Those dancing feet....

By TheSaracens
January 12 2022

The weather in North London this morning has been rotten, and we get wet even just walking a few metres from house to car; it may be the miserable conditions but as we drive across to StoneX but I’m slightly apprehensive about this game, even after last Sunday’s defensive masterclass at the Franklin Cinch Stadium…. or whatever they’re calling it these days.

My nerves are assuaged by my ritual pre-match bratwurst and a couple of pints.

In purchasing lunch, which by way of a running joke with the charming purveyor of teutonic treats I always order in (poor) German, I manage to confuse a couple of adjacent Gloucester fans who were clearly not expecting to hear German spoken at a rugby match, especially by an old bloke clad in a wardrobe’s worth of Sarries “merch”; you need to have been there but it made me smile.

I’m further cheered by a visit to the Oasis for a natter with the lovely bunch from the SSA.

Sarries have made a few changes from the Northampton game, with Wasps-bound Vincent Koch returning after his period of isolation after a positive Covid-19 test to join Mako and Jamie up top; Tim  Swinson comes into the second row alongside Maro; the bang in-form (wherever he plays) Nick Isiekwe moves  to line up alongside Ben Earl and Andy Christie in a young and hugely talented back row; messrs Goode and Van Zyl remain in midfield; Roti comes into the backs alongside Max Malins and Elliot Daly.   

Gloucester are a side in very good form and with a lot of quality in their squad: Jack Singleton is obviously very familiar to Sarries fans from his spell with us (his second in fact, counting the time he spent in our Academy prior to joining Worcester), being cut short after just a few months when having only signed for Sarries in 2019 he went out on loan to Gloucester at the same time as our other young stars left for a year, but then agreed to make his move permanent.

The luminaries in the Gloucester 23 are the Scottish international pair Chris Harris and Adam (son of the legendary Gavin) Hastings, England's Jonny May, Ruan Ackerman who has remained with his club after his father’s departure (unlike some other sons of coaches I could mention), the Welsh wunderkind Louis Rees-Zammit and the evergreen (sorry) Billy Twelvetrees who always seems to play well against us.

There’s a second, albeit tenuous, Sarries connection in the Gloucester 23, with Santiago Socino, the younger brother of our former centre Juan Pablo, included on their bench. 

Today’s referee is Karl Dickson, about whom opinions are divided.

The teams trot out, with Gloucester’s players clad in what looks very much like a Manchester City football kit – in much larger sizes, obviously.

The match kicks off and this point it isn’t raining; the early stages are tight as both sides test each other out, Sarries perhaps shading the opening few minutes, with a break by Itoje lifting us out of our seats momentarily until the ball is spilled.

The cagy start continues but gradually Gloucester build a good spell of possession and begin to apply some pressure on Sarries’ defence with a couple of penalties kicked to the corner - the second of which results in a try after 15 minutes as a powerful drive to the Sarries line puts Balmain over. Hastings misses the conversion and it’s 0-5.

Sarries inject a bit more urgency into the game after going behind, and have the opportunity to get back on terms when a deliberate knock-on sees the yellow card waved at Carreras; the ensuing penalty is kicked to the corner, and the ever-alert Morris, currently the subject of rumours about a possible move to Munster (fingers crossed it IS just a rumour), wriggles over to dot down on 20 minutes to level the scores. Lozowski adds the extras to give Sarries a 7-5 lead, and , with Ludlow following his colleague into the sin bin having collapsed the maul, everyone at StoneX apart from the, erm, vociferous contingent of Gloucester fans here is hoping that full advantage can be taken of a 7 or 8 minute spell when it’s 15 against 13.

Sarries not unexpectedly push forward to exploit their extra numbers, and on 28 minutes extend their lead when following a long kick from the sweet left foot of Daly, play moves into the Gloucester “red zone”, and Segun finds enough space to dance over the line on 28 minutes; Lozowski converts and it’s 14-5 and things are looking good for the boys….for a minute or two anyway…..

Sarries’ gathering of the high ball from the restart is ham-fisted to say the least, and the impressive Reid is able to grab the ball and charge forward, finding space to set up Singleton to gleefully dive over and put Gloucester back in the game on the half-hour – the classy Hastings successfully pops the pill between the posts from out wide and as we move into the last ten minutes of the first half the score sits at 14-12.

There’s a moment of excitement among the black and red faithful as Daly chips the ball forward and gives chase, but the ball is fumbled.

