Saracens are closing in on Munster’s record for consecutive victories in the Champions Cup but, while their bonus-point victory over the only Welsh team in the tournament left them in charge of their pool, the holders were far from content.
Saracens have won their past 11 games in Europe and, if they achieve the double over Sale in December, they will equal the record of 13. They were never in danger of losing but Scarlets asked more questions of them than Toulon did in the opening round, ultimately paying for defensive lapses.
“We have high standards but our defence was not up to its usual standard, allowing them to get on the front foot too often, and our discipline was poor at times,” said the Saracens full-back, Alex Goode. “We pride ourselves on turning up no matter where we are and this game showed that there are elements we can improve on.”
Five tries took Saracens’ total for the season to 29 in eight matches and a fifth bonus point but a side who have made their reputation on their wolf-pack defence and an ability to suffocate opponents rarely receive credit for their attacking play. The Scarlets paid for rushing up in defence too quickly at times but the ability of Owen Farrell to detect space was complemented by the footwork of Nick Tompkins outside him and the athleticism of the tight five forwards.
“We don’t worry too much about what other people say,” said Goode. “We focus on ourselves and try to win games, something we are doing all right at. Although we did not get a bonus point in Toulon, we showed some great attacking intent in a hostile environment and we scored a few points against the Scarlets, even if we were sloppy at times.
“I think teams are very wary of our attack. The statistics speak for themselves: we have been in the two top points’ scorers in the last two Premierships. We are happy with the way things are going, while acknowledging we can improve, and at the end of the day we are out there to win matches however we can.”
Saracens entertain Leicester on Saturday before losing their England players for five weeks. They would have been without the second-rows George Kruis and Maro Itoje anyway but days after the former had an ankle operation that will leave him out of action for between four and eight weeks the latter damaged a hand early in the second half against the Scarlets and was taken to hospital for an x-ray.
“We could do with a second-row or two,” said the Saracens director of rugby, Mark McCall. “We are a bit short there but otherwise we have the players in the squad to cope when the players are away on international duty and the exposure will do them good.”
The Scarlets have not qualified for the knockout stage for nine years and their fate this season will hinge on their back-to-back matches with Toulon in December. They had to overcome the loss of the Wales centre Scott Williams before the match with an ankle injury and the full-back Liam Williams turned an ankle on the artificial surface 13 minutes in.
“We are still in contention in the pool,” said their captain, Ken Owens. “There is all to play for and Saracens showed how to play against Toulon. It is disappointing to come away from here without anything and we have to respond in our next two games.”
