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Farrell and Smith to collide as Saracens and Harlequins name teams

By Liam Heagney
(Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)

Owen Farrell and Marcus Smith will challenge each other head-on this Saturday with their Gallagher Premiership clubs following a Guinness Six Nations campaign in which their 10/12 partnership was abandoned in favour of Steve Borthwick having them both compete for the same England No10 shirt.

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The Smith at 10 and Farrell 12 combination had started the opening round match versus Scotland and a defeat prompted Borthwick to take action against the tactic he had inherited from the Eddie Jones era.

Farrell was chosen as the England out-half in the wins over Italy and Wales, with Smith restricted to minimal game time off the bench. Those roles were then reversed for the round four game versus France, as Smith was promoted to start with Farrell providing cover from the bench.

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However, these positions changed again last weekend in Dublin with Farrell reinstated to start and he played the full 80 minutes with Smith left rooted to the bench as an unused replacement.

Now, the England skipper will go head-to-head against his Test shirt rival as Farrell and Smith have been named as the respective No10s for Saturday’s Premiership clash between Saracens and Harlequins at Tottenham.

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In excess of 40,000 tickets have been sold for the London derby and those fans are in for a treat as both clubs have named stacked XVs. Aside from Farrell, Saracens have also included the likes of Mako Vunipola, Jamie George and Maro Itoje to start. As for Harlequins, Alex Dombrandt has been chosen and his clash at No8 with Billy Vunipola will be intriguing as he got that position at Test level for the Six Nations at the expense of the Saracens back-rower. Joe Marchant and Jack Walker are also named to start.

Farrell said: “This is always one of the best days on the calendar and we cannot wait to run out in such an incredible stadium for what is a massive game. The atmosphere here last season was amazing.

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“I know the club works very hard to put on a show for everyone. It’s great to be back in with all the lads and we are all really excited to keep pushing forward over the next few months with so much at stake.”

Harlequins boss Tabai Matson added: “For us, this performance is critical. We have to bring our best game and sustain that for a long period. Having our lads back from English duty bolsters the morale of our changing room and allows us to play at a higher level, and that’s the same for everyone across the league, particularly with Saracens.

“It is the rivalries in sport that take teams to other levels. We are both London clubs, we play contrasting styles and there are obviously players competing for international positions, but it all just adds to the showdown.”

SARACENS: 15. Alex Goode; 14. Max Malins, 13. Alex Lozowski, 12. Nick Tompkins, 11. Sean Maitland; 10. Owen Farrell (capt), 9. Ivan van Zyl; 1. Mako Vunipola, 2. Jamie George, 3. Marco Riccioni, 4. Maro Itoje, 5. Hugh Tizard, 6. Andy Christie, 7. Ben Earl, 8. Billy Vunipola. Reps: 16. Theo Dan, 17. Eroni Mawi, 18. Alec Clarey, 19. Nick Isiekwe, 20. Jackson Wray, 21. Aled Davies, 22. Duncan Taylor, 23. Alex Lewington

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HARLEQUINS: 15. Nick David; 14, Joe Marchant, 13. Luke Northmore, 12. Andre Esterhuizen, 11. Cadan Morley; 10. Marcus Smith, 9. Danny Care; 1. Joe Marler, 2. Jack Walker, 3. Wilco Louw, 4. Irne Herbst, 5. Stephan Lewies (capt), 6. Jack Kenningham, 7. James Chisholm, 8. Alex Dombrandt. Reps: 16. Sam Riley, 17. Fin Baxter, 18. Will Collier, 19. Dino Lamb, 20. Will Evans, 21. Scott Steele, 22. Tommy Allan, 23. Oscar Beard.

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Bull Shark 26 minutes ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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