Clermont Auvergne v Saracens, 18 April

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ASM Clermont Auvergne v Saracens
Saturday 18 April 2015
KO 16:15
Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Saint Etienne

Referee: George Clancy

Live on beIN / BT Sport

Form:

ASM Clermont Auvergne
4/4/15 - ASM Clermont 37 - 5 Saints
25/1/15 - ASM Clermont 18 - 6 Saracens
17/1/15 - Sharks 13 - 22 ASM Clermont

Saracens
5/4/15 - Racing Metro 11 - 12 Saracens
25/1/15 - ASM Clermont 18 - 6 Saracens
17/1/15 - Saracens 33 - 10 Munster

Teams:

ASM Clermont Auvergne
Nick Abendanon; Noa Nakaitaci, Jonathan Davies, Wesley Fofana, Naipolioni Nalaga, Brock James, Ludovic Radoslavjevic; Vincent Debaty, Benjamin Kayser, Davit Zirakashvili, Jamie Cudmore, Sebastien Vahaamahina, Julien Bonnaire, Julien Bardy, Damien Chouly (capt).

Replacements: John Ulugia, Raphael Chaume, Clement Ric, Julien Pierre, Alexandre Lapandry, Morgan Parra, Camille Lopez, Aurélien Rougerie.

Saracens
Alex Goode; Chris Ashton, Marcelo Bosch, Brad Barritt (capt), Chris Wyles; Charlie Hodgson, Richard Wigglesworth; Mako Vunipola, Jamie George, Petrus Du Plessis, George Kruis, Jim Hamilton, Maro Itoje, Jacques Burger, Billy Vunipola.

Replacements: Schalk Brits, Rhys Gill, James Johnston, Kelly Brown, Jackson Wray, Neil de Kock, Owen Farrell, David Strettle

Wish fofana would just put the ball down, he's getting as bad as Ashton.

If someone caught him whilst in the air, would it be classes as a tackle in the air? Lol

The TV production by French TV continues to be absolutely shocking. All this switching between cameras is making me seasick

Crowd now in full voice after their team woke them from a slumber.   Sarries in an attacking position but Clermont drive them back to more cheers. Sarries take and kick.  Abendanon catches and replies but it's out on the full.

Saracens win their lineout and attack again. Ashton tries a little kick forward but Abendanon takes well and fires it into touch from his 22.

Another lineout to Sarries.  They take but Clermont drive them back again.  Clermont defending well so far.

How is Clancy going to the World Cup?

Clermont backline much better at making metres when they have the ball. Play now up in the Saracens 22 but Clermont caught holding on. Penalty to clear the Sarries lines.

LeinsterFan4life wrote:How is Clancy going to the World Cup?

All paid expenses round trip courtesy of Mr N Wray?

Clear knock on at lineout by CA missed

Did Billyv release the man before playing that?

Just when Clermont get into a good attacking position and build pressure, they give away stupid penalties. Saracens staying strong. Maybe they'll have a purple patch now.

Sealing the ball off by ca then

Surely if Clancy is going to blow for holding on that quick he has to make the players roll away quicker

Dumb by Bendy

Oh - let off for Clermont there.

Burger knocks on with the line going a begging, after Clermont make a mess of a clearance kick.

LondonTiger wrote:Dumb by Bendy

Oops with the camera change I thought Bendy had taken that ball ober the try line rather than 5m line

crucial scrum

Clermont look really nervous again.

Still 10-6 to Clermont.

64 minutes on the clock.

Saracens have won a free kick at an attacking scrum in Clermont 22. Pressure time. They scrum down again. And it's a penalty to Sarries.

Danger of a card here for Clermont.....

take another scrum...

mistake by farrell imo. another scrum might have seen a yc

Owen Grimacer Farrell to take the kick, and it goes right and over.

10-9 and 67 minutes.

Clancy lets a tackle around the neck go by a Sarries player as Clermont go on the attack again. Jonathan Davies glides though a number of players down the right hand side and then is tackled. And Clermont hold on again with the line in front of them.

Nice to see Barritt back.

