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FOURTEEN AND COUNTING...: Saracens 42 Harlequins 14


By Gregory P
March 29 2015

On a grey day in a grey suburb of London the score was black and white:  Sarries were emphatic victors by 42 – 14.  While we could grumble about Chris Ashton’s grounding of the ball for one of his tries or maybe some obstruction for the other, the score board didn’t lie and Quins got tonked by a tough old unit.  Watching Quins this season has been like a trip to the dentist – necessary but likely to be painful.  As the second half wore on this was root canal work without the anaesthetic.  Only my match reporting duties stopped me making for an early exit.

Unexpectedly the match exploded into life like a champagne cork out a bottle as Jack Clifford charged down de Kock’s clearance and controlled an awkward bouncing ball to touch down with only seconds gone.  Maybe, just maybe, it was time to end (according to Planet Rugby) a run of 13 – yes a baker’s dozen – of losses against the men in black.  The last win was in the glory year of 2012 and our failure to beat Saracens since then in any competition surely encapsulates the club’s narrow recruitment and budgetary policy?

Nev found the touchline kick too difficult, but Sarries shrugged off the start and began to throw the ball around. It felt a bit like England and France from a week ago.  Quins matched Sarries for ambition and soon worked an opening in Sarries half. Yarde spilt the ball with a bigish gap – and probably the line – beckoning.  The failure to take chances has been a feature of the season.  Sarries bounced back with the human rubber ball Strettle finding space and beating men with ease.  Ominously big Billy V began to truck it back at us from the many aimless kicks we hoofed towards the Sudbury area.  Nev, Yarde-y and Chis all took it in turns to play kick tennis. Alex Goode  - and at club level he really looks class – decided we needed a tie break and finally ran it back at us from an aimless punt from Ugo.  He slipped it to Bosch who saw he had Charlie Matthews in front of him and skinned him like a rabbit.  Quick hands and good support lines saw off the Quins’ cover in the blink of an eye and Wyles finished it under the posts. Charlie Hodgson added the extras and 7-5 it was.

Quins hit back quickly with some time in Sarries red zone but it cratered with a fumble from Hopper – frankly he’s not had a great season and he’s spilt more than BP in the Gulf of Mexico.  Strettle picked up the loose ball and ran it back at us.  His kick on forced Ugo to clear up and hold on too long in our 22.  Ping went Barnes and Ugo went to sit in economy class for 10 minutes.  Hodgson added the goal for 10-5 at 13 minutes in.  To our credit there was a quick reposte – a Dave Ward turnover – and how many times have we said that this season – and some pressure on Sarries gave us a penalty for not releasing.  Nev did the honours and 12-8 it was.

Quins then conceded a penalty on about half way but Wayne Barnes gave Sarries a further ten for either the ball being kicked away or something Marler or Robshaw said.  Either way, it was brainless and took the kick into Charlie Hodgson’s range.  He missed the kick but from the drop out Sarries produced quick ball and handled it wide.  Ashton knowing that the full back was where the bench warming winger should have been, and no one was at home behind, dinked a classy chip over and outgassed everyone to the touch down.  From 120 yards away it looked it a bit messy and maybe worth a review with the TMO.  The ref just stuck his arm up and that was that.  A replay that I saw on the big screen after the game showed a clear fumble on touch down but Ashton deserved his luck with a top drawer finish.  Stuart Lancaster – are you watching? The conversion was missed and 15-8 at 26 minutes gone.

We then had a comedy moment as Dave Ward, Wayne Barnes and George Kruis formed a very unlikely threesome by falling over each other in midfield.  Barnes was thankfully unhurt and on the resumption Quins parked themselves in Sarries 22.  Like an errant bank customer we spent a long time in the red zone without showing any sign of getting out of it and into the black.  Again, how many times has that been said this season?  If we’d have scored – and there were chances – it would have levelled it at 15 all and maybe made it a different game?  It fizzled out with a holding on penalty to Sarries – with full credit to their defence.  From then on most of the action seemed to take place in Quins’ half and on 32 minutes the dominance was converted into a penalty for not rolling away in our 22.  Just for a change Alex Goode knocked it over and suddenly the Sarries rear lights were moving away from us at 18-8.  Sarries have plenty of kicking options with Hodgson, Goode and even Bosch for the howitzers from long range.  We only have plan A – Nev – and maybe we need to think about that?  Goode added another three points – albeit it went like a drunk 5 iron – but 21-8 it was and stayed that way until half time. During the last few minutes of the half Kyle Sinckler went off injured and Matt Shields came on.  He’s a big lad and may well turn into a good addition to the squad but the first scrum went pear shaped as soon as he was on, and we struggled on our ball from then on.  Barnesy was having no back chat and marched up us back another ten and we were definitely creaking as the first 40 expired.

