Farrell puts the boot in to give champions timely lift

Owen Farrell kicked 16 points but missed another 12 in a hard-fought victory to mark the 2,000th Premiership game since Bath and Newcastle played the first on August 23, 1997.

And it was clearly a big day for the likes of Charlie Hodgson, Farrell, David Strettle and Brad Barritt of Saracens, all the subject of England selection speculation in recent weeks. Equally, Bath duo Matt Banahan and Dave Attwood will have had Six Nations selection in mind on the back of last week’s impressive 30-3 victory over London Irish.

But it was All Black fly-half and World Cup winner Stephen Donald who struck first in the fifth minute, finishing off a series of attacks by Bath sparked twice by scrum-half Michael Claassens and aided by Nick Abendanon.

Donald gathered a loose ball and darted between the posts then added the conversion.

Saracens had an opportunity to get on the board in the ninth minute when French referee Pascal Gauzere penalised Bath for collapsing a scrum, but Farrell’s penalty rebounded off the left-hand upright and was cleared.

Saracens lacked their usual sharpness during the opening exchanges whereas Bath threatened with ball in hand and forced their hosts to display their renowned defensive qualities a number of times during the first 15 minutes.

Saracens lost prop Rhys Gill to the sin-bin on the quarter-hour mark for a scrum offence on his line, but Carlos Nieto came on for the next scrum and this time Bath offended by not releasing when Donald was tackled.

And Saracens hauled themselves level on 19 minutes when Strettle’s break out wide left two defenders in his wake. The former Rotherham Titans winger was eventually tackled, but Saracens retained possession and former England captain Steve Borthwick powered forward to score from close range with Farrell’s conversion levelling matters.

Bath regained the lead inside three minutes. Saracens strayed offside on the edge of their 22 and Donald kicked the resulting penalty. And you sensed it might be one of those days for Farrell when his 28th-minute penalty attempt slammed against the same post as his first, and again flew clear.

But the centre made no mistake on 32 minutes, firing home high and dead-centre after Bath failed to release after being trapped trying to break off their own scrum.

Farrell then edged his team in front for the first time with a penalty two minutes from the interval.

The elusive Strettle posed a constant threat, and after two of his trademark darting attacks, Bath were sucked into offside defence and Farrell increased the home side’s lead after 48 minutes.

Two minutes later and Saracens went off their feet at a ruck, and it was the turn of Tom Heathcote to bang a penalty attempt against the same post as Farrell.

Bath continued to press, however, and when a careless knock-on by Alex Goode gave them a good platform, Heathcote got the chance to cut the lead with a 58th minute penalty awarded for not releasing.

Farrell missed his third kick of the game 90 seconds later, and his fourth – a very poor effort – from close range on 62 minutes.

But Saracens scored their second try on 69 minutes. Hodgson’s pass left to Goode was whipped on to Chris Wyles, and the wing swept beyond the weak challenges of Abendanon and Banahan to score, Farrell converting.

Then Heathcote rifled over another penalty to keep the pot boiling, but Farrell scored his sixth goal on 77 minutes and Heathcote kicked his third at the end to earn a bonus point.

Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall said: “I’m pleased because we played some very good running rugby against a Bath side who came here with their tails up after a good win last week, and who made a flying start.”

n Sale Sharks boss Steve Diamond took a verbal swipe at international referee Wayne Barnes after his side went down to a late 21-19 defeat at London Irish.

Sale were penalised in the final two minutes for a scrum offence when leading 19-18. Irish fly-half Adrian Jarvis, who played for Leeds last season, stepped up and landed his second shot at goal, denying the Sharks a deserved victory.

The match had been close throughout the 80 minutes, with Sale’s early 10-point lead courtesy of Rob Miller’s converted try and Nick Macleod’s penalty, wiped out by the break.

Macleod finished the game with four penalties to his name, while flanker Bryn Evans and wing Topsy Ojo went over for tries and rising star Tom Homer booted a penalty and conversion.

Diamond, though, was forthright in his views on Barnes, who he felt should not have penalised his side at the end for a scrum offence.

The Sharks’ executive director of sport said: “I’m concerned about the referee being absolutely right about the penalty at the scrum.

“I’m not whinging but if the referee is going to make his interpretations, let it be consistent. That’s what we are after.

“It is hard to take when such a crucial decision is made like that. He has to be 100 per cent right that we wheeled the scrum.

“He ought to come to a coaching session and see that the wheel went out of the game 10 years ago.”