Saracens 55 Connacht 36
It takes something special to stand out from the star-studded crowd at Saracens, but Juan Martin Gonzalez clearly encompasses the physical and mental elements required to do exactly that.
Big, elegant and powerful, Puma is proving one of the summer signings for a Saracens side determined to add to their already three Champions Cup trophies and six Premiership titles.
Gonzalez quickly put the London Irishman’s defeat behind him, making for such a start to his new rugby life in the capital that he could only have dreamed of after helping Argentina reach the World Cup semi-finals.
On a European day when Owen Farrell’s temperament was pushed to its limits by Connacht rival Shayne Bolton and England team-mate Maro Itoje was penalized for a dangerous strike, the 6ft 4in Gonzalez was the embodiment of composure and composure.
He fit into the Sarries jigsaw as if he were tailor-made for the job in the back row. The 23-year-old has had no shortage of successes in France and has won over fans who fear the injury loss of Ben Earl and others will be particularly damaging to the club’s thirst for more silverware at home and abroad.
Gonzalez said: “It was hard to leave Ireland because they were such an amazing group. It was very difficult because it was a beautiful old club. I had a few Argie friends there, but I had to turn the page and move on to the next challenge. I still keep in touch with my former teammates.
“Sarries welcomed me, the fans and everyone at the club warmly. They are the best team in the Premier League, so I was happy they called me. I hope I can be successful here and help the club win more trophies because they have a strong history.”
Director of Rugby Mark McCall was clearly impressed and insisted: “Sometimes joining a new club without a pre-season can be difficult. But to hit the ground running like he did is pretty incredible. He is a very talented young man. Very mature and hardworking. He plays outstanding rugby. He is so good that you want him to be close to the ball and normally his tackle count is very high. “He doesn’t just do flash work, like every young player, there are always things to work on and improve.”
Gonzalez celebrated a fine try in the crushing win against Connacht; this helped the Londoners bounce back from their first defeat against the Bulls in South Africa. He was an imposing, hard-working and powerful presence in Sarries’ performance, which started slowly but then shifted gears to beat their Irish rivals.
Farrell played well throughout, apart from a few missed shots on goal, but he also showed something of a dustbin character and was punished for doing so. Following a tackle, he retaliated against Bolton’s push by jumping up and pushing the grounded Connacht winger twice. The decision was made for the penalty scored by Jack Carty. The England captain has clearly been targeted by Connacht and this will undoubtedly continue throughout his time away from the international spotlight.
Connacht had threatened some upset after Gonzalez’s opening try from Farrell’s strike as they moved into a healthy lead thanks to Test center Bundee Aki finishing off a forward driving strike and Caolin Blade’s try.
But once the Sarries side stepped up and England’s prolific hooker Jamie George tried to chip in, the home side began to turn the screw and take full control.
Young center Olly Hartley celebrated his first start in the Champions Cup with a string of tries, while Sean Maitland, Lucia Cinti and Theo Dan also scored at the death for the home team.
Connacht, who had earlier seen winger Cian Prendergast sin-binned for fouling in a scuffle, looked to continue the hunt but their defense was no match for their attack. Although they packed plenty of punch in the first half as they led 17-8, they lacked the same collective steel in the second half when it mattered most.
Sarries lost Itoje to the sin bin in a head-to-head clash with Paul Boyle as he struggled to make a tackle. The extenuating circumstances of the change of direction prevented the England lock from seeing red.
JJ Hanrahan, Joe Joyce and Prendergast responded with tries against them but each time they scored they came off and conceded.
However, McCall was relatively pleased with his side’s response after losing to the Bulls. He added: “It was a good step in the right direction. We still have a lot more in us but it gets us off the mark in the pool and it’s a nice way to get back into Premiership games at Christmas.”
Connacht head coach Pete Wilkins admitted: “I was pleased with the way the boys took charge in the first half but in the end we lost to a very good team. We struggled in the opening two games in the tournament but we have to take them on and improve.”
Match details
Points (Saracens first): 5-0 (Gonzalez try), 5-5 (Aki try), 5-7 (Carty con), 8-7 (Farrell pen),
8-12 (Blade try), 8-14 (Carty con), 8-17 (Carty pen), 13-17 (George try), 16-17 (Farrell pen); 21-17 (try George); part time; 26-17 (Hartley try), 28-17 (Farrell con), 31-17 (Farrell pen), 36-17 (Maitland try), 38-17 (Farrell con), 43-17 (Cinti try), 43- 22 (Hanrahan try), 43-24 (Hanrahan con). 48-24 (Hartley try), 50-24 (Farrell try), 50-29 (Joyce try), 55-29 (Dan try), 55-34 (Prendagast try), 55-36 (Hanrahan try)
Saracens: A Goode (T Parton 71); L Cinti, N Tompkins, O Hartley, S Maitland (A Lewington 58); O Farrell (c), A Davies (I van Zyl 55); M Vunipola (T West 58), J George (T Dan 55), A Clarey (L Mulipola 68); M Itoje, T McFarland; JM Gonzalez (T Knight 65), A Christie, B Vunipola (H Tizard 59).
-Connacht: J Porch (JJ Hanrahan 59); B Ralston (A Kilgallen 59), T Farrell, B Aki, S Bolton; J Carty (c) (M McDonald 59), C Blade; J Duggan (D Buckley 47), D Heffernan, J Aungier (F Bealham 47); G Thornbury (J Joyce 47), C Prendergast, C Oliver (J Oliver 55), P Boyle (D Tierney Martin 61).
Judge: Luc Ramos
Player of the Match: Gonzalez (Saracens).
Participation: 9,029