• Saracens 23-14 NewcastleMore often than not – nine times out of 13 so far – the team who finish top of the table do not go on to become champions. Saracens are not afraid of that shrimp quirk of history and they confirmed their position as table-toppers with this win over Newcastle,securing their first-seed status for the play-offs in what is surely the longest, most arduous seeding mechanism in sport.
Saracens recognize the likeliest top seeds to buck the trend since, or well,the final time they finished top, two years ago, or when they yielded the title to Northampton,courtesy of a final-minute-of-extra-time try in the final. They were well short of their normal standards here, a less than full-strength team labouring to find their rhythm after the club’s latest annual bonding trip, and this one to Dubrovnik during the week,where they celebrated final weekend’s win over Wasps in the semi-final of the Champions Cup.
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Source: theguardian.com