Eddie Jones can’t ignore England outcast who’s producing Lions form again
It is four wins from four this season so far for Saracens in the Gallagher Premiership leaving them at the top of the table despite playing one game fewer than second place Exeter Chiefs. On top of that, they have picked up four bonus points in their four victories, giving them a maximum 20 points.
Pretty much every Test player Saracens have is hitting their straps at the moment, including players that have come under fire in recent months. Billy Vunipola is one of those, who looks to be the frontrunner for England this autumn in the No8 jersey, and another is Elliot Daly.
The fullback was left out of England’s tour of Australia, and has since missed out on Eddie Jones’ three-day training squad this month, but it will be hard for the Australian to ignore his form any longer.
Daly bagged four assists against Newcastle Falcons on Sunday. Yes, four. And they showed off his variety and skill. His first and his finals assists were particularly impressive.
The first assist was a perfectly weighted grubber kick for his winger Alex Lewington to chase in the first five minutes of the match, as Saracens raced to a 26-0 half time lead. His second saw him loop around flanker Ben Earl into space before putting Max Malins in for his second try of the match (both of which were assisted by Daly). That trio have all been shunned by Jones recently with England, but are all in top form. The pick of the bunch has to be Daly, who is showing the form of a two time British & Irish Lions tourist.
Take a look at his game:
“We had the conditions with us in that first half and that gave us a strong position,” said Saracens head coach Joe Shaw.
“I’m pleased with how we were able to manage the game today and how we went about our business on both sides of the ball.
“It’s never easy to come here and to go 14 points up inside the first 10 minutes certainly made things a bit easier for us against a well-coached side and players with a lot of grit.
“It’s easy to look at our attack today, but I thought our defence especially in that first 40 minutes was terrific. It was the most impressive part of the game.”
