Fearless Farrell the vital ingredient in Saracens’ final push
Saracens will take their famed onefor-all mentality into their fourth Premiership final in five years knowing equally that standout individual performers such as flyhalf Owen Farrell will provide the stardust that makes them marginal favourites to defeat defending champions Exeter at Twickenham on Saturday.
Farrell was in imperious form in this madcap game against Wasps, assured, authoritative and productive, nailing 11 from 11 kicks for a record 27 points in a semi-final. The 26-year-old was just the sort of commanding figure amid the mayhem of a fluctuating match that Eddie Jones wants in South Africa.
To judge by this unflinching display, with turnovers and try-assists in the mix, it is no wonder Jones had little hesitation in making Farrell captain for the three-test trip. He is a natural-born leader, not so much striking fear into his own team-mates as Jones suggested he might, but setting such high standards himself that others feel compelled to follow.
There is little doubt that if the Chiefs want to confirm their own burgeoning status in the English game with back-to-back titles, they will have to shut down Farrell. And Mako Vunipola. And brother, Billy, if his troublesome hamstring recovers in time. And all those other beasts of burden, be it prop Vincent Koch or lock Maro Itoje who smashed Wasps in the opening quarter – “the best 20 minutes we’ve ever played,” according to director of rugby Mark Mccall – to such effect that the game was as good as done by that point no matter how splendid Wasps’ secondhalf revival was with their slick three tries in a 13-minute burst.
Even the opposing captain, lock Joe Launchbury, was moved to acknowledge the influence of Farrell.
“Owen is the heartbeat of the team,” said Launchbury. “He was a constant thorn in our side.”
And so he was, directing, cajoling and, of course, as befits the winner of the Premiership’s Golden Boot award, kicking, five penalties and six conversions sailing over.
“Owen is just getting better and better,” said hooker Jamie George, who came through the Saracens ranks with Farrell. “He bosses us around. And he never seems to get tired. I can’t speak highly enough of how he is playing, and we will need that next week.”
Saracens will also need to tighten their defence, as they themselves were the first to admit. Indeed, George acknowledged the psychological benefit of winning a semi-final yet having deep concerns about aspects of their play, defence in particular, that will galvanise them in training over the coming days.
“That’s the challenge, you’ve got to do it all again, but because it wasn’t the perfect performance, there is a lot to fix,” said George.
Even so, Saracens were impressive, with heft up front and a back-line that latched on to every opportunity, from the moment Farrell’s break put Alex Lozowski in for a try within 70 seconds of the start, Koch following suit 10 minutes later. Chris Wyles got the first early try of the second half to put Saracens 30-5 up.
Wasps showed their attacking splendour, though, with tries from Jake Cooper-woolley, Thomas Young, a second from Willie le Roux, and Christian Wade.
However, Saracens were not knocked out of their stride, replying with tries from Juan Figallo, Itoje and Ben Spencer.
Wasps lost flanker Jack Willis to what looks to be an England tourending knee injury. The club is well aware that they need to shore up their set-piece and defence. “We are desperate to improve,” said Launchbury.
And they, as well as the rest of the Premiership, will have to if they are to find the power to compete with the Saracens and Exeters of this world. The two clubs are a class apart.