Elliot Daly scores twice as Saracens take on injury-ravaged Sale | Premiership

Two games into the season and two wins for a new-look Saracens team entering a new era. It took a while for the hosts to get going, but a remarkable contribution from center Alex Lozowski, who scored 22 points and provided a brilliant try assist for his speedy young winger Tobias Elliot, eventually saw the men in black get away from a Sharks side undermined by injuries.

It proved to be a decidedly frustrating day for England’s George Ford, who lasted less than seven minutes before being forced off due to an apparent thigh injury, while new Sarries captain Maro Itoje limped off just after half-time and featured as he pressed the button. bag of ice against his knee in the dugout. However, his departure had no apparent impact on the outcome as Sarries scored 33 points in the second half.

Sale had been hoping for a repeat of last June’s Premier League semi-final, when they shocked Sarries on their home pitch and brought Owen Farrell’s Saracens career to an abrupt end. A home response was always likely this time and two tries from Elliot Daly in the final quarter completed an increasingly dominant effort to secure a late try bonus point.

The host director of rugby, Alex Sanderson, once part of the Saracens family, believes club rugby should be more appealing to the casual viewer than the Sharks’ opening match against Harlequins, and for a long time this was not a fast-paced eye-popping match. or. It was a beautiful, clear day in North London, perfect for moving the ball, but territory was the priority for both sides until the game started in the final half hour.

Dressed in striking tangerine, Sale will look back and wonder if this was ever destined to be their day. Losing one key player in the opening few minutes is a shame, losing two was seriously disruptive. The influential Ford appeared to adjust slightly to the top of his right thigh while attempting a long-range penalty, while Jean-Luc du Preez, such a physical force, took a heavy blow to the head that forced him to drop out after just ten minutes.

His brother Rob came on for Ford at fly-half, but his first action, a kick into the corner that sailed dead, was not exactly promising. However, the Sharks were the liveliest side initially and were rewarded with the first try. Daly lost the ball on the right flank and well, direct running from Rob du Preez and then Sam Bedlow finished as Gus Warr ran under the posts.

The only thing that could save Saracens in the first half were four penalties from Lozowski and Daly and despite a yellow card for the busy Sam Dugdale it was Sale who took the lead at half time 13-12 thanks to three points from Rob du Preez while the break was in sight. .

There was a nice little elusive run from their new fly-half Fergus Burke and a few darts from the ever-improving Rotimi Segun, but perhaps the most interesting duel took place in the front row, where the emerging Asher Opoku-Fordjour spoke out comfortably clear against the heavier Rhys Carre.

However, there are only so many big players a team can lose until the cracks show. Ben Curry and the towering Hyron Andrews had to leave the field for HIAs and with Dugdale still off the field, reserve hooker, Ethan Caine, had to be deployed in the back row as a stopgap measure.

In all the comings and goings, two beautifully chipped penalties from Lozowski made it 18-13 before the champagne moment of the match arrived. Lozowski, who had made a clean break in midfield, delivered a sumptuous long ball that gave Elliott just enough extra time and space to beat Tom O’Flaherty and dive into the right corner.

It was the signal for Sarries to get things going, with Daly and England captain Jamie George adding extra sparkle to the scoreline and Dugdale receiving a second late yellow card to further compound the Sharks’ misery .