Championship play-off final: Ealing Trailfinders 0-60 Saracens - Ruthless Sarries close in on Premiership return

England number eight Billy Vunipola scored two tries in nine minutes after the break

Saracens all but booked their return to the Premiership as they hammered Ealing Trailfinders 60-0 in the first leg of the Championship play-off final.

England internationals Maro Itoje and Jamie George, and former Wales scrum-half Aled Davies all crossed as Sarries built an emphatic 27-0 half-time lead.

Billy Vunipola twice went over from close-range before a penalty try and Nick Tompkins score extended the lead.

Sean Maitland added a last-minute try, while Owen Farrell kicked 18 points.

The huge margin of victory has rendered next Sunday's return leg at their own StoneX Stadium little more than a formality, with Saracens effectively ensuring their absence from the top tier of English club rugby will be for one season only.

They showed their intent for the first leg by fielding 12 internationals, including five from the British & Irish Lions squad to face South Africa, and duly closed on a Premiership return at the first attempt, after relegation for persistent salary cap breaches.

Ealing, who finished top after a shortened Championship campaign, had to soak up spells of intense pressure in sapping heat in the first half as Sarries set a ferocious tempo - yet the hosts had moments of their own.

Creating spells of pressure in the visitors' 22, Ealing twice showed ambition by turning down makeable shots at goal and kicking to the corner, but could not turn that into points, Dean Hammond forced into touch after a well-worked line-out move.

In contrast, the three-time European champions were ruthless, swiftly turning great defence from Ealing's first penalty line-out into attack for Itoje's opening try after good work from Tim Swinson and Alex Goode.

England centre Elliot Daly did well to stop Max Bodilly's dangerous 50m break, and a minute later England skipper Farrell sliced through the defence and offloaded just short of the line to give Davies a simple score.

England hooker Jamie George salutes the crowd after his first-half score

Dogged Ealing defence denied Sean Maitland a third Sarries score as the Scotland winger knocked on in the act of touching down, but after Farrell added his second penalty, England hooker George touched down after a driving maul on the stroke of half-time.

Another driving maul sent Billy Vunipola over after the restart, and nine minutes later the England number eight crashed over for his second try after the pack won a scrum against the head.

Ealing continued to give their all, roared on by a vociferous home crowd, and David Johnston went close to a thrilling breakaway try after Guy Thompson's yellow card for bringing down a maul, which yielded a penalty try and and a 48-0 lead for Sarries.

However, the star-studded visitors were relentless, keeping their hosts scoreless and adding two more tries for good measure in the final five minutes.

Farrell will have encouraged watching Lions fans with an imperious display, and teed up an easy score for Tompkins before becoming the Championship's top points-scorer with his sixth conversion of the day.

Sarries were still not satisfied though, keeping out Trailfinders in their own 22 before sweeping upfield for Maitland to cross in the corner for their eighth try with the final play.

Ealing director of rugby Ben Ward told Premier Sports:

"That was tough to take. We know for us the tie is essentially gone now.

"We are not going to win promotion, but we want