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Cinti (10', 30'), Malins (36'), Hadfield (40'), Caluori (44'), Tizard (69'), Dan (74')
Tries
Guillaud (42'), Plummer (66')
Farrell (10', 31', 41', 45'), Burke (70', 74')
Conversions
Saracens opened Europe with a swaggering 47–10 dismantling of Clermont at StoneX, a performance built on set-piece control, relentless kick pressure and a conveyor belt of finishers out wide. Clermont arrived patched-up and spirited, but once Saracens found their groove the contest turned into a statement.
After a cagey opening, the hosts struck on 11 minutes: Lucio Cinti chased a deft Elliot Daly chip, gathered at full tilt and slid over. The centre doubled up on 31 minutes, wriggling through two tackles after repeat phases had compressed Clermont in the middle third. Max Malins added a winger’s poise at 37 minutes, finishing on the right after Owen Farrell and Daly punched the ball to width. With Farrell steady from the tee, Saracens jogged in three scores to the good and in complete control of territory and tempo.
The second half became a flurry. Clermont finally landed a punch at 43 minutes through back-rower Axel Guillaud, but the response was instant: on 45 minutes teenage wing Noah Caluori scorched 45 metres down the touchline, burning the last defender to reignite the roar. Clermont grabbed a late-life spark on 71 minutes via Harry Plummer, only for Saracens to close with two heavy shots from the engine room — Hugh Tizard at 75 minutes after tight carries under advantage, and Theo Dan at 79 minutes as the maul drove the length of the five-metre channel. Finishing duties at the posts were shared: Farrell handled the early conversions, then the bench kept the percentage high in the final quarter.
What separated the sides was the relentlessness of Saracens’ pressure game. Kick-to-compete was on point; the chase lines were connected; the breakdown speed gave Farrell and Burke the luxury of choosing how to attack rather than whether they could. Cinti’s sharp lines, Malins’ edge finishing and Caluori’s pace gave the scoreboard its shine, but the platform came from a pack that owned the collisions and the maul. For Clermont, there were flashes and plenty of fight, yet too many exits fed Saracens’ momentum and too many tackles were made in the wrong areas of the field.
As opening-night markers go, this was emphatic: seven tries, bonus point banked, and the sense that Saracens’ blend of accuracy and ambition travels.
