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Tom Willis makes England statement as Saracens beat Bristol
By PA
Tom Willis surged over for two tries to give England boss Steve Borthwick another compelling reminder that his Test debut is overdue as Saracens dispatched Bristol 35-26 at StoneX Stadium.
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Saracens bounced back from their record Gallagher Premiership defeat at Bath a week earlier by ending the Bears’ 10-match winning run on the road – with Willis at the forefront of their bonus-point victory.
Man of the match Willis demonstrated his power during both tries with the second, scored on the stroke of half-time, seeing him evade three tacklers in a devastating run down the right wing.
It was a performance that will intensify the clamour for his selection at number eight for the Six Nations opener against Ireland on February 1, with the 25-year-old possessing the ball carrying clout currently missing from England’s back row.
A cathartic evening for Saracens following their 68-10 demolition at the Recreation Ground also produced tries for Fergus Burke, who crossed twice, and Lucio Cinti to give Jamie George the win he was seeking on his 300th appearance for the club.
The Bears, who were thrashed 38-0 by Sale a week ago, fought back in the final quarter but on this occasion they had left themselves with too much to do.
Once an issue with the stadium clock resetting to zero after a few minutes had been played was sorted out, Saracens set about constructing their first try.
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Cinto was kept out by a last-ditch tackle after being presented with a half-chance by sharp passing from Alex Lozowski and Elliot Daly, but then Willis arrived and his strength propelled the hosts across the line.
Saracens launched another raid made possible by the speed and handling of their backs and several phases later they were over again, with Nick Tompkins and George creating the gap for Burke to glide through.
Harry Randall hit back for Bristol from close range, his dummy deceiving the home defence, just as his side appeared to be running out of ideas.
Soon after, Saracens were once again being assailed in the same position of the field and they suffered a setback when Maro Itoje was shown a yellow card for three consecutive offences, the eighth time in 21 games he has been sent to the sin bin.
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The Bears continued to press only to concede consecutive penalties, letting the six-time Premiership champions off the hook.
Daly was successful from the tee from 50 metres out to nudge Saracens 10 points head – the only score while Itoje was in the sin bin.
And just as Bristol renewed their assault on the home whitewash, they were picked off by Itoje who galloped forward before play swung right where the marauding Willis touched down.
Willis then demonstrated his range of skills by bursting through two white shirts when surging through a breakdown and then offloading out of the tackle, with Cinti scoring to register the bonus point.
Kalaveti Ravouvou crossed in the 61st minute to give Bristol hope and the fightback continued when Harry Thacker finished a line-out maul, but Burke put the result beyond doubt before Jake Heenan struck late on.
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