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Sarries out to sting the Bees

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By Jason Harris October 10 2008
The European Challenge Cup kicks off for 2008-09 with the visit of Mont de Marsan to Vicarage Road on Sunday. After a surprise promotion from Pro D2 last year when they beat Racing-Metro 92 of Paris in the playoff final, Les Montois have found life back in he top flight difficult and go into this game dead last in the Top 14.

French rugby is always a bit of a contradiction insomuch as you sometimes find the league's top scorers plying their trade at a  struggling club. Narbonne's Cedric Rosalen finished top of the scoring charts the year his side was relegated (and beaten twice by Sarries in the ECC) and this year the Top 14's top points scorer is Mont de Marasan's versatile halfback Benat Arrayet.

It's been a difficult start to the domestic campaign with just one win from their opening seven games, although five were away from home as Stade Guy Boniface is undergoing renovation at the moment.

To be brutally honest, in spite of having ex-Wasps hooker and fried chicken conoisseur Trevor Leota in the pack, Saracens really should take five points from this game as the visitors have rested their key players, including Arrayet, for the Top 14 survival slog, rather than risk them in an away game in which they will create a record if they are to take the points: no French side has ever beaten Saracens at Vicarage Road in European competition.

Sarries, in the meantime, have shown a statement of intent by fieliding its strongest possible 22 with Andy Farrell and Chris Jack borh returning after injury and Eddie Jones will, no doubt, expect Sarries to put on a show like the one Northampton put on at Toulon Thursday night and win well before what could be another tricky trip to Viadana next weekend.

Saracens:

Chris Wyles ; Noah Cato, Kevin Sorrell, Andy Farrell, Kameli Ratovou; Glen Jackson, Neil De Kock; Matias Aguero, Fabio Ongaro, Cencus Johnston; Steve Borthwick (c), Hugh Vyvyan; Chris Jack, Andy Saull, Michael Owen.

Replacements: Matt Cairns, Cobus Visagie, Kris Chesney, Ben Skirving, Moses Rauluni, Gordon Ross, Franciso Leonelli.

Mont de Marsan:

Karim Abbad; Jean-Baptiste Dubie, Simon Ternisien, Murphy Taeale, Baptiste Chedal-Bornu; Nicolas Leroux, Francois Tadonnet (c); Patrick Blanco, Trevor Leota, Ben Coutts; Jean Mynhardt, Rudolphe Berek; Roland Bernard, Philip van Schalkwyk, Jerome Carre.

Replacements: Cyriel Blanchard, Nicolas Etcheverry, Guillaume Leleu, Frederic Rawls, Franck Marechal, Yann Brethous, Frederic Urruty.

Referee: Tim Hayes (WRU)

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Re: Sarries out to sting the Bees
Posted by: Essex Sarrie (IP Logged)
Date: 2008:10:10:14:24:48

Great preview!

But does this mean we have to float like butterflies....?(Sm25)

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Re: Sarries out to sting the Bees
Posted by: TonyTaff (IP Logged)
Date: 2008:10:10:14:45:22

Cheers, butt! I've got some M-de-M injury news, but I'm off out with wife now, so it'll have to wait, potentially forever, b4 I add it. (Sm128)

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Re: Sarries out to sting the Bees
Posted by: TonyTaff (IP Logged)
Date: 2008:10:11:10:15:27

Ooh look! The author has added the team lists.

The info I had was that Florent Cazeaux will be crocked for the rest of the season ...

... but he probably wouldn't have been picked for this one, anyway!

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Re: Sarries out to sting the Bees
Posted by: AlanE (IP Logged)
Date: 2008:10:11:14:33:56

"...no French side has ever beaten Saracens at Vicarage Road in European competition."

Might be right but the quarter-final "win" against Montferrand (aka Clermont Auvergne) felt like a defeat. Not made any easier by Dick Cockerill's winding up of the Fez.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2008:10:11:14:36:45 by AlanE.

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Re: Sarries out to sting the Bees
Posted by: Dave L (IP Logged)
Date: 2008:10:12:07:16:54

I take it Rodd Penney is injured, not even on bench.

IMHO opinion, a match winner every time he plays

Dave L

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Re: Sarries out to sting the Bees
Posted by: TonyTaff (IP Logged)
Date: 2008:10:12:15:37:51

He's repeating himself on the online commentary, currently. [Some interweb phucq-up, I'm sure the commentators are saying something new, it's just that their previous pearls are being repeated incessantly angry smiley)

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Re: Sarries out to sting the Bees
Posted by: Convex Hull (IP Logged)
Date: 2008:10:12:15:46:57

You should hear fatboy on Bath vs Toulouse. Execrable, he sounds like he had drunk too much.

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