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'We got all the heat': Saracens recall humiliating loss at Pirates
Saturday in front of a packed house at Twickenham with the Premiership title up for grabs will be quite the contrast for Saracens – and World Cup-winning tighthead Vincent Koch – given where they were and what they experienced 15 months ago. There they were at the Mennayne Field, the home of the Cornish Pirates, and the spit-and-sawdust experience was a rude awakening to the realities of life in the second tier.
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It was November 2019 when the South African front-rower and his fellow Springboks were lifting aloft the World Cup at a spick and span stadium in Yokohama in front of a massive live global TV audience. Sixteen months later, though, Koch was packing down from the start for a bruising introduction to life in the English Championship with Saracens.
The Londoners were ambushed 25-17 and the rugby world reacted with glee that they had been humbled in their maiden second-tier match following their automatic relegation from the Premiership for repeated breaches of the salary cap.
It’s a scar that has lived strong in the mind of Koch, the prop who tossed his recollections of that day into the build-up to this Saturday’s Premiership final versus Leicester. Losing that day, he reckoned, was a huge motivation, fuelling them for the fightback that has taken the back up the divisions and left them poised just 80 minutes away from lifting the biggest trophy in English rugby three years after it was last theirs.
“It was not the greatest start, it was a massive challenge for us. That brought us closer,” he recalled. “We went to the Championship starting off with quite a young group, started with players who hadn’t played much with the club but we brought them in and all the boys stepped up well and put their foot down.
“That was a challenging time for us. Mentally it was tough. Of course, we got all the heat from the media which wasn’t great but it brought us closer as a group. We knew the people on the outside weren’t saying great things about us but we had to stick together in the group and the group was stronger.
“When you go down to the Championship it’s easy for people just to jump the ship but if you look at the players, everyone stayed and we had unbelievable players, internationals, Lions players who stayed at the club which was unheard of. It just shows that there is something special at this club and over the years it definitely left a mark on the players for them not to leave when things got tough.
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“Bad things don’t pull you down, it’s something you can grow on. The bad things or the bad words said to us made us stronger, made us tougher and in the six years I have been here it has not always been positive feedback towards Saracens but that definitely played a role in where we are as a team and how tough we are towards the comments that come from the outside.”
According to Koch, this general dislike of Saracens then fed into their approach to their first season back in the Premiership, who knew they had the talent to succeed and make it through to the big day on the league’s calendar the showpiece final at Twickenham.
“Our main focus was to prove a point in the Premiership this year and we had loads of rotation this year as well. It was a goal for us. We were in the Champ but the year before (2018/19), we had an unbelievable season.
“If you look at the past we have done really well and the team stayed together and just got better. It’s not a surprise we are there, the boys worked hard for where we are. The boys put in all the effort and we just stuck together. It is no surprise, this is what our goal was at the beginning of the year, to reach the final.”
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Comments on RugbyPass
I like this, but ultimately rugby already has enough trophies. Trying to make more games “consequential" might prove to be a fools errand, although this is a less bad idea than some others. Minor quibble with the title of the article; it isn’t very meaningful to say the boks are the unofficial world champions when it would be functionally impossible for the Raeburn trophy not to be held by the world champions. There’s a period of a few months every 4 years when there is no “unofficial” world champion, and the Raeburn trophy is held by the actual world champions.
8 Go to commentsIts a great idea but one that I dont think will have a lot of traction. It will depend on the prestige that they each hold but if you can do that it would be great. When Japan beat the Boks (my team) I was absolutely devestated but I wont deny the great game they played that day. We were outclassed and it was one of the best games of rugby I have seen. Using an idea like this you might just give the the underdog teams more of an opportunity to beat the big teams and I can absolutely see it being a brilliant display of rugby. They beat us because they planned for that game. It was a great moment for Japan. This way we can remove the 4 year wait and give teams something to aim for outside of World Cup years.
8 Go to commentsHi, Dave here. Happy to answer questions 🥰
8 Go to commentsDon’t think that headline is accurate. It’s great to see Aus doing better but I’m not sure they’ve shown much threat to the top of the table. They shouldn’t be inflating wins against the lousy Highlanders and Crusaders either.
3 Go to commentsSuch a shame Roigard and Aumua picked up long term injuries, probably the two form players in the comp. Also, pretty sure Clarke Dermody isn’t their coach. Got it half right though.
