PREM: Bristol Bears 26-41 Saracens: Sarries bury Bears in 10-try play-off race thriller

It started all Bristol, and it didn’t take long for their first try, captain Fitz Harding scoring in the third minute for the Bears in this crucial game in the playoff race. The last nine meetings between these two teams have resulted in a Saracens win, so the Bears will feel they have something to prove.

Saracens replied with a Fergus Burke penalty, and got their first try 10 minutes later, the Bordeaux-bound number 8 Tom Willis picking and going over the try line, only the five points however as Burke missed the conversion.

Bristol didn’t even have a sniff of the ball before Saracens scored another. An excellently created try, Calouri grabbing it into the air, allowing Tizard to find space, and it was the second-row who had the ball in his hands just a few phases later.

The game started to open up with what was at stake, many gaps in both teams’ defence being found. The home side clapped back with a very witty lineout from five metres out to bring Bristol back to within one, four tries being scored already in just 25 minutes of Prem rugby.

And the fifth came within a minute of the fourth, a lazy Bristol defensive line essentially allowing Saracens to walk it in under the posts. There was the making of an absolute classic rugby game happening in the West of England.

The sixth and Saracens’ bonus point try was the same as the one previously, Saracens capitalising on Bristol’s extremely weak and thin defence. That try also gave Sarries the crown of current top try-scorers in the league, with 80 at the time.

Two more tries before half-time, one for each side, left 55 points on the scoreboard at the 40’ mark and a game which has been so open in every minute that has been played.

Two defences came to play after the break, almost an entirely different game to the one we saw in the first half. It seemed that both teams got the ‘hairdryer treatment’ with no points being added to the scoreboard after the first 20 minutes.

Saracens didn’t mind that though, as the North London team were two points behind Bristol in 4^th place as things stood in the 60^th minute.

A sixth consecutive penalty against Saracens, whilst tirelessly defending on their try line, resulted in Theo McFarland, who had only come on five minutes earlier, being sent to the sin bin. How pivotal could this be for Bristol?

Well, the next ten minutes were all the home side. In an unconventional Pat Lam team way, Bristol gritted their teeth and tried to score the hard way. But when they were needed most, Saracens relied on their experience. Huge turnovers from England captain Maro Itoje and Tom Willis meant that the Bears were kept at bay during the man advantage.

More controversy struck in the 70^th minute, as Joe Batley clashed heads with Itoje whilst in a ruck. The referee deemed it to only remain a penalty due to ‘the dynamic-ness of the game’, much to the annoyance of Itoje and all Saracens players.

That subsequent penalty gave Bristol the chance of a cross-field kick over to Kalaveto Ravouvou in acres of space, closing the lead to eight points with a missed conversion.

Maro Itoje was also yellow carded during that passage of rugby, the second one for Saracens in the game and still with a man disadvantage. A lot to play for with just seven minutes on the clock left.

The home side thought they had a fifth of the day through some free-flowing rugby ending up in Ravouvou’s hands, but a Harry Randall knock-on at the back of a scrum meant that it was to be chalked off.

And the winger had to walk just seconds later, after he tackled Noah Calouri in the air, which produced the third card of the game.

Bristol knew they had to score quickly, and a wayward pass gifted replacement Tobias Elliot a try for himself, ending the Bears’ hopes of winning this game.

As the final whistle rang out around the stadium, the raw emotion of Saracens players came out. They knew they had to go away and win this game and win it they did. It firmly puts themselves in the playoff race, being just two points away from the playoffs.

As for Bristol, that loss will be tough to take, but they still see themselves currently in 4^th place. How crucial will that bonus try point be?

15. Noah Heward 14. Kalaveti Ravouvou 13. Matias Moroni 12. Benhard Janse van Rensburg 11. Gabriel Ibitoye 10. Tom Jordan 9. Kieran Marmion 1. Ellis Genge 2. Harry Thacker 3. George Kloska 4. James Dunn 5. Joe Batley 6. Joe Owen 7. Fitz Harding (captain) 8. Santiago Grondona

16. Tomas Gwilliam 17. Jake Woolmore 18. Max Lahiff 19. George Taylor 20. Kofi Cripps 21. Harry Randall 22. James Williams 23. Jack Bates

15. Max Malins 14. Noah Calouri 13. Nick Tompkins 12. Olly Hartley 11. Rotimi Segun 10. Fergus Burke 9. Charlie Bracken 1. Eroni Mawi 2. Jamie George 3. Marcus Street 4.Maro Itoje (Captain) 5. Hugh Tizard 6. Nick Isiekwe 7. Ben Earl 8. Tom Willis

16. Theo Dan 17. Rhys Carre 18. Alec Carey 19. Theo McFarland 20. Nathan Michelow 21. Ivan Van Zyl 22. Owen Farrell 23. Tobias Elliott

If you prefer a rugby game where defence is the winner, the first half wasn’t for you. 55 points scored and 8 tries in just 40 minutes of rugby, where the defence for both teams left so many holes, and they were run into. The second half was the opposite, as it was a gritty half of rugby, which only saw two tries scored and 3 yellow cards given.

Every Saracens player knew this was a game they had to win, with Mark McCall saying earlier in the week that there were “3 cup finals remaining”. Their experienced players such as Itoje, despite the yellow card, George, Willis and Earl all stepped up today and produced magnificent performances, pushing their team over the line.

The change of the prop over the years is one of the most fascinating stories in the whole of rugby. Ellis Genge today was the pure example of a ‘modern day’ prop- carrying hard, tackling hard, scrumming hard and producing some of the most flair passes that were seen today. He and first try scorer Fitz Harding were brilliant for Bristol, and it’s probably unfair for them to be on the losing team.

Over the season, McCall has trusted Noah Calouri more and more when it comes to minutes on the pitch. But also when it comes to getting the ball into his hands. Many times during the game when Saracens’ attack was stagnant, fly-half Fergus Burke would just boot the ball up the pitch, knowing that more often than not, Calouri would be there to catch it. It must be such a nice option to have as a 10.

That result is huge for both teams as there are now 2 points separating 3 teams for the final playoff spot (note that Exeter have a game in hand). If you look at all 3 teams’ remaining games on paper, you have to feel that Saracens will be in the driving seat, as they have two home games against Gloucester and Harlequins respectively. It will be exciting to look at all these pivotal games as a neutral.