Plenty of reflection key to Saracens’ success, says Alex Austerberry
Ahead of the penultimate round of the Premier 15s, Saracens have qualified for the playoffs but need 10 points in their last two fixtures and a helping hand from Gloucester-Hartpury if they are to secure a home semi-final.
Back in January, Saracens found themselves down in sixth, behind the likes of Worcester Warriors. Since then, they have won 10 games in a row including travelling up to Kingsholm and beating the league-leading cherry and white.
Being on the outside looking in on a home semi-final is a rarity for Saracens but it is a challenge that director of rugby Alex Austerberry fully embraces.
“We say we want to be challenged by other sides because that makes us better”, said Austerberry.
“I think at no point, certainly in my tenure, have we taken a position of dominance for granted. As soon as you do that, I think you find yourself getting beaten pretty quickly and consistently.”
Saracens return home this weekend having conquered Worcester despite being down to 14 players for an hour after Red Rose Hannah Botterman was shown a red card for failing to respect the authority of match officials.
It’s a performance and a scenario that Austerberry, his players, and his coaching staff must learn a huge amount from if they are to win a fourth Premier 15s title.
“First and foremost, we have to ensure that players and staff alike promote the values of the game. The red card was disappointing, Hannah has admitted that and expressed disappointment at herself,” explained Austerberry as he outlined how seriously the club were reflecting on the incident.
“It makes it a hell of a lot more challenging if you’ve got 14 or 13 players on the field. It’s something we have improved on this season so the weekend was a bit of a disappointment to take a step back. I think the players are fully aware that actions have consequences and those consequences can be significant at the back end of a season.”
For Austerberry, who left his previous role as Performance Pathway Officer for the RFU back in 2018 to join Saracens, the red card is something to roll with similarly to any injury. Ultimately, it means that Botterman can be managed differently ahead of the semi-finals.
“We hold ourselves in the highest of regard and the game is held in high regard in terms of respect so let’s make sure we don’t even get close to a line. We just need to be better.
“That’s something that resonates throughout the coaching group and the playing group and has been highlighted and re-emphasised after the actions at the weekend,” he added.
Saracens are set to welcome Bristol to the StoneX in a highly anticipated top-four battle.
The Bears must win one of their last two matches if they are to secure a playoff berth. Failure to do so combined with two wins for Harlequins would see the ladies from the west country miss out having finished third in the table last season.
It’s a fixture packed with talent on both sides of the ball with a huge amount at stake for both teams. If Saracens are to taste success this season, they must adapt from lessons learned in previous seasons as well as earlier in the season, but they take a huge amount of confidence from a 36-5 victory away at Shaftesbury Park.
“You’ve got to keep reviewing your practices because if you live in the past you are going to get overtaken pretty quickly,” explained Austerberry.
“Where are we prioritising? What games are we targeting? Where can we rotate players while still maintaining performance levels and ultimately keep winning? It’s something we have always looked to do but the balance and ability to do that is far more challenging so in terms of a CPD point of view and the growth of our coaching team, those small margins are becoming more and more important.
“Just as it is for the players, it’s really important that we improve and reflect on patches and where we haven’t got that right, ‘Was it a skill error or was it a decision-making error or did we miss the ball on something and we weren’t quite ourselves?’
“We have got to do as much reflection as the players to ensure that we keep posing the right questions and creating the right scenarios and environments for them to keep developing. It’s exciting but again, if it wasn’t exciting, we’re in the wrong gig.”
Gloucester-Hartpury vanquish Sale Sharks to secure the top spot in the Premier 15s
