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Saracens shrug off salary cap crowd shaming to succeed at Gloucester

By Online Editors
A Gloucester fan mocks Saracens

Saracens overcame their troubled week to record a deserved 21-12 win over Gloucester and the salary cap shaming antics of the crowd at Kingsholm.

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The London club were fined over £5million and deducted 35 points for breaching the salary cap but the team seemed unaffected as it was business as usual for the reigning Gallagher Premiership champions.

Nick Tompkins and Ben Earl scored tries for Saracens, with Manu Vunipola adding three penalties and a conversion.

Gloucester’s tries came from Tom Marshall and Lewis Ludlow as Billy Twelvetrees added a conversion.

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Saracens were greeted with a chorus of boos as they took to the field, with a group of home fans in The Shed waving fake money.

When the game started, the first penalty went against the visitors and the award was met with a loud rendering of, ‘Same old Sarries, always cheating’, which persisted throughout.

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Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

A 50-metre burst from Jason Woodward and an excellent raking kick from Danny Cipriani were the main features of the opening 10 minutes, which Gloucester dominated, but despite the concession of three penalties the visitors’ defence held firm.

Saracens were able to relieve the pressure with an excellent 50-metre touch-finder from full-back Matt Gallagher and then had the first chance for points but Vunipola pushed his penalty attempt wide.

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

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A knock-on from Fraser Balmain gave Saracens a platform in the opposition 22 and when Gloucester were penalised at the first scrum of the match, Vunipola gave his side the lead with a simple penalty.

That was the only score of an evenly contested first quarter but a poor cross-field kick from Cipriani soon gave Saracens another opportunity, which they took when Tompkins forced his way over from close range.

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester responded with an excellent individual try from Marshall. Ben Morgan made 30 metres to put the defence on the back foot before scrappy passing saw the ball eventually reach Marshall.

He took his chance in style by evading one defender, chipping the full-back and then going on to win the race for the touchdown.

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Cipriani missed the touchline conversion before two penalties in quick succession from Vunipola gave his side a 16-5 interval lead.

After the restart, Saracens lost prop Ralph Adams-Hale, who was stretchered off with a leg injury but they looked to overcome this setback when Nick Isiekwe finished off a driving line-out only for the TMO to rule it out for an obstruction.

It mattered little for almost immediately, Saracens had another line-out and this time they made no mistake to get Earl on the score sheet.

Gloucester made wholesale changes which paid dividends as it allowed them to dominate the final quarter and they were rewarded when Ludlow forced his way over, but the hosts could get no nearer.

The match in pictures:

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

Gloucester v Saracens - Gallagher Premiership - Kingsholm Stadium

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J
Jon 6 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

35 Go to comments
j
john 8 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

34 Go to comments
A
Adrian 10 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

34 Go to comments
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