Saracens beat Leicester to end losing streak

Saracens defeated Leicester Tigers 29-17 away from home in the Premiership on Sunday to end their long winless run.

Mark McCall’s team had not tasted victory in any competition since beating London Irish in the Premiership in October, losing seven on the bounce.

But they quickly took control of the contest at Welford Road, where Owen Farrell’s three-pointer in the sixth minute was followed by a penalty try awarded for a deliberate knock-on by Jonny May, who was sent to the sin-bin.

The visitors took advantage of his absence to cross for the first time in match through Jamie George in the 25th minute, with Farrell adding the extras.

But Leicester hit back three minutes later, Mathew Tait touching down and the television match official deeming Adam Thompstone to have successfully offloaded before being tackled into touch.

George Ford converted the try and added three more points when Saracens were penalised at the breakdown in the 34th minute, reducing the away team’s advantage to 17-10 going into the break. 

Saracens, though, pulled clear in the second half as Farrell sent over a drop goal and three more penalties, the last of them coming after May was sent off for committing another deliberate knock-on with six minutes to go. 

The visitors’ Mako Vunipola was sent to the sin-bin soon after for an infringement in the scrum to make it 14 versus 14, but Leicester were unable to muster a reply during the closing stages. 

FULL-TIME | And what a win for Saracens at Welford Road! A try from @J_George2 and 1?9? points from the boot of @owen_faz mark a phenomenal team performance.@LeicesterTigers 17 Saracens 29 ??? #sarrieslive pic.twitter.com/DfzxI363VD

— Saracens Rugby Club (@Saracens) December 24, 2017