If the first half began like a champagne cork out a bottle, the second – from Quins’ point of view – was the gentle hiss of a bottle of light ale being opened and then slowly going very flat.  The second 40 felt so one sided they may as well have painted one way signs on the pitch rather than sponsor’s logos.  That said we had a moment of righteous indignation when Goode blocked a Danny Care kick and chase.  Barnesy – maybe feeling guilty for not giving us that one – soon gave us a penalty in range for Nev which took it to 21-11 at about 46 minutes gone.  Maybe it was losing Clifford temporarily – easily our best forward, again – or Wigglesworth injecting some pace, but we seemed to spend the rest of the game firmly on the back foot.  From a Sarries line out quick ball was sent wide through hands and – give or take a possible obstruction in mid-field – Sarries cut a massive hole through our first phase defence and Ashton finished in style.  Goode added a difficult conversion to make it 28-11.  Quins again had a quick reply, and following another tryless spell in the red, Nev converted a penalty to make it 28-14 with 57 minutes gone.

At this point the game as a spectacle fell apart:  a number of substitutions were made; treatments for injuries; much general farting about took place and then two scrums seemed to eat up four or five minutes in which precisely bugger all happened.  Sarries – perhaps sensing the scrum equivalent of Ground Hog Day- finally ran a free kick rather than re-setting the scrum to end the tedium.  The consequence of the delay was both savage and inevitable – like a Genie out of a bottle Senor Wave appeared with a vengeance.  Say what you like about them – and we usually do on the message board – the crowd made a good, nosiy job of it.

Back at the sports fixture that was interrupting the Mexican Wave Sarries kicked a penalty to the corner…..and now let’s all play “Guess the outcome”.  Well, I’d have lost a lot of money on it as Sarries failed to roll the resulting maul over our line and in the end gave up possession.  It led to a counter attack from Quins being ended by Chris Ashton deciding to plant Matt Hopper into the Wembley turf.  It wasn’t the worst spear tackle I’ve seen by a long way and Hopper was no worse for it, but still a bit brainless. Barnsey produced yellow and Ashton, with less than 10 minutes left, could allow himself the luxury of an early bath and a good reminder to Mr Lancaster in the bag. 

We couldn’t get out of our half with the resulting penalty and crisp work from Sarries – with only fourteen on the pitch - saw Dave Strettle follow up a hanging kick from Wigglesworth with an improbable but highly effective volley.  Harry Kane: who are you! Wyles, benefitting from that session with Giroud in midweek, dribbled on the loose ball (no, not literally) and made the chasing Yarde look pedestrian as he touched down for a good score.  Goode again added the extras and 35-14 reflected Sarries’ grip on the game.

Like all good sides, Sarries keep their foot on the oppo’s throat once they’ve got them down.  Another conceded penalty; another kick to the corner and cue the music for “Guess the outcome”.  I got my losses back this time as predictably Sarries caught it and drove over with some ease and Billy V – who had a cracking full 80 given what he’d done at HQ last Saturday – got his name on the lengthening score sheet.  Goode added the extras to make it 42-14.  That was fourteen points conceded from fourteen men in less than ten minutes.  To Goode's eternal credit he stretched out the teeing up time long enough to run down the clock.  Barnsey blew to what was by then a half empty stadium, and fourteen in a row it was.

DOK also asked me to comment on the day out at “Wember-lee”.  He doesn’t appreciate that he’s paying me by the word so here goes……

Judging by the message board this week you’d think that the worst job in rugby was going to Wembley to watch Quins play Sarries.  I’d always thought the worst job in rugby was any one of: being a season ticket holder at London Welsh; boil washing the Gloucester front five’s jock straps after a night on the lash circa 1973; or changing the dressing on Martin Catrogiovanni’s piles at half time in a cold and damp Welford Road medical room.  But apparently I am wrong…..it’s going to HA9 to watch the men in black.  On the board we’ve assembled a charge sheet against the game longer than Al Capone’s rap sheet ……so is it really that bad?

My view is – inevitably – subjective and there is no right or wrong answer to this particular venture in rugby’s moral maze.  However, I paid £27.50 for a seat and…..

