Will Saracens ever play at Vicarage Road again? This was their last home game of the regular season and their fourth at Wembley. It was also their fourth win on the hallowed, if somewhat maligned, turf. In front of the biggest crowd of them all, it was rather more uplifting stuff than they are used to in Watford.
Mind you, do not rule out the chances of them making one more appearance at VR this season. This win, complete with bonus point, takes them to within two points of Leicester in second. The Tigers play their game in hand tomorrow, then Saracens finish off with games at the homes of the two leaders. Win both of those – a tall order, admittedly – and they will get that home semi-final at Vicarage Road.
Keep playing like this, and who knows? Having weathered a mini-storm early in the game, they returned to run rings round Quins on turf that held up very nicely and then started to make the visitors weep in the second half, as it turned into something of a rout.
It is a well-worn observation that the English season goes through the mill in the heavy winter months and then bursts into life come the spring. But still, it is worth making it again when it comes to this Saracens side. Even by English standards their transformation has been ridiculously extreme.
Unrecognisable is not the word. For around six months they were just about the most miserable bunch of try-shy killjoys the Premiership has ever seen – which really is saying something. Then suddenly they swan off to Brighton for a weekend of fun, feel the sun on their cheeks, and now you cannot stop them running in tries from all over.
Having struggled for most of the first quarter in the face of a more muscular Harlequins effort they struck with two superb tries, both scored in the blink of an eye, within three minutes of each other – that is to say, the time it took Derick Hougaard to miss the conversion of the first and for Saracens to run the restart straight back down the other end.
First tries first, though. Schalk Brits has been absolved from the criticism that has flooded Saracens' way this season for their dourness, and he is revelling in things now that his team-mates have joined him on the sunny uplands of ambition. He cannot hit a barn door with his line-out throwing, mind, but his step and sleight of hand were the key to the first of Andy Saull's quickfire brace.
Then he weaved through Quins' defence straight from the restart. Justin Marshall took his break on to the 22, before Saull appeared in support to gallop away from a devastated cover defence. Saull is another whose promise during those bleak winter months is now flourishing. He, too, has some pace for a forward. Shame he did not reappear for the second half.
Quins, denied the services of Nick Evans, who was the victim of a hamstring strain, had more of the ball, not least because of Brits's faulty throwing-in, and they muscled their way over for a try in the 26th minute to get things back to 15-8, before Hougaard's second penalty gave Sarries an 18-8 lead at the turnaround.
Quins would have felt very much in the game at that point. But for that blinding one-two round the 20-minute mark they had been largely dominant, if in a slightly slower-witted manner than we have come to expect from them. Rory Clegg missed an important penalty five minutes after the restart, and then the lights went out for them.
Another Saracen who has been outstanding all season, Alex Goode (maybe they were never quite as dull as we remember), made a little half-break, and from the ruck Marshall fed Brits, who raced away to the corner. At 25-8 that was pretty much game over. Then when Mike Brown was shown yellow just shy of the hour Saracens felt confident of their bonus point.
It duly came when Michael Tagicakibau took advantage of the extra man at an attacking scrum. Then came another try as Quins started to chase the game hopelessly. Ernst Joubert picked off Jordan Turner-Hall's pass for a 37-8 lead with 10 minutes to go.
The contest had been over for a while by then, but Quins ran in two tries in the final three minutes, just to make them feel as if they had had a nice day out too.
Sarries would like to make days out here a regular fixture. Some chance of that, but after this they may just be starting to develop big dreams.
SARACENS Goode; Tagicakibau, Powell (Ratuvou 63), Barritt, Penney; Hougaard (Jackson ht), Marshall (De Kock 55); Aguero (Lealamanua 67), Brits (Ongaro 60; Brits 78), Du Plessis (Skuse 67), Vyvyan, Ryder (Botha 52), Melck, Saull (Burger ht), Joubert (capt) Tries Saull 2, Brits, Tagicakibau, Joubert Cons Houggard, Jackson 2 Pens Houggard 2 HARLEQUINS Brown; Strettle, Lowe (Tiesi 63), Turner-Hall, Williams (Monye 25); Clegg, Care (Dickson 74); Jones, Brooker (Cairns 45), Andress (Johnston 63), Percival (Stevenson 63), Robson, Guest (York 78), Skinner (capt), Easter Tries Brooker, York, Monye Pen Clegg
Wembley 47,106 Referee Martin Fox
