Saracens are getting used to the view from the summit of the Guinness Premiership. Brendan Venter, their director of rugby, had more than team building in mind when he led his players to the top of Table Mountain during their pre-season tour to South Africa — his squad has been staring down at the chasing pack ever since.
Saracens may have been some way short of their uncompromising best on Saturday, but they remain unbeaten in the Premiership having extended their lead at the top of the table to six points.Derick Hougaard, the Saracens fly half, was the difference, kicking five penalties from seven attempts, but Sale Sharks, inspired by Charlie Hodgson, deserve credit for the ambition of their attacking play in sodden conditions.
Sisa Koyamaibole, the Sale No 8, burrowed his way over to give his side the lead at the interval but the power of the Saracens pack redressed the balance during a second half in which the league leaders’ famed defence was stretched to its limits by the considerable talents of Hodgson and Ben Cohen. “Lots of little things went wrong for us tonight — we could have lost,” Venter said. “But we kept going and kept going and came back. I thought the character of the boys just shone through tonight.”
“We came here with a philosophy of an honest, hard-working, disciplined group of people and imagine how lucky I was to get Steve Borthwick and Wikus van Heerden to lead my team because that is just what they are as people.
“[Our success] started when we went to South Africa for ten days in pre-season. We played golf, went shark-cage diving, climbed a mountain and had a few beers like the old days — now the players are friends on and off the field.”
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Kingsley Jones, the Sale director of rugby, expressed his disappointment at his team’s failure to capitalise on their chances.
“Saracens are the best team in the Premiership because they are very strong in all the key areas,” he said. “But we are very disappointed to leave with one point instead of four. We had the plan in difficult conditions and we had the chances. What we do not have yet is the maturity. That comes with experience.
“Charlie Hodgson was my man of the match, a tremendous performance. It seems England have closed the door on Charlie, which is good news for Sale if not for the player. Questions about Charlie need to be addressed to Martin Johnson. We played the better rugby but we were up against the most organised outfit in the Premiership.”
Saracens meet Castre in the European Challenge Cup next weekend, but Venter is refusing to allow his players to take their intensity levels ease up.
“The message I have given the players this week is clear,” Venter added. “We must work harder and harder in every game to get the results we want. At the start of the season we talked about how other teams view us — that we work harder than anyone else. So far this season, we have done just that, but it must continue. Our next league game will be halfway. There is a long way to but we can win the title, we are good enough as a squad. We are fortunate to have Steve Borthwick and Wikus van Heerden, great leaders and guys the younger players follow.”
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Saracens’ iron grip on English rugby remains intact, and while they consistently add up to far more than the sum of their varied parts and a tangible buzz of feel-good camaraderie remains among the players, it would be foolhardy to bet against them looking down from the summit for some time yet.
Scorers: Saracens: Penalty goals: Hougaard 5 (4, 30, 39, 46, 62). Sale: Try: Koyamaibole (28). Conversion: Hodgson. Penalty goal: Hodgson 2 (36, 74).
Scoring sequence (Saracens first): 3-0, 3-5, 3-7, 6-7, 6-10, 9-10 (half-time), 12-10, 15-10, 15-13.
Saracens: A Goode (rep: R Penney, 18), N Cato, K Ratuvou, A Powell, C Wyles; :D Hougaard, M Rauluni ; R Gill, S Brits (rep: E Reynecke, 51), C Nieto (rep: R Skuse, 51), S Borthwick (capt), H Smith (rep: H Vyvyan, 51), W van Heerden, A Saull (rep: D Barrell, 51), E Joubert.
Sale Sharks: N Macleod, M Vakacegu, M Tait, D Bishop, B Cohen; C Hodgson, R Wigglesworth; E Roberts, N Briggs, J Forster (rep: M Halsall, 70), D Schofield (capt (rep: J Gaskell, 31)), S Cox, C Fearns, D Seymour, S Koyamaibole.
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Referee: Dave Pearson
Attendance: 7,101