If Saracens do lose this, they've still made it closer than most pundits thought.

Pot Hale wrote:Clancy lets a tackle around the neck go by a Sarries player as Clermont go on the attack again.  Jonathan Davies glides though a number of players down the right hand side and then is tackled.  And Clermont hold on again with the line in front of them.

Didn't see a tackle around the neck, closest was Farrell but that wasn't high.

Why are we seeing so many slow motion replays!

The camera work is awful.

Clermont win a penalty and James knocks it over.

4 point margin with 6 minutes to go.

Have Saracens looked like scoring a try all game?

Sarries 9 could lose this

No. Toothless bar Burgers knock on from a knock on.

Saracens have no devil in their attacking backline.  They take ages to release ball from a ruck and then pass it through every player wide and gain no ground hardly, then cough it up on the return play.  

Clermont scrum on the halfway line with 2.5 minutes to go.

And out the ball goes again in the Sarries backline and last pass is forward. They're going nowhere.

less than a minute.

And Clermont march Saracens backwards in the scrum and win a penalty.

Clancy says there is time as the clock turns red for a lineout throw.

Can Saracens steal it?

Ah well, all over I guess. Wanted Sarries to win, but really they have not shown enough to deserve a win.

of course sarries havent been expansive. that was their gameplan. cant fault them for it as they made the match very tight.

I don't get how people can say the French don't care about Europe. Look at those celebrations!

No. And that ends that. Clermont deserve the win.

Saracens never really got out of the blocks and never threatened the Clermont try line.

All-French final?

Needed to show a little more you cant rely on mistakes to win a semi.

Congrats clermont, deserved winners

losing by 4 points to clermont in france in semi finals is a very very strong performance, whatever the style of it. sarries will be gutted, but they gave everything i thought.

Pot Hale wrote:No.  And that ends that.  Clermont deserve the win.

Saracens never really got out of the blocks and never threatened the Clermont try line.

All-French final?

Yeah, I think so. I honestly believe that Toulon is the only team who can beat this Clermont side.

Saracens try to play not to lose in games like this. You need to take some risks to win more than you lose once you get to the semi-finals.

LeinsterFan4life wrote:I don't get how people can say the French don't care about Europe. Look at those celebrations!

like most sides in most countries, once they are out of it in the group stages, they prioritise their domestic league. thats all. clearly clermont and toulon care passionaltely about Europe.

quinsforever wrote:of course sarries havent been expansive. that was their gameplan. cant fault them for it as they made the match very tight.

Their gameplan made them lose. I would fault them for it. Clermont weren't exactly scintillating.

Once Sarries had to chase the game it was all over...

Notch wrote:Saracens try to play not to lose in games like this. You need to take some risks to win more than you lose once you get to the semi-finals.

they had a gameplan notch. kicking infield to clermont is in itself a risky plan if not executed perfectly. sarries gameplan is remarkably reminiscent of ireland and leinsters.

the reality is, clermont got a try from a scrum which was going backwards and got turned yet somehome chouly managed to tie up 9,10 and 14 and that created the space for James chip kick. very fine margins.

clermont worthy winners but a great match.

Only one team turned up to play. Luckily for the final Sarries didn't make it. Boring limited rugby..

Congrats clermont, deserved winners

ME-109 wrote:Only one team turned up to play. Luckily for the final Sarries didn't make it. Boring limited rugby..

Like Ireland then....

quinsforever wrote:

Clermont worthy winners but a great match.

Really??

The first half was paint drying stuff.

Second half marginally improved by an early try and then followed by lots of lateral running by Saracens, and pressure building/giving away penalties by Clermont.

I wouldn't put it in the category of great at all.

nathan wrote:

ME-109 wrote:Only one team turned up to play. Luckily for the final Sarries didn't make it. Boring limited rugby..

Like Ireland then....

Don't think Ireland play in this competition

ME-109 wrote:Only one team turned up to play. Luckily for the final Sarries didn't make it. Boring limited rugby..

lets hope the other really boring side gets knocked out in the other semi then and we'll have a proper final