Saracens vs Bristol Bears LIVE: Result and reaction from Premiership match today
Re-live the latest action from Allianz Park as reigning champions Saracens look to continue their relegation survival efforts against top-four chasing Bristol
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Your support makes all the difference.Follow the latest updates live from the Premiership clash between Saracens and Bristol Bears at Allianz Park.
In what has been a tumultuous season at Saracens already, the reigning Premiership champions face one of the most-improved teams this season in the shape of Pat Lam’s Bristol looking to claw back further ground on the pack following their 35-point deduction for breaching the salary cap.
But Bristol, flying high in second place, could go top of the table with a victory and will plan on causing a major upset at Allianz Park to not only continue their strong start to the season but send out a major statement of their title credentials. Follow the live updates below.
When is it?
Saracens vs Bristol takes place at Allianz Park on Saturday 21 December.
What time does it start?
The match kicks off at 3pm.
Where can I watch it?
The game will not be shown live on television in the United Kingdom, but you can follow live updates from Allianz Park with The Independent.
Teams
Saracens: Max Malins; Sean Maitland, Nick Tompkins, Brad Barritt, Elliot Daly; Owen Farrell, Ben Spencer; Mako Vunipola, Jamie George, Vincent Koch; Maro Itoje, George Kruis; Nick Isiekwe, Ben Earl, Billy Vunipola.
Replacements: Jack Singleton, Rhys Carre, Titi Lamositele, Will Skelton, Jackson Wray, Richard Wigglesworth, Duncan Taylor, Alex Lewington.
Bristol: Charles Piutau; Luke Morahan, Piers O;Conor, Sam Bedlow, Toby Fricker; Callum Sheedy, Andy Uren; Jake Woolmore, Harry Thacker, John Afoa; Joe Joyce, Chris Vui; Steven Luatua, Jake Heenan, Nathan Hughes.
Replacements: Will Capon, James Lay, Max Lahiff, Ed Holmes, Luke Hamilton, Harry Randall, Ioan Lloyd, Alapati Leiua.
Referee: Tom Foley
19 mins: Saracens 7-10 Bristol Bears
Sheedy's first penalty of the day is good and Bristol are back into the lead.
21 mins: Saracens 7-10 Bristol Bears
Saracens are again proving the creators of their own downfall. Farrell is charged down for the second time in a row, and Sheedy regathers his blocked kick and punts downfield. Spencer is odds-on to get there first but has Fricker for company, and the Saracens scrum-half makes a right mess of it to knock the ball over the try line. They both go for it again, but despite winning the race to it Frickley grounds the ball on the dead-ball line.
Either way, Spencer's flap at the ball means Bristol have the scrum.
23 mins: Saracens 7-10 Bristol Bears
Bristol get a nudge on in the scrum and have a penalty advantage in the process. They pick and go left, pick and go right but there's no breaching the line - a joint-tackle from Billy Vunipola and Barritt on Hughes standing out - and a loose pass to Morahan sends the wing in reverse, meaning play will come back for the penalty.
Bristol consider the scrum again, but with the heavens opening they smartly go for the points.
24 mins: Saracens 7-13 Bristol Bears
Sheedy kicks his second penalty of the afternoon and Bristol extend the lead. 7-13
29 mins: Saracens 7-13 Bristol Bears
Saracens go back to the kicking game as Spencer puts up two consecutive box-kicks, and Itoje is allowed all the space in the world to gather the first that sets the platform for Malins to palm the second into the arms of Earl. Saracens try to attack left, but good defence wraps up Billy Vunipola, only for a Bristol hand to flap the ball forward as he attempted to offload. Scrum in Saracens' favour on the 22 and a good position to attack.
31 mins: Saracens 7-13 Bristol Bears
Saracens drive the ball up to the Bristol line and once again the platform is laid for Mako Vunipola to pick and go. This time, he comes up millimetres short of the line, though Saracens get the five-metre scrum after the referee called time off to have a look at the grounding.
32 mins: Saracens 7-13 Bristol Bears
Billy Vunipola picks and goes from the scrum and comes within a whisker, and it takes Bristol hands to disrupt the ball that leads to a full penalty in front of the posts. Saracens have their tails up though, and the pack call for the scrum as a sign of their confidence. They need points here.
33 mins: Saracens 7-13 Bristol Bears
Take a bow Toby Frickley. Billy Vunipola comes round to the openside again but this time Saracens attempt to catch out Bristol by the No 8 popping the ball to Barritt. You'd expect the centre to crash his way over, but Frickley comes off his wing to halt the Saracens skipper in his tracks, and the sudden stop in momentum helps the Bristol pack to pile in and win the turnover scrum. From there, Bristol win the penalty and Sheedy clears the lines. Excellent play from Frickley and Bristol, and that's a massive chance gone begging for Saracens.
36 mins: Saracens 7-13 Bristol Bears
Itoje does what Itoje does best and gets through the maul to sack the ball-carrier, and from there Saracens win the penalty that Farrell turns down to go for touch just inside the 22. It would have been a touch kick from all of 38 metres into the wind to be fair.
Saracens come right with a penalty advantage for pulling down the lineout, and after some excellent footwork from Maitland and not-so-excellent handling from Mako Vunipola, Foley comes back for the penalty. Saracens go to touch on the five-metre, and once again the maul is pulled down. These infringements are starting to rack up...Farrell goes to the corner again.
40 mins: Saracens 7-13 Bristol Bears
The maul goes down yet again, and once more the penalty doesn't come. However, Foley didn't appear to give Bristol a final warning last time and so it comes this time around, when really the yellow should have been produced there. Saracens go to the corner again as the clock goes red.
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