READING’S MADEJSKI STADIUM, with its 24,161 capacity, had large patches of empty blue seats on show despite the presence of England’s top two teams doing battle for a place in the Champions Cup final.
The sight of so much royal blue plastic gave what ought normally to be a vibrant and thrilling occasion more than a hint of a sideshow feel.
Fortunately, the clubs involves set out to give the game the serious treatment it deserved. And Wasps’ willful intent was made known within a minute of kick-off.
Dai Young’s side refused to kick the ball away before they were ready, and after a minute of slow phases deep in their own territory, Christian Wade’s searing break down the right created the try for Dan Robson. The scrum-half stepped inside his opposite number Richard Wigglesworth to storm to the try-line.
[image alt="Saracens v Wasps - European Champions Cup - Semi Final - Madejski Stadium" src="http://cdn.thejournal.ie/media/2016/04/saracens-v-wasps-european-champions-cup-semi-final-madejski-stadium-2.jpg" width="100%" height="" title="" class="alignnone" /end]
It was the dream start for the Premiership’s second-placed team and it undoubtedly rocked the pre-match favourites. Easy penalty opportunities were passed up in favour of a line-out and then shanked wide of the posts by Owen Farrell.
Yet the pressure rarely left the shoulders of Wasps. Chris Ashton was adjudged to have barged Frank Halai before Duncan Taylor’s would-be try so the TMO chalked the score off, but eventually Saracens found their way in: Michael Rhodes charged down Jimmy Gopperth and drove himself over the try-line.
Farrell would miss that conversion, but soon had his radar reset with an easy penalty chance from directly in front of the posts that gave Sarries a slender 8 – 7 advantage at half-time.
Two more Farrell penalties tightened the grip on the game, but the fiery out-half offered Wasps a route back into the game and the scoreboard with a horrible head-first hit on Robson 10 minutes into the second period.
Farrell walked off for a spell in the sin-bin and to have the blood flowing from his head stemmed, Robson followed him on a stretcher.
[image alt="Owen Farrell with a blood injury" src="http://cdn.thejournal.ie/media/2016/04/owen-farrell-with-a-blood-injury.jpg" width="100%" height="" title="" class="alignnone" /end]
Gopperth kicked the resulting penalty and ended Wasps’ 49-minute wait for a follow-up score, but the 15 men couldn’t register any more than that in the 10-minute window against 14. Instead, they would find themselves on the wrong end of the numerical disadvantage when replacement prop Simon McIntyre was punished for a ‘kick’ on Maro Itoje while the lock held him behind a ruck.
Farrell made it 17 – 10 with 11 minutes remaining in the game and his pack marched their way to a penalty try with a powerful maul that all but sealed their place in the Champions Cup final.
Ashley Johnson gave Wasps hope of a comeback to match their quarter-final heroics, but against the only team ahead of them in the Premiership table, this time, the impossible comeback proved to be just that.
Scorers
Saracens
Tries: Mike Rhodes, Penalty
Conversions: Owen Farrell (1/2)
Penalties: Owen Farrell (4/6)
Wasps
Tries: Dan Robson, Ashley Johnson
Conversion: Jimmy Gopperth (2/2)
Penalty: Jimmy Gopperth (1/1)
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Saracens look unstoppable in European semi-final with a sideshow feel
Saracens 24
Wasps 17
READING’S MADEJSKI STADIUM, with its 24,161 capacity, had large patches of empty blue seats on show despite the presence of England’s top two teams doing battle for a place in the Champions Cup final.
The sight of so much royal blue plastic gave what ought normally to be a vibrant and thrilling occasion more than a hint of a sideshow feel.
[image alt="Owen Farrell kicks a penalty" src="http://cdn.thejournal.ie/media/2016/04/owen-farrell-kicks-a-penalty.jpg" width="100%" height="" title="" class="alignnone" /end]
Fortunately, the clubs involves set out to give the game the serious treatment it deserved. And Wasps’ willful intent was made known within a minute of kick-off.
Dai Young’s side refused to kick the ball away before they were ready, and after a minute of slow phases deep in their own territory, Christian Wade’s searing break down the right created the try for Dan Robson. The scrum-half stepped inside his opposite number Richard Wigglesworth to storm to the try-line.
[image alt="Saracens v Wasps - European Champions Cup - Semi Final - Madejski Stadium" src="http://cdn.thejournal.ie/media/2016/04/saracens-v-wasps-european-champions-cup-semi-final-madejski-stadium-2.jpg" width="100%" height="" title="" class="alignnone" /end]
It was the dream start for the Premiership’s second-placed team and it undoubtedly rocked the pre-match favourites. Easy penalty opportunities were passed up in favour of a line-out and then shanked wide of the posts by Owen Farrell.
Yet the pressure rarely left the shoulders of Wasps. Chris Ashton was adjudged to have barged Frank Halai before Duncan Taylor’s would-be try so the TMO chalked the score off, but eventually Saracens found their way in: Michael Rhodes charged down Jimmy Gopperth and drove himself over the try-line.
Watch the two first-half tries here
Farrell would miss that conversion, but soon had his radar reset with an easy penalty chance from directly in front of the posts that gave Sarries a slender 8 – 7 advantage at half-time.
Two more Farrell penalties tightened the grip on the game, but the fiery out-half offered Wasps a route back into the game and the scoreboard with a horrible head-first hit on Robson 10 minutes into the second period.
[image alt="farell hit" src="http://cdn.thejournal.ie/media/2016/04/farell-hit.gif" width="100%" height="" title="" class="alignnone" /end]
Farrell walked off for a spell in the sin-bin and to have the blood flowing from his head stemmed, Robson followed him on a stretcher.
[image alt="Owen Farrell with a blood injury" src="http://cdn.thejournal.ie/media/2016/04/owen-farrell-with-a-blood-injury.jpg" width="100%" height="" title="" class="alignnone" /end]
Gopperth kicked the resulting penalty and ended Wasps’ 49-minute wait for a follow-up score, but the 15 men couldn’t register any more than that in the 10-minute window against 14. Instead, they would find themselves on the wrong end of the numerical disadvantage when replacement prop Simon McIntyre was punished for a ‘kick’ on Maro Itoje while the lock held him behind a ruck.
[image alt="kick out" src="http://cdn.thejournal.ie/media/2016/04/kick-out.gif" width="623" height="300" title="" class="alignnone" /end]
Farrell made it 17 – 10 with 11 minutes remaining in the game and his pack marched their way to a penalty try with a powerful maul that all but sealed their place in the Champions Cup final.
Ashley Johnson gave Wasps hope of a comeback to match their quarter-final heroics, but against the only team ahead of them in the Premiership table, this time, the impossible comeback proved to be just that.
Scorers
Saracens
Tries: Mike Rhodes, Penalty
Conversions: Owen Farrell (1/2)
Penalties: Owen Farrell (4/6)
Wasps
Tries: Dan Robson, Ashley Johnson
Conversion: Jimmy Gopperth (2/2)
Penalty: Jimmy Gopperth (1/1)
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Champions Cup Saracens Wasps