3 Go to commentsOh the Aussie media, they never learn. At least Andrew Kellaway is like “Woah, yeah it’s great, but settle down there guys” having endured years of the Aussie media, fans, and often their players getting ahead of themselves only to fall flat on their faces. Have the “We'll win the Bledisloe for sure this year!” headlines started yet? It’s simple to see what’s going on. The Aussie teams are settled, they didn't lose any of their major players overseas. The Crusaders and Chiefs lost key experienced All Blacks, and Razor in the Crusaders case, and clearly neither are anywhere near as strong as last year (The Canes and Blues would probably be 3rd & 4th if they were). The Highlanders are annually average, even more so post-Aaron Smith and a big squad clean out. The two teams at the top? The two nz sides with largely the same settled roster as last year, except Ardie Savea for the Canes. They’ve both got far better coaches now too. If the Aussies are going to win the title, this is the year the kiwi sides will be weakest, so they better take their chance.
3 Go to commentsThe World Cup has to be the gold standard, line in the sand. 113 teams compete for what is the opportunity to make the pool stages, and then the knockout games for the trophy. The concept is sound. This must have been the rationale when the World Cup was created, surely? But I’m all for Looking forward and finding new ways for the SH to dominate the NH into the future. The autumn series needs a change up. Let’s start by having the NH teams come south every odd year for the Autumn/Spring series games?
8 Go to commentsWhat’ll happen when the AI models of the future go back in time and try to destroy the AI models of the past standing in their way of certain victory?
41 Go to commentsThanks, Nick. We (Seanny Maloney, Brett and I) just discussed Charlie as a potential Wallaby No 8, and wondered if he has truly realised how big he is in contact (and whether he can add 5 kg w/o slowing down). Your scouting report confirms our suspicions he has the materiel. No one knows if he has the mentality (as Johann van Graan said this week about CJ, Duane and Alfie B) to carry 10-15 times a game.
57 Go to commentsHe would be a great player for the Stormers, Dobbo should approach the guy.
3 Go to commentsGood article. A few years back when he was playing for the Cheetahs, he was a quiet standout for exactly the seasons stated here. I occasionally get to see his games in the UK, and he has become a more complete player and in many ways like an Irish player. His work ethic is so suitable to the Leinster game. I wonder if Rassie would have him listed somewhere.
3 Go to commentsResults probably skewed by the fact that a few clubs have foreign fly halves in their 30s, but most teams have young English scrum halves. Results also likely to be skewed by the fact that many teams rely on centres and fullbacks to provide depth at 10, whereas they will need to stock a large number of specialist backup 9s.
1 Go to commentsI really get the sense that when all is said and done, the path of least resistance will end up being a merger of Wasps & Worcester that essentially kills the Worcester Warriors brand and sees Wasps permanently playing at Sixways. I’m not saying that’s what should happen or what I want to happen. I just think it’s the easiest rout to take and therefore, will be what happens. Wasps will definitely return to play first, and I suppose it all depends on if they can find support at Sixways. If people turn up and support Wasps in that community, at that ground, I bet they drop the Sevenoaks plan and just remain at Sixways. Under the radar but not totally unrelated, it looks as though London Irish are going to be brought back from the dead by a German consortium and look set to return, likely to the remade Championship. It’s set to have 12 clubs next season with 14 in 2025/26, what do you want to bet those extra 2 are Wasps and London Irish?
3 Go to commentsThe shoulder is a “joint” with multiple bones. You don’t “fracture” a shoulder, you fracture any one or more of the bones that make up a shoulder.
2 Go to commentsOh dear, bones too suspect to continue?
2 Go to commentsBold headline considering the Canes and Blues are 1 and 2 and the Brumbies were soundly beaten by the Chiefs and Blues. Biggest surprise is Rebels 4 Crusaders 12 - no one saw that coming. If Aus are improving that’s great 👍
3 Go to commentsAnna, You are right, we need to have patience whilst the others catch up to England and France. Also it is the PWR that has been the game changer for England. the RFU put money into that initially at the expense of the Red Roses. I was sceptical at first but it has paid off in spades.
1 Go to commentsI think Matt Proctor became a 1 test AB in the same fixture. Cameron is quality and has been great this season, can’t believe’s he only 27. Realistically how would he not be selected for ABs squad this year. Only Dmac is ahead of him as a specialist 10. With Jordan out, it will come down to where and when Beauden Barrett slots back in, and where they want to play Ruben Love. Cameron seems an absolute lock in for the wider squad though. Added benefit of TJ-Cameron-Jordie combination at 9, 10, 11 too.
1 Go to commentsFarcical, to what end would someone want to pay to keep this thing going.
1 Go to commentsHavili, our best 12 by a mile, will be in the squad, if he stays fit. JB is the most overrated AB in the last 50 years.
61 Go to comments