FARR & AWAY, OWEN IS BEST

Farrell’s brilliance too much for Cipriani and Gloucester

OWEN FARRELL had praise ringing in his ears as he left Saracens for England duty.

Not only had the English champions taken Gloucester to the cleaners, their No.10 had chosen the perfect moment to hit top form.

His much-hyped fly-half clash with Danny Cipriani was always going to be influenced by what happened in the forward battle.

But even allowing for the monstering Saracens gave the visitors at the breakdown, Farrell was supremely good.

“Owen was incredibly influential, I thought he was brilliant,” said Sarries’ boss Mark McCall. “It wasn’t just his skill set – his passing, his kicking. It was the physical tone that he set.”

Immaculate off the tee, Farrell also provided the assist for the first of Maro Itoje’s two tries with a pinpoint kick.

“If you listen to the ref mic, vocally he was off the charts,” McCall added. “He’s just this incredible player who adds in every way. He threw himself into every contact.”

Gloucester’s gamble of playing first into the wind backfired as Sarries turned them over eight times to lead 24-3 at half-time.

So dominant were they it was easy to forget Johan Ackermann’s side had brought an unbeaten record to Allianz Park.

Itoje put paid to that, following Dave Strettle’s early try with two decisive contributions to kill the contest before the break. Cipriani’s frustration was obvious, three days on from his England snub.

This was not the 62-12 gubbing Gloucester took here in May, but it was the next-worst thing.

The 68th minute summed it up. Cipriani introduced Gloucester to the home 22, only for his flat pass to be picked off.

Seconds later Liam Williams put Alex Lozowski over at the other end.

“Tough day at the office,” said captain Ed Slater, who admitted the game was long gone by the time two late tries brought some respectability to the scoreline.

SARACENS – Tries: Strettle, Itoje 2, Maitland, Lozowski. Cons: Farrell 5. Pen: Farrell

GLOUCESTER – Tries: Atkinson, Sharples. Con: Twelvetrees. Pen: Twelvetrees Joe Marler has withdrawn from England’s training camp for personal reasons, a day after being sin-binned in Harlequins’ defeat by Bristol.

Two years ago the prop pulled out of an England tour after two suspensions. Manu Tuilagi and Ben Youngs also withdrew with minor injuries.