Harlequins 20, Saracens 27: Penney drops on Quins to hand Saracens deserved win

When these teams played here three years ago, Saracens were so outplayed that by half-time Nigel Wray, their chief benefactor, turned his back on his players and walked out of the ground. There was no question of any Saracens supporter leaving yesterday until the bitter end.

If there was a turning point in what turned out to be a cracking London derby it arrived not only against the run of play but in the most contentious manner. There were some great tries in the match but unfortunately the first would almost certainlynot have survived trial by video. As there were no television cameras present, there was no action replay.

Whatever, it was a brilliant effort. Quins had made all the early running but had little to show for it. Saracens had just levelled at 3-3, which would have stuck in Quins' craw, but it was what happened next that raised the temperature at The Stoop.

From just inside the Quins half Sarries had the ball in their hands for the first time in a long time. Enter Cencus Johnston, the Samoan prop who is built like an atoll, and he produced a bit of skill at centre that Andy Farrell would have died for.

Johnston not only sold a dummy but delivered the most perfect pass to the left wing, Kameli Ratuvou. He, in turn, produced a clever cross-kick towards the posts, where there were two contenders, Neil de Kock and Ugo Monye. As the ball crossed the line Monye looked as if he had got there first, touching down with his right hand, but the referee, Tony Spreadbury only two people were closer to the incident than him figured that De Kock had scored. Booing all round.

De Kock, a former Springbok scrum-half, then produced a try-saving tackle on his countryman De Wet Barry, who had sliced through the Saracens defence. For all their commitment and aggression, Quins trooped off at half-time trailing 10-3.

After Adrian Jarvis kicked his second penalty a minute into the second half, Saracens increased their lead with 10 points in the space of a few minutes. First Glen Jackson, whose kicking wasnot at its normal level, landed a penalty after an impressivebuild-up. Then they came up with the try of the match.

Chris Jack, their All Black recruit, won a line-out and De Kock, Jackson and Kevin Sorrell worked a move that resulted in a classic try by Brent Russell. The final pass was delivered by Sorrell and Dean Richards, the Quins director of rugby, thought it was forward. Needless to say, Richards also questioned the legality of De Kock's try. ButAlan Gaffney of Saracens was delighted by Russell's effort. "It was a lovely try," he said, "straight off the training paddock."

At one point Russell, a tal-ented full-back recruited from South Africa, might have been dreaming about a Christmas spent on a beach in his homeland. In the opening quarter he saw more action than he might have liked. He was peppered with high balls, upended and generally made to feel uncomfortable. He did well to stand up to it and emerge with such a notable try.

"We were under the cosh for much of the game and Quins could have been leading by plenty," Gaffney said. Instead, Saracens were consolidating their improved form; Quins, by contrast, have been on the slide. After a very promising start to the season Richards' men have not won in eight matches and are out of the Heineken Cup and the EDF Energy Cup.

Midway through the second half they came back into it when Tani Fuga, a replacement for the South African hooker Gary Botha, scored a try courtesy of an interception by Will Skinner, who was grounded just short.

However, if Quins, only 20-13 adrift, were heartened by the appearance of Fuga the supersub, Saracens were doingthe same thing two minuteslater. Rodd Penney, who hadjust come on for the injured Richard Haughton, took aninside pass from Russell and somehow found a routethrough a congested midfield to sprint 40 yards to the line. That one was not straight off the training ground.

Sarries were back in the comfort zone at 27-13 but Quins finished as they had started, full of ambition and running, and they were rewarded near the end when Mike Brown produced a nice piece of work to withstand the challenge of two or three defenders and release Monye in a run to the line. This time Monye's hand on the ball meant something, and it also brought his side a losing bonus point.