Saracens vs Northampton Saints LIVE rugby: Result and reaction from Premiership semi-final
Gallagher Premiership semi-finals start with Saracens v Northampton Saints
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Your support makes all the difference.Follow live coverage as Saracens host Northampton Saints in the first of the Gallagher Premiership semi-final play-offs today.
It’s crunch time at the end of a season that has been largely overshadowed by dismal financial projections, with both Worcester and Wasps going into administration and London Irsh also contending with business concerns.
Saracens finished top of the table with 74 points and having lost just five matches, while Northampton finished fourth, with four wins fewer than their opponents. While there are ongoing debates about the future of Rugby, the focus shifts to the conclusion of the season, with Saracens playing in their 14th Premiership semi-final, and hoping to go one better than their defeat to Leicester last season.
We will bring you all the action and updates from today’s game in the live blog below:
Last season, Saracens were beaten in the final by a dramatic late drop-goal from Freddie Burns that saw Leicester win 15-12 and be crowned champions.
Speaking ahead of the clash and reflecting on their fortunes last year, Owen Farrell told the media: “We’ve been consistent enough over the past two years, without winning last year, to validate us being back in the Premiership.
“Do we want to win the Premiership? Yes, of course we do. We’ve got some big personalities maybe playing in their last games for the club and we want to make sure we do them proud.
“To come back and do it (win the title) within a year, we talked about it being special, and we didn’t do it.
Perhaps the simplest representation of Premiership Rugby’s plight this season comes in pure numbers. We began this campaign back in September with 13 teams in England’s top flight; as we arrive at the semi-final stage, the last quartet have been whittled down from the 11 that remain.
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Both sides have named their starting XV’s ahead of the match, with Farrell due to captain Saracens, and Lewis Ludlam to take charge for Maurice Hartery’s Northampton Saints.
Saracens: Goode, Malins, Lozowski, Tompkins, Maitland, Farrell (capt), Van Zyl; Vunipola, George, Riccioni, Itoje, Tizard, Isieswe, Earl, Wray.
Replacements: Dan, Mawi, Judge, Hunter-Hill, Knight, De Haa, Taylor, Daly.
Northampton: Furbank, Ramm, Dingwall, Hutchinson, Freeman, F. Smith, Mitchell; A. Waller, Cruse, Davison, Ribbans, Moon, Lawes, Ludlam (capt), Augustus.
Replacements: R. Smith, E. Waller, Hill, Salakaia-Loto, Scott-Young, Graham, James, Collins.
Northampton Saints
Northampton Saints made just one change, with Tom Cruise lining up on the front row after James Ramm recovered from a shoulder issue to start.
While they undoubtedly go into the game as the underdogs compared to the high-flying Saracens, they are the highest point scorers this season, and got the better of their opponents as recently as last month when they won 38-29.
However, the last time Northampton won the title was back in 2014, when they came up against Saracens.
Team news
Saracens have bolstered their squad with six England internationals including Owen Farrell in their starting line-up for the match.
Jamie George, Maro Itoje, Mako Vunipola, Ben Earl and Max Malins were the others to return.
Having not played for his club since the beginning of April, George will be looking to make an impact, but Jackson Wray will be hoping for a fitting farewell after deciding to hang up his boots at the end of the season.
Wray has made over 300 appearances for Saracens, and will be making his final appearance alongside Duncan Taylor, who will leave at the end of the campaign after 12 years.
Saracens vs Northampton Saints
Good afternoon and welcome to The Independent’s coverage of the Premiership Rugby play-off semi-final between Saracens and Northampton Saints. The season has been largely overshadowed by finances, with Wasps and Worcester going into administration.
Saracens go into the game boasting an incredible home form, and are unbeaten at the StoneX Stadium since January 2022. They have also bolstered their line-up, having recalled six England internationals including Owen Farrell for the semi-final. Saracens have won the competition five times and will be searching to add to their impressive trophy cabinet with a first title since 2018-19.
Northampton Saints will have to undo history, only six times in league history has a semi-final been won by the away team, but it is set up to be an entertaining contest and who will gain a first-leg advantage?
We’ll have all the build up, team news and updates throughout the afternoon so stick with us.
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