Malins staking long-term claim at Sarries

FIRED-UP fly-half Max Malins knows it is time to shine and prove there is life beyond Owen Farrell at Premiership champions Saracens.

Malins, 22, starred for Sarries during an unbeaten November in Farrell’s absence but returned to the shadows after the autumn internationals.

The gifted playmaker faces a similar dilemma to those of first team regulars Jamie George, Ben Spencer and Nick Tompkins earlier in their careers.

However, Malins vows to tough it out. He said: “It can be frustrating but it’s a big period for me now where I can get a lot of games.

“I’d like to be involved in the bigger Premiership and European matches but I’m still quite young and Saracens is a great place to develop.

“I’m contracted until the end of next season so we’ll have to see what type of game time I get before I make any decisions beyond that, but guys like Jamie and Ben saw the benefits of remaining patient and Nick is taking his opportunity this year.

“He’s been playing Premiership and Champions Cup so it does show that if you wait around and then take your chances, it will pay-off in the long-term.”

Malins helped steer Saracens to crucial Premiership victories over Sale and Leicester in November that cemented their top-two position.

With vital league games against Leicester, Gloucester, Northampton and Bath scheduled during the Six Nations, he aims for a repeat show. “We were unbeaten in November and that’s testament to the quality and depth of squad we have when internationals are away.

“It’s not just about the 23 involved on matchdays, we put lots of importance on it being a ‘whole squad’ effort and anyone who gets the shirt over these next couple of months will be giving 100 per cent to keep us in the top two.”

He added: “Qualifying for the Champions Cup quarter-finals as top seeds gave everyone a huge boost, so we’ll back ourselves to keep putting in equally good performances.”