London (AFP) - Mako Vunipola has urged Saracens to channel their emotions in the English Premiership final against Sale as they try to put last season's defeat by Leicester in the showpiece match behind them.
Saracens return to Twickenham on May 27 for a ninth appearance in the Premiership final, after topping the regular season table ahead of second-placed Sale.
London club Saracens will be chasing a sixth Premiership title and their first since 2019.
Since that triumph they have spent a season in the second-tier Championship after they were relegated for persistent salary-cap breaches.
Their first campaign back among English rugby union's elite ended with the Premiership final but they suffered a 15-12 loss to Leicester courtesy of Freddie Burns's late drop-goal.
"Last year we probably focused too much on the things outside, worrying about what people were saying and wanting to prove them wrong," said Saracens prop Vunipola.
"It probably got to that we didn't actually enjoy the occasion.We didn't throw a punch in the final, and that's credit to Leicester -- they didn't let us throw a punch."
The 32-year-old England front-row added: "You get emotion spikes in big games, and we have to be able to control that, make sure we channel it in the right way and put it towards our rugby.
"Last year, we didn't really fire a shot, and that was down to Leicester being able to dictate the way the game went.
"We weren't able to attack because we didn't work hard enough or we didn't adjust well enough.Hopefully, we can do that this time."