  • I got a really good view and felt closer to the action than I usually do at HQ.  I think that’s fair price;
  • The seat was comfortable and had loads of leg room…..again better than HQ;
  • I paid a fiver a pint and I’d pay much the same at HQ but not quite as much as at Quins – the odd 50p on a pint isn't life changing;
  • Wembley is a fabulous stadium – it’s clean, smart, the toilet and bar queues are short, and the facilities overall are exceptional for a sports stadium.  The previous version of Wembley was awful – the views and seats were cr@p and it was not much better than a very large urinal.  I did not shed tears when the twin towers came down;
  • There’s a good selection of food. The food is very pricey but I brought my own.  I have bought food at Wembley before and it’s not bad quality but it really is over priced;
  • Sarries definitely “paper the house”.  When the pre-match choirs realised that they all wanted to be home in time to watch “The Voice” this evening the stadium emptied rapidly and by 60 minutes it did look half full and it detracted from the atmosphere of the game.  I had not too much interruption from passing traffic in front of me but my wife and daughter in the row behind me felt like it was a game of musical chairs as punters came and went.  This is a problem at any of the bigger games and there's no answer to this one (other than staying at home);
  • The Mexican Wave……..yes it’s a pain in the arse but just ignore. Like a troll it will go away in the end.  Today’s wave didn’t spoil either my view or overall experience and it was in it’s own way quite a spectacle;
  • I don’t like all that build up…..so don’t watch it then.  I sat with a pint pre-match and missed most of the bare foot Pixie Lott and the huge choir.  Sarries have decided that to build an audience they have to keep people entertained all afternoon.  American football has a similar approach to the many lulls in gridiron and seem to pull it off well.  Sarries to their credit are chucking the kitchen sink at the game and most punters seemed to enjoy it.  At times the build up is brash, even vulgar (I’m so middle class), but it’s a genuine effort to build an audience for the game and I’m not going to knock that.
  • I don’t like Sarries overall “attitude”……well, there is a bit of previous here isn’t there: the fat lady singing, the loud music during games, naff songs, announcers that need strangling, the endless something special going on.  Today we were treated to pictures of Sarries squad looking perma-tanned on some break, presumably to show how solid they all are.  They can show that – and really did so in some style today – by playing for each other and putting bodies on the line on the pitch. This sort of guff varies between the “cloying” and “as subtle as a farting contest on a lad’s night out”.  You get this whether at Alllianz Park or Wembley so it comes with the fixture.  We’d all be shrugging it off if we had a better playing record against them though.
  • Wembley’s difficult to get to…….that depends on where you start of course.  It’s a fairly pointless discussion as if you live some way down the M3 or the A3, as many Quins fans do, then it is a bugger of journey and I’ve never contemplated going there by car.  However it is well served by public transport and it took me easily less than an hour to get from my front door in Southfields to Wembley Central.  The public transport seems well organised and geared up to getting large numbers in and out quickly.  So, if you can, leave the car at home.
  • Wembley's a terrible place……….there aren't many pubs for a pre-match pint that's for sure.  The two on the High Road look well-bouncered and uninviting and the Saturday shoppers always look a bit bewildered at the rugby crowd.  I'm not sure why the FA put down roots in Wembley, other than tradition.  The FA never owned Wembley until work started on the new stadium but I wish they'd put their money into developing Battersea Power Station as their national stadium.  It could have been served by a couple of new rail links – and I'm sure central government would have got the cheque book out – and match days could have taken over central London in the same way the middle of Cardiff is consumed by the big matches at the Millennium Stadium.  The pre-match feel at Wembley is definitely a big second best to anything at HQ.
  • It’s not like a traditional rugby match……it isn’t but neither is the Big Game and I always enjoy that as a day out.  On balance I prefer the Big Game as it feels like a sports fixture first and not an “event”

This is the fourth time I’ve been to see this fixture and I will go again.  The hooplah doesn’t put me off and I understand why Sarries do it and what they are trying to achieve.  While you may not like what they do, they are fundamentally trying to make the club more profitable (or perhaps less loss making) and to add to rugby’s audience.  I’ve seen the crowds grow for the game over the times I’ve been and I hope Sarries can continue to build the fixture.

 

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FOURTEEN AND COUNTING...: Saracens 42 Harlequins 14
Discussion started by ComeAllWithin.co.uk , 29/03/2015 12:03
ComeAllWithin.co.uk
29/03/2015 12:03
What do you think? You can have your say by posting below.
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DOK.
29/03/2015 12:14
Many thanks for that. Enjoyable read if not an enjoyable day!

Bedfordshire Boy
29/03/2015 12:35
Well written Gregory, not sure how you managed to concentrate and get all of the facts recorded, a good read.

Quingill
29/03/2015 12:50
Very thorough and fair report on the match and appraisal of the Wembley experience. Onwards and upwards Quins. Was this ever really going to be a win? Still a chance to take something positive from this season.

AlanE
29/03/2015 21:29
Many thanks for that from a visiting Saracens supporter. A very fair report and a good read.

rdc
29/03/2015 21:40
Good write up.. I agree with it all

NicoWilson
30/03/2015 09:13
Excellent report. Thank you.

AP
30/03/2015 10:58
Thank you from a Sarrie. Very fair report and you "get" the fixture. We don't all always like it, either, but I think it was a good one this year.

