Not long before kick-off, Mark McCall hovered outside the corporate boxes at the StoneX Stadium. There was plenty on his to do list. Pep-talks, pre-match interviews, warm-up drills.
Yet the club’s departing director of rugby stopped everything and peered through at the TV screens in the hospitality area.
‘Come on, Quins,’ yelped one of the stadium staff, as Harlequins charged towards a 41-24 victory over Exeter.
McCall zipped up his jacket and stepped out into the rain. He showed little emotion but deep down he knew the significance of this top-four twist.
On the latest evidence, Saracens are looking like the safest bet to join Northampton, Bath and Leicester in the play-offs.
Two tries from Rotimi Segun in the opening 13 minutes set McCall’s side on course for victory over a lacklustre Gloucester team, leaving them three points behind Exeter.
Mark McCall will know the significance of Saracens’ win over Gloucester in his final few games at the club
In the next, penultimate round, Saracens have a winnable home game against Harlequins. Exeter face a daunting trip to Leicester. If results follow the form guide then Exeter and Saracens will meet for a de facto quarter-final on the final weekend.
Having been at the club since 2009, Saracens are determined to send their director of rugby out on a high when he steps back at the end of the season.
McCall is to Saracens what Arsene Wenger was to Arsenal. The fans hold him in the same regard that Manchester United supporters held Sir Alex Ferguson.
He has guided the likes of Jamie George, Owen Farrell and Maro Itoje through their careers. The senior players are indebted to him and no other squad will have such an emotional purpose over the coming weeks.
For perhaps the first time in the McCall era, Saracens will be the neutral’s choice over the coming weeks.
He had led the club through its greatest trophy era — and also suffered the humiliation of relegation for the salary cap scandal. It has been a tortured tenure at times but no one can question his contribution to the domestic game. Itoje’s defensive resolve kept Gloucester scoreless in the first-half. The England captain pounced on loose balls, disrupted mauls and won turnovers at the breakdown.
There were a handful delivering big performances — Ollie Chessum, George Martin and Alex Coles — and these kind of displays will provide comfort to Steve Borthwick ahead of the summer tour. The Saracens campaign looked down and out in April. I was there for the Champions Cup defeat by Bath.
McCall was emotional as he reflected on his team’s exit and he promised to use the rest of the season to blood the next generation of talent.
McCall is to Saracens what Arsene Wenger was to Arsenal, and the club are determined to send him out on a high
It felt like a concession but the likes of Noah Caluori, Bracken and Olly Hartley have stepped up. They have added speed and direction to Saracens’ backline in recent weeks, delivering far sharper support play than Gloucester. No 10 Fergus Burke has been central to the attack, delivering his best run of form since he moved over from New Zealand last season.
Early in the second-half, the more experienced campaigners stepped up for Sarries. Tom Willis carried hard, Theo McFarland offloaded and Ben Earl rolled over to score.
Saracens have paid the price for their inconsistencies at the start of the season but this was their fourth consecutive victory.
They are treating each game like a knockout fixture and Theo Dann secured the four-try bonus point when he scored from a lineout in the 53rd minute.
Owen Farrell has been a peripheral figure on the bench but he was sent on for the final 30 minutes of the match. Gloucester’s squad is simply not blessed with the same depth.
They are locked in a low-quality battle with Harlequins for the eighth Champions Cup spot and their England centre, Seb Atkinson, had less impact on the match than his opposite number.
With Bristol’s Benhard Janse van Rensburg becoming eligible for international selection this summer, Borthwick faces some pivotal selection decisions in the midfield.
Gloucester took 71 minutes to score their first points, with Will Joseph scoring two late tries on the wing.
Frankly, the visitors looked like a team short of belief while Saracens — who have not yet been in the top four this year — seem to be finding their confidence at just the right time.
