Saracens boss Mark McCall has defended the decision to rest the club’s England stars from the Investec Champions Cup last-16 clash with Toulon.
None of Maro Itoje, Jamie George, Tom Willis, Ben Earl or Elliot Daly will feature in the south of France as they serve a mandatory rest-week after their Six Nations exertions.
All England regulars during the campaign are obliged to stand down from one of the first three fixtures after the tournament to manage workloads. Saracens elected to use their internationals in the Premiership defeat to Harlequins and win at Leicester on Sunday.
Their decision to prioritise the domestic competition has faced criticism, with McCall’s Harlequins counterpart Danny Wilson suggesting that naming a rotated side would be “disrespecting” the Champions Cup.
McCall defended his decision, though, insisting that it had been made long ago and with player welfare in mind.
“We are going to put out a really strong team, but we are required to rest people in one of the first three games [after the Six Nations] which means you have always got to compromise somewhere,” director of rugby McCall expleind. “Almost every club has got their own choice to make around that and we’ve chosen this game as the one of the three that our internationals had to rest in.
“Everyone is aware of the regulations and why they are there to protect player welfare. The same happened after the autumn internationals, to be honest. It’s why some teams put out weaker sides in the pool stages of Europe. Every club has got to choose whether it is the Premiership that they compromise in or Europe. We took the decision collectively with the players that they would play in the two Premiership matches.
“Probably going forward, it is not ideal that it is such a rigid three-week window. After the autumn internationals, you’ve got a three-week window as well. There are two European Cup games in the three weeks after the autumn internationals. So teams have got to make these kind of decisions more and more. There used to be a longer window to rest the players. We made our decision midway through the Six Nations that we were going to go this route and everyone in the club supports it.”
McCall is still set to field as many as 10 or 11 internationals in his starting side to take on Toulon, currently third in the Top 14, though youngsters Tobias Elliott and Angus Hall are in line to start again on the wing. Centre Olly Hartley is also set to feature.
Saracens’ problems have been compounded by season-ending injuries to centre Alex Lozowski, who has torn his achilles, and prop Fraser Balmain, who has ruptured his patellar tendon. Full-back Liam Williams will also miss the remainder of the campaign and versatile Argentina back Lucio Cinti remains sidelined.
The north London club would face a likely quarter-final against Toulouse, who face Sale in the round of 16, were they to get past Toulon on Sunday, with McCall hopeful that those earning opportunities in the absence of his England quintet will seize their chance.
“It’s one of the great stadiums to go to,” McCall said of the Stade Felix Mayol. “It’s certainly one of the best atmospheres that we have experienced in the 16 years I have been here.
“Going to somewhere like Toulon, it’s going to be a fabulous experience for them come what may. We are looking forward to doing that, but they are going with some experienced players that will guide them.”
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