Successful hills are here to stay
Everything must be this way
Gentle streets where people play
Welcome to the Soft Parade

🌻🌻🌻

talkshowhost86
30/03/2015 11:06
Agree on the match but not on the surrounding nonsense.

For me the Mexican wave and the fact that more than half the people there clearly weren't even rugby fans let alone Sarries fans completely spoiled the atmosphere.

Even if there had been any atmosphere it would have been drowned out by the music that was played every time there was more than a 5 second stoppage in play.

Until Sarries can get it to feel like a rugby match first, cash-cow second, then I won't be going again, which is a shame really as Sarries are now a very good team to watch on their day.

Angostura
30/03/2015 14:26
First and foremost, well done Sarries. I expected us to be shown up and we were.

At one point Wigglesworth and Kelly Brown came off the bench together. 85 caps between 2 bench warmers!! There is a HUGE gulf between our squad and theirs.

Across the match day 23s, the international caps stand at 458 v 236. It shows!

RESPECT THE REF - NO REF, NO GAME!

Squawker2
30/03/2015 15:29
Many thanks for an excellent report by this visiting Sarries fan - as well as a good run-through of the stadium itself

We ourselves quite often get irked with some of our marketing strategies, but I think over the last couple of years we've progressed from some being truly awful to a few merely irritating ones.

talkshowhost86
30/03/2015 16:20
Quote:
Squawker2
Many thanks for an excellent report by this visiting Sarries fan - as well as a good run-through of the stadium itself
We ourselves quite often get irked with some of our marketing strategies, but I think over the last couple of years we've progressed from some being truly awful to a few merely irritating ones.

Having not been to the Allianz, do they do the same sorts of things for the normal games there?

Particularly:

1. The constant playing of music simply because the game has stopped for a few seconds; and
2. The 'sponsored by' stuff.

I just think it would drive me up the wall if they did that every week at Quins. Our silly little musical interludes when we get a half-attacking line-out are annoying enough!

RDB.
30/03/2015 17:13
Quote:
talkshowhost86
Having not been to the Allianz, do they do the same sorts of things for the normal games there?
Particularly:

1. The constant playing of music simply because the game has stopped for a few seconds; and
2. The 'sponsored by' stuff.

It's improving, tsh86, but we still get occasional inane musical interruptions. We also get music when Sarries score a try - each player having their own 'signature' tune - you may have noticed 'Born in the USA' for Chris Wyles a couple of times on Saturday for example.

The 'sponsored by' stuff - yes, we get it, but not sure if it's only occasionally or whether I've just heard it frequently enough not to notice any more.

Congratulations to Gregory for what was probably the most balanced and complimentary post-match report I've read on these boards.

QuickerQuin
30/03/2015 17:33
I agree with most of that.

I am not especially fond of Saracens, but you must admit, that much of what they do is successful.

derbyshire fan
30/03/2015 17:35
Another visitor here from Sarries land - a very fair write up of the game, and also of the Wembley experience.

To the questions above - we play a lot less music at Allianz Park now than when we first arrived, but yes we get the player's choice of music when they score, and (most of the time) music to fill up bits where there is a long stoppage. We also get the 'sponsored by'- but supporters have paid for that (we are one of the sponsors) and I can't see there is any harm in that.

InsertQuinsPunHere
30/03/2015 18:37
Really like the idea of the player choosing their own try celebration music.

Robertquin
31/03/2015 21:08
Quote:
InsertQuinsPunHere
Really like the idea of the player choosing their own try celebration music.

Excellent write up and I agree entirely. I think spending the £27.50 on a ticket makes a big difference as the bars, seats and everything is so much nicer. As a venue I think it's better than Twickenham and getting away so much easier than trains from HQ. Despite the dismal showing from our team I enjoyed it. With a little more, shall we say "restraint" it could be a superb fixture. At the moment I'd give it 8/10 and will go next time. I'm sure we'll win next year.

Oh yes, I recall we used to do the player's "theme song" a few years back but gave it up: probably because it was annoying.

RodneyRegis
31/03/2015 21:21
Surely Sarries choose the music? I mean born in the USA - surely Wyles has more imagination?

CRFCRE
01/04/2015 17:09
Nope,
I can confirm that each of the players has the choice of his own signature tune-not the club. I guess that Wyles just wanted to keep it simple for us as we reach old age and confusion.

Also wish to compliment Mr P for his excellent and pretty accurate account of the game and the Wembley experience. True, Sarries doesn't always get it right with the razzamatazz, but Ed Griffiths and the management team have not lacked for initiatives to create a viable economic model for a rugby club, so to my mind I welcome the experimentation in the hope of establishing a solid future for all the Prem clubs.

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