Gloucester then come back at Sarries as the half moves towards a close, and in the last meaningful action of the half, Mako is yellow-carded for brining down a maul and Sarries hearts are in mouths as Gloucester kick for the corner, although Sarries are saved further punishment when we manage to steal the line out and the ball goes into touch for the end of the half  with Sarries’ slender lead intact.

The score is “nip and tuck”, and although their discipline let them down for that short spell, Gloucester are undoubtedly a very good side; Sarries, by contrast seem a bit “flat” today. Let’s hope that as with the Saints match the second half brings a little more from our lads. 

Karl Dickson is irritating me no end – he has a tendency in my view to strut around like he’s the star of the show, and for me his signalling and decision-making are often unclear. I watch the highlights later, and notice how schoolmasterly he is with the players, referring to them only by their numbers - rather surprising for an ex-professional player.

The weather is decidedly ropy now as the second half gets underway, and the first 10 minutes are something of a stalemate, with neither side really asserting any control, although Van Zyl nearly creates something, set up George.

Frustratingly, Gloucester edge ahead on 51 minutes when a failure to roll away gives Hastings an easy kick (even in these conditions – I’m so glad that this season we’ve moved to seats further up in the East Stand) and Sarries are 14-15 down.

As the above is unfolding, the imposing figure of McFarland has swaggered on to replace Swinson, and his impact is almost instant; following the restart, a Gloucester kick is charged down by said imposing figure who then picks up the bouncing ball and almost walks over the line to restore Sarries’ lead.

Lozowski this time is unsuccessful with what looks like a straightforward kick as the ball hits the post, but Sarries have regained the lead on 54 minutes at 19-15.

Back come Gloucester though, and Sarries’ defence works hard to keep them out as the drive to the line: there’s a feeling that the game is going to provide still more drama as we move in to the last half-hour.

A flurry of substitutions are made by both sides, which inevitably breaks up the rhythm of a game for a while, and we are treated – or should that be subjected – to long and pointless kicking matches: Matthew, the delightful chap who sits to my right, must have been very glad that his ref link blocked out at least part of my profane exhortations to Sarries to run the ******* ball from deep.       

As we move into the last ten minutes, Gloucester win a penalty for a high tackle, and from the kick to Sarries’ corner the maul drives forward for Ludlow to get over the line, with Hastings successfully taking the score to 19-22 at 73 minutes - cue Jonny kicking his thankfully almost empty coffee cup over.

Ever the optimist, I’m thinking that Sarries can still do this if we can sustain some possession, but my hopes are dashed, or appear to be, when Hastings takes his personal points tally for the day to 10 with a penalty on 75 minutes to give Gloucester both a 19-25 lead and, it seems, the game.

But wait.

A well-worked exit from a Sarries line out on the left tees up a fleet-footed Lewington to find a gap and run the ball home for a try in the corner as the clock moves close to the 80 minute mark, and the game suddenly hinges on a kick for Lozowski from close to the touchline. In keeping with the weather, our spirits are dampened when the ball sails wide of far the post to take score to an agonising 24-25.

There’s time to restart the match; Gloucester understandably kick very long and Sarries try everything to work the ball forward from the back, but their efforts are in vain and we trudge out of StoneX to face the weather and the traffic.

It would be easy to talk about the fine margin between success and failure – if Loz had converted McFarland’s try from a straightforward angle, if Alex Lewington had dropped his right shoulder and gone over a few metres further infield to give Loz an easier kick ….in which case we’d have all been praising Sarries for grinding out a win.

As it is, Gloucester probably deserved to edge it, and Sarries, who for me looked flat and lacking “drive” have a fortnight off now to regroup and hopefully welcome back Owen Farrell who will certainly provide the latter.

Jonny Browne

TEAMS:

Sarries: 15 Malins; 14 Segun; 13 Lozowski; 12 Morris; 11 Daly;10 Goode; 9 Van Zyl 1 Mako Vunipola; 2 George (capt); 3 Koch; 4 Itoje; 5 Swinson;  6 Isiekwe;    7 Earl; 8 Christie

Replacements: Woolstencroft, Mawi, Milasinovich, Hunter-Hill, McFarland, De Haas, Tompkins, Lewington.

Gloucester: 15 Evans; 14 Carreras; 13 Harris; 12 Atkinson; 11 May; 10 Hastings; 9 Chapman; 1 Seville; 2 Singleton; 3 Balmain; 4 Clarke; 5 Alemanno; 6  Reid    7 Ludlow (capt); 8 Ackermann

Replacements: Socino, Knight, Gotovtsev, Slater, Clement, Meehan, Twelvetrees, Rees-Zammit.

Referee: Karl Dickson (RFU).