Gloucester Rugby head coach George Skivington lamented his team’s lack of clinical finishing but praised their heroic defense after a 30-14 defeat away to Saracens, who are pushing hard for a place in the Gallagher Premiership play-offs.
Saracens took firm control early in the match, racing to an 18-0 lead thanks to two tries from Rotimi Segun and two penalty kicks from fly-half Fergus Burke. Despite Gloucester’s efforts to claw back into the game after the break, tries from Ben Earl and Theo Dan secured a bonus point for Saracens. Will Joseph managed a late double for Gloucester, providing some consolation, but the loss, combined with Harlequins’ victory over Exeter Chiefs, saw Gloucester drop to ninth in the league table with just two games remaining.
“We weren’t clinical enough in the first half,” Skivington reflected. “We created plenty of chances and broke the line multiple times but failed to capitalize. Playing away at Saracens is always tough, especially when they scored two relatively easy tries within the first 12 minutes.”
READ MORE: Road Outside Cheltenham Primary School to Close During School Hours for Resurfacing
READ MORE: Nurse with Genetic Risk of Alzheimer’s Shares Simple Hand Movement to Boost Brain Health
Skivington added, “We knew Saracens were under pressure and would come out strongly. Unfortunately, early defensive lapses allowed them to score quickly. From there, we had to defend a lot and I thought our team showed heroic effort throughout.”
Saracens’ director of rugby, Mark McCall, acknowledged the significance of the win as it puts his team back in control of their play-off destiny. With two games left in the season, Saracens are just three points behind fourth-placed Exeter Chiefs following Exeter’s loss to Harlequins earlier in the day.
“Six weeks ago, the play-offs weren’t in our hands, but now they are,” McCall said. “We’ve won four games in a row, and while today wasn’t our best performance, especially with ball in hand, our defense and set-piece work were strong.”
He added, “We had plenty of chances inside their 22, but we didn’t capitalize. Coming up, we have crucial matches, including a potential winner-takes-all clash against Exeter at Sandy Park in three weeks, so every game matters.”