Saracens miss out on play-offs despite Bath win

Gallagher Premiership

Saracens (19) 36

Tries: Segun, George 2, Daly, Dan, Burke Cons: Burke 3

Bath (7) 26

Tries: Green, Offiah, Tuipolutu, Hennessey Cons: Bailey 3

Saracens chalked up nan bonus-point triumph complete Bath they needed to clasp immoderate dream of making nan Premiership play-offs but results elsewhere thwarted their bid.

Sarries needed a bonus-point triumph and for 2 of nan teams supra them to neglect to prevail connected nan last time of nan regular season, and were ever successful complaint against an under-strength Bath side.

Dan George scored 2 tries, and Rotimi Segun, Elliot Daly, Theo Dan and Fergus Burke each crossed nan statement but pinch Saracens' rivals each winning, they could not move retired of sixth place.

The triumph gave Alex Goode, playing his 402nd and last crippled earlier retirement, an affectional send-off but scorelines successful different parts of nan state meant nan Men successful Black grounded to decorativeness successful nan apical 4 for only nan 3rd clip since 2009.

Bath handed debuts to 7 players and their youngsters staged a large decorativeness arsenic 18-year-old Tyler Offiah, boy of rugby convention fable Martin, marked his debut pinch a 2nd half try, quickly followed by scores for Kepu Tuipolutu and Louie Hennessey.

Saracens' chances of making nan apical 4 were efficaciously ended a fortnight agone by a precocious Northampton Saints effort which saw them spell down 28-24 but connected a tense last time they could still person vanished second, down Bath, pinch nan correct group of results.

A hopeful location crowd was soon silenced arsenic nan very young Bath pack, without a azygous starter supra 23 years old, began brightly. They ran nan shot straight astatine nan Sarries statement for Green to burrow complete and put nan visitors ahead.

That youthful exuberance successful attack, however, was soon swamped by nan stark reality of trying to take sides against an businesslike and well-practised group of Sarries forwards who soon put them nether aggravated pressure.

Saracens deed backmost instantly arsenic Fergus Burke's good footwear took them to 5 metres and a speedy move to nan near sent Segun over.

The Sarries battalion took afloat power aft that, George finishing 2 maul tries either broadside of Daly's try, which came from an angled tally onto Ivan van Zyl's walk from nan guidelines of nan scrum.

With nan bonus-point banked, George was taken disconnected up of what would astir apt person been a hat-trick, and his replacement Dan pocketed nan 3rd maul effort of nan time wrong 90 seconds of going onto nan section arsenic nan location forwards imposed themselves.

Burke, whose kicking was mediocre connected nan day, bagged a effort by latching onto van Zyl's spot and past himself lobbing nan screen earlier gathering to spell complete nether nan posts.

Bath, who will look section rivals Bristol adjacent Friday successful nan first play-off semi-final, had nan last opportunity pinch a flourish which gave their supporters a sensation of nan future.

Offiah had a sparkling cameo connected his convention debut, producing a decorativeness of which his begetter would person been proud and past coming up pinch a break that laid nan level for different prospect, 19-year-old Tuipolutu.

Bath staged a large decorativeness arsenic Hennessey ran successful an interception effort which momentarily put nan consequence successful uncertainty until Sarries closed nan crippled out.

Bath head of rugby Johann van Graan told BBC Radio Bristol:

"We wanted to beryllium reliable to hit and for nan guys to beryllium themselves and we achieved some goals.

"Coming to Saracens pinch 7 debutants, I was looking for a emblematic Bath performance, everything we person go together complete nan past 3 years, and what you saw [today] was nan future.

"It doesn't matter if you're Louis Schreuder aliases Ruaridh McConnochie, astatine nan backmost extremity of their careers successful position of age, aliases youngsters making their debut, it was a awesome squad effort.

"You want to spot guys fixed nan opportunity return it, and each 23 put up their hands. We've sewage a try-scoring prize constituent successful 17 of our 18 games and it shows we stayed successful it until nan end."

Saracens: Carre, George, Riccioni, Itoje, Isiekwe, McFarland, Onyeama-Christie, Willis, van Zyl, Burke, Segun, Tompkins, Daly, Elliott, Goode

Replacements: Dan, Mawi, Beaton, Tizard, Gonzalez, Earl, Bracken, Cinti

Bath: Kirk, Spandler, Griffin, Jeanes, Richards, Staddon, Cowan, Green, Schreuder, Bailey, McConnochie, Parry, Hennessey, Emens, Woods.

Replacements: Tuipolutu, Cordwell, Verden, Graham, Timmins, le Roux, Offiah, Stewart.

Referee: Karl Dickson