Premiership: Owen Farrell stars as Saracens thump Exeter while Bath and Gloucester also claim wins

Planet Rugby
Saracens fly-half Owen Farrell

Saracens bounced back from their loss to London Irish as they put Exeter Chiefs to the sword, winning 35-3 at the StoneX Stadium on Saturday.

England’s Owen Farrell impressed at fly-half with Saracens’ tries coming from Andy Christie, Sean Maitland, Marco Riccioni, Alex Lewington and Nick Tompkins.

Farrell would knock over two conversions and a couple of penalties but his all-round game was what caught the eye, notably a back-door try assist for Lewington.

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The Premiership‘s biggest grudge match of recent times failed to provide its customary fireworks as Exeter were battered from start to finish in dreadful conditions.

It was their biggest league defeat for over two years and Saracens‘ biggest win in the fixture.

Driving rain and strong winds failed to dampen Saracens’ ambition as they completed an impressive bonus-point victory that propels them 10 points clear at the summit of the table.

Farrell provided the highlight of the afternoon when his no-look, reverse, miss pass sent Lewington over, but the England playmaker was outstanding throughout and finished as man-of-the-match.

An under-strength Chiefs side that was missing several key players including Dave Ewers, Sam Simmonds and Stuart Hogg, were willing victims, conceding a total of 16 penalties with 11 awarded in the second-half.

Saracens’ last outing was a 29-20 defeat at London Irish and, lifted by the return of Maro Itoje and Jamie George from injury, they played like a team with a point to prove.

They butchered an early two-on-one but in the 10th minute they were over, a short range free-kick taken by Mako Vunipola fed to his younger brother Billy and then on to Christie to touch down.

Strong runs from Christ Tshiunza and Jack Nowell temporarily broke the home stranglehold and Exeter were also helped when Elliot Daly departed because of a failed HIA.

A Joe Simmonds penalty got them off the mark but immediately Saracens hit back, attacking with speed and precision until Maitland put the finishing touch on Farrell’s grubber.

Exeter, meanwhile, struggled to stitch any meaningful phases together and only Nowell was offering any real threat, although even he was turned over as the interval approached.

The half finished with a line-out try for prop Riccioni to extend Saracens’ lead to 19-3 which improved further soon after the break when Farrell was on target despite kicking into the wind.

Exeter continued to concede penalties at a ferocious rate and Farrell struck again before Maitland was stopped by a superb tackle from full-back Josh Hodge that prevented a certain try.

The flow of points was stemmed but Saracens remained in full control, playing the wretched conditions beautifully with their set-piece dominant but they were also unafraid to play when something was on.

They turned the screw in the final quarter through an extended spell in Chiefs territory and were rewarded with the bonus points that was sealed when Lewington pounced off Farrell’s magical pass.

Tompkins completed the rout in overtime when he latched on to the back of a driving line-out and the final whistle could not come soon enough for Exeter.

Bath edge past Newcastle Falcons

Skipper Ben Spencer underlined his importance to Bath with a decisive second-half try in a 24-16 win against Newcastle that lifted them off the bottom of the Premiership.

On a wet and muddy afternoon at the Rec, the scrum-half’s touchdown followed tries by Ollie Lawrence and Ted Hill, with Orlando Bailey converting all three and adding a 79th-minute penalty.

Bath’s fourth league victory of the season means they complete the double over Newcastle, whose only try came from hooker Jamie Blamire.

Late penalty wins it for Gloucester

Santiago Carreras’ 45-metre penalty, the last kick of the match, ensured London Irish’s miserable record at Gloucester continued with an 8-6 defeat at sold-out Kingsholm.

The Exiles have only won twice at the venue in the Premiership, their last victory coming in 2013, and despite the closeness of the final scoreline, it would have been a serious injustice if they had ended their losing run.

Without the experience of suspended internationals, Agustin Creevy, Adam Coleman and Rob Simmons in their front five, the London Irish pack fought a losing battle against a dominant Gloucester pack.

It was therefore hard to fathom how Gloucester had to rely on a last minute kick to secure victory, such was their domination of possession and territory – but the visitors scrapped hard throughout.

Lock, Matias Alemanno, scored the only try of the game to move Gloucester up to fourth in the table, with Paddy Jackson replying with two penalties for Irish.

READ MORE: WATCH: Handre Pollard scores his first Premiership try for Leicester Tigers