Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
NZ NZ

Saracens supporters 'abused in the street'

By Online Editors
Alex Lozowski

Saracens supporters have been abused in the street in the wake of this week’s punishment over breaches of salary cap rules.

ADVERTISEMENT

That’s according to renowned BT commentator Nick Mullins, who said he had heard from supporters who had been verbally abused.

The Allianz Park side were handed a 35-point league deduction and fined more than £5million on Tuesday, although both sanctions will be suspended while the London club appeal against them.

If the deduction remains in place – for multiple breaches of Premiership Rugby’s salary cap regulations over the last three seasons – Saracens are odds-on for relegation this term.

Video Spacer

Mullins wrote on Twitter: “Heard from Saracens supporters this week who’ve been abused in the street. That cannot be right. You’ll react in your own way if you’re off to Kingsholm tomorrow, but this is worth thinking about.”

Many have requested that Gloucester fans remain respectful of the visiting Saracens team this week.

https://twitter.com/RugbyGlaws/status/1192324427423395842

ADVERTISEMENT

Elsewhere former England captain Martin Johnson has warned Gallagher Premiership clubs not to write off the reigning champs.

But asked about the prospect of the European and English champions going down, Johnson replied: “I think they might manage to avoid it (relegation). We were talking before about motivation and they might.

“I heard it was coming a while ago and they were not going to announce it, but there is not much detail there.

“They are saying they didn’t do it knowingly, which they are going to say at this point, and they are appealing, but I don’t know the detail.

ADVERTISEMENT

“It’s self-imposed (the salary cap), it’s a Premiership agreed thing amongst themselves to keep the costs down. It is up to them to sort that out and the punishment.

“Saracens have produced a lot of the England players, it’s the core of a team which got to the final and a lot have come through the system and they’ve done a good job, it has to be said.

“It will be interesting to see if that’s upheld or what happens.”

Nine players from Mark McCall’s side were part of Eddie Jones’ squad out in Japan.

Former England captain Johnson believes the World Cup runners-up will benefit from being thrown back into the Premiership season after such an intense couple of months.

“They will go back to their clubs and enjoy being home and away from the pressure of World Cup build-up and the World Cup,” the ex-Leicester lock added.

“Actually you get back from a World Cup nowadays and the pressure of your club games feel halved because it’s not the super intense World Cup.

“Then they get to the Six Nations and it feels quite joyful. You don’t feel as pressurised during that first Six Nations after a World Cup. People are not talking about the World Cup anymore, you just play the tournament.

“It’s France away in the first game which is huge because France could have got to the final and should have certainly got to the semi-final.

“That could be a cracking game and there is nothing like a big game to get your mind back into it and off you go. These guys are mid-career so don’t over dwell on the World Cup final.”

Martin Johnson was speaking at the launch of UNTUCKit, who design shirts specifically to be worn untucked – www.untuckit.com

He added: “I have been very lucky to do what I have done in sport and I have met people in my sport and other sports and they are all human beings. We all have our weaknesses, fallibilities and our issues confidence wise.”

– PA

ADVERTISEMENT

Join free

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | Episode 6

Sam Warburton | The Big Jim Show | Full Episode

Japan Rugby League One | Sungoliath v Eagles | Full Match Replay

Japan Rugby League One | Spears v Wild Knights | Full Match Replay

Boks Office | Episode 10 | Six Nations Final Round Review

Aotearoa Rugby Podcast | How can New Zealand rugby beat this Ireland team

Beyond 80 | Episode 5

Rugby Europe Men's Championship Final | Georgia v Portugal | Full Match Replay

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

J
Jon 8 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 11 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.

44 Go to comments
TRENDING
TRENDING RFU statement: TMO reaction to alleged foul play against Owen Farrell RFU statement: TMO reaction to alleged foul play against Owen Farrell
Search