Saracens and Bath Heading in Opposite Directions

Saracens and Bath collided in last year’s Premiership final, but this year their fortunes couldn’t be further apart.

While the Fez Boys, victorious that day, have headed the field from Day 1 of this Premiership season, the West Country men have had a disastrous campaign—Mike Ford’s men languish in ninth place.

A decade ago, Bath were marching towards what was then the Courage League title. That was the last year they lifted the domestic English crown.

It was Saracens who came in ninth that season, propped up only by the pointless (literally) West Hartlepool in a 10-team top flight.

Bath are like Liverpool Football Club—once dominant but struggling in the new era to retain their status as one of the giants of the game.

Saracens, with the ownership and financial muscle of Nigel Wray, have turned themselves into one of the giants of the modern era of club rugby.

League titles and regular appearances in the latter stages of the European Cup have come their way, and they are once again in this season’s final of the Champions Cup, where they will face Racing 92.

How have Saracens managed to maintain their high standards while Bath have fallen off so dramatically this season? Here are four reasons.

1. The Vunipolas

Mako and Billy Vunipola continue to get better and would walk into a combined Premiership team of the season—such has been their form for Sarries this term.

Mako has improved his scrummaging and continues to prove one of the most effective ball-carrying props anywhere in world rugby. He was named man of the match in their European semi-final win over Wasps by the Telegraph.

Billy is fitter and faster than previous seasons, and he was arguably England’s best player as they claimed the Six Nations Grand Slam. He came second to Stuart Hogg in the official player of the tournament poll, per MailOnline.

Bath signed Scottish No. 8 Dave Denton to provide a similar dynamism from the back of their scrum, but injuries have meant the former Edinburgh back rower has not been at his best in his first Premiership season, as he told the Bath Chronicle this week.

At his best, Denton can carry a team forward on his own, and Bath have needed a figure like that.

2. Discipline

Bath	15
Saracens	6

Bath’s rap sheet is the longest in the league this season. They have racked up 16 yellow cards in 20 games, per UK Rugby Stats. Losing a man as often as that is going to make it infinitely harder to succeed over a long season.

Saracens, by contrast, have only been shown yellow on six occasions, which is the second-lowest in the league. 

3. World Cup hangovers

Simply put, it doesn’t look like Saracens have had a World Cup hangover.

They supplied the Vunipolas, Owen Farrell, Brad Barritt, Alex Goode, Jamie George, Richard Wigglesworth and George Kruis to the England World Cup squad, while Chris Wyles led the Americans and Schalk Burger skippered Namibia.

Each of those players could be forgiven for suffering a little physical and mental fatigue from being involved in a tournament where the spotlight feels that much more intense. But since returning to club action, none of them seems to have suffered.

They have rather reveled back in their familiar surroundings. Not so for Bath. George Ford is the man who sets the tone for his team, and after being dropped for England’s key World Cup clash with Wales, he doesn’t seem to have been able to find his highest level with any real consistency.

He played well for England without doing anything spectacular, and he may be under threat for his position if Owen Farrell continues to perform well and Eddie Jones decides to move him back into the No. 10 jersey to accommodate the fit-again Manu Tuilagi.

Another key man for Bath, Francois Louw, played a lot of rugby for South Africa during the tournament and has only featured five times in the league this season, per Bath's official site.

4. A tale of two locks

Another distinct difference between the two sides can be found in the starkly contrasting fortunes of the former Bath skipper Stuart Hooper and the rapidly rising star of Maro Itoje.

Hooper announced his retirement due to injury in April, per BBC, leaving a leadership void at the club as well as depriving them of one of the league’s most consistent performers.

Itoje, on the other hand, is like a new signing for Saracens. After a first half of the season that got him into the England squad, he then forced his way into the starting side during the Six Nations and most recently put in a stellar display as Sarries overcame Wasps to reach the Champions Cup final.

The Guardian's Robert Kitson wrote: "Even his most seasoned team-mates are struggling to recall a 21-year-old forward with a more precocious all-round game than Maro Itoje."

Itoje’s influence and importance seems to grow by the week. How Bath would love a youngster like him in their ranks to fill Hooper's shoes.

And so, while the only question for Saracens is who can stop them completing a league and European double, for Bath, the questions are many.

Will George Ford find consistency? How will they replace Hooper? What impact will the impending departure of forwards coach Neal Hatley have, and whose services are in demand by England, per the Western Daily Press.

Two great clubs who decided the league title last year are now seemingly on very different trajectories in less than 12 months.

It will be intriguing to see what happens next.