| Saracens (7) 18 |
| Tries: Daly, Maitland Con: Farrell Pens: Farrell, Goode Red card: Farrell |
| Wasps (12) 28 |
| Try: Willis Con: Gopperth Pens: Gopperth 7 |
England captain Owen Farrell was sent off for a high tackle as Saracens fell to a surprise defeat against a much-changed Wasps side at Allianz Park.
The Sarries skipper caught Wasps’ Charlie Atkinson in the face with his left shoulder in the 61st minute, with the match poised at 15-15.
The visitors were able to press home their man advantage, Tom Willis powering over to give them a cushion.
And in his 100th game for Wasps, Jimmy Gopperth was flawless with the boot.
The veteran New Zealander kicked 23 points, with Saracens players showing their frustration long before Farrell’s indiscretion.
The hosts, on paper, named a much stronger side than their opponents, and it looked ominous for Wasps when former fan favourite Elliot Daly ran in a third-minute try against his old club.
But instead of pushing on Saracens stuttered, with Gopperth kicking four penalties as Lee Blackett’s side made the most of the home side’s indiscipline to hold a 12-7 half-time lead.
There was a feeling that Mark McCall’s Sarries would eventually overpower their less experienced opponents and it seemed that way until fly-half Farrell was red-carded, with Sean Maitland going in on the left after a free-flowing move to temporarily put them in front.
After Farrell’s dismissal Wasps were able to build pressure and the consistency of Gopperth’s kicking meant they did not need to fear a late Sarries onslaught as they backed up their impressive win at Bath last time out to consolidate their position in the Premiership’s top four.
More to follow.
