is some frustration to it.”
