Saracens, the reigning champions, made a decisive move towards securing a spot in the Premiership play-offs with a remarkable comeback victory against the formidable Bristol Bears, triumphing 41-20 at Ashton Gate.
Initially, Bristol surged ahead with Joe Batley's try, establishing a commanding 10-point lead. However, Saracens swiftly turned the tide, with Maro Itoje's brace of tries propelling them to a 23-13 advantage by halftime.
Despite facing setbacks in the second half, including yellow cards for Itoje and Ben Earl in quick succession, Saracens displayed resilience. Bristol managed to capitalize on the temporary numerical advantage, narrowing the gap through Harry Thacker's efforts.
But Saracens held out before Rotimi Segun extended their lead and Juan Martin Gonzalez sealed a crucial try bonus point.
A standout moment of the game was an outrageous 50:22 kick from Owen Farrell.
Owen Farrell’s rugby sh** list includes player he thinks is a ‘posh t***’
Owen Farrell, the English fly-half, has gained a reputation for boldly voicing his viewpoints, particularly when directed at individuals he harbours adverse feelings for.
He revealed: "On the pitch, I struggle a lot with Owen Farrell. We just don’t see eye to eye on a lot of things,
“He hates me with a passion. Despite my earthy roots, he thinks I am a posh c***. He hates that. I bagged rugby league once jovially. I was saying it to take the piss kind of thing, ‘a bloody sport for the peasants’. He f**kin’ hated it."
He made 157 appearances in Blue, Black and White over an eight-year period during his first spell at Bath before returning in 2022
His debut came against Newcastle Falcons at the beginning of the 2011/12 season after arriving from Gloucester, scoring four tries in his first campaign
The lock quickly established himself as a key player in the Bath pack and excelled at international level too, with 22 of his 24 England caps coming whilst at the Re
The former England international has also played for Bristol (twice), Gloucester and Toulon during his established career
#2. Ryan Wilson
The Scotland back-rower was the instigator in some tunnel argy-bargy when the players returned to the changing rooms after the warm-up back in 2018 with Farrell at the centre.
Footage of the incident shows all hell breaking loose when Farrell barged his way past a number of Scotland players to confront Wilson, who had been attempting to get inside the head of George Ford.
Wilson later revealed he was banned from Twickenham following the incident.
“I remember that game, I was actually injured and after tunnel-gate, after everything that happened in the tunnel against England, I’d lined up a corporate gig at Twickenham,” he recalled to Rugby Pass in November.
“Had it all lined up, a little bit of cash, all excited, only to get a message back saying the RFU have banned you from Twickenham Stadium after everything that happened the year before.
#3. Faf de Klerk
Farrell and De Klerk ended up at arm’s length from each other in 2018 during their summer tour just before the 20-minute mark and the rest of the two sides quickly joined in.
The pair have since clashes on multiple occasions, including during the World Cup final a year later. Klerk is clearly someone who gets under the England skippers skin and their appears to be little love lost between the pair.
Speaking about the pair, Tom Curry said they are 'very different characters'.
Owen Farrell with a remarkable 50:22 kick, from Saracens own 22-meter line 🔥
Saracens lead 23-13 to Bristol at half time 🔥
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