LONDON WASPS will be almost as happy with their successful start to the Premiership season as Premier Rugby Ltd’s commercial team. A much-changed back division came up trumps at Twickenham, while nearly 52,000 spectators showed how successful the double-headed opening to the season can be.
Indeed, Premier Rugby is considering the possibility of a West Country double-header in Cardiff involving Bath, Bristol, Gloucester and Worcester.
As it is, London’s quartet each got a minimum £100,000 for the games, which showed there is little between them.
All have playing resources in hand — Saracens hope Andy Farrell will finally make his debut in an A league game this weekend and that Thomas Castaignède will have recovered from calf damage for the Premiership’s third weekend.
By then Lawrence Dallaglio may be ready for Wasps, with Phil Vickery to follow. If there was a makeshift look to the Wasps backs — made worse by Fraser Waters’s early departure through injury — then they came through to play a sensible second-half game.
Advertisement
Poor defence contributed to the first two tries, by Ayoola Erinle for Wasps and Ben Johnston for Saracens, but the introduction at centre of Jeremy Staunton gave Wasps two playmakers on whom to call. He and David Walder pinned Saracens into their own third, drawing the penalties chipped over by Walder that proved the difference.
SCORERS: Saracens: Try: Johnston (12min). Conversion: Jackson. Penalty goals: Jackson 4 (15, 29, 40+2, 49). London Wasps: Tries: Erinle (9), Palmer (31). Conversion: Walder. Penalty goals: Walder 3 (21, 61, 64).
SCORING SEQUENCE (Saracens first): 0-7, 7-7, 10-7, 10-10, 13-10, 13-15, 16-15 (half-time), 19-15, 19-18, 19-21.
SARACENS: D Scarbrough; T de Vedia, K Sorrell, B Johnston, R Haughton (rep: R Penney, 61); G Jackson, A Dickens; K Yates (sin-bin, 27-37), F Ongaro (rep: S Byrne, 58), J Visagie, T Ryder, S Raiwalui, P Gustard (rep: K Chesney, 65), D Seymour, H Vyvyan.
LONDON WASPS: T Voyce; P Sackey, F Waters (rep: A Erinle, 6), R Hoadley (rep: J Staunton, 41), J Lewsey; D Walder, S Amor (rep: E Reddan, 54); T Payne, R Ibañez, P Bracken, S Shaw, T Palmer, J Worsley, T Rees (rep: J Hart, 58), D Leo (sin-bin, 37-43).
Advertisement
Referee: R Maybank.
Attendance: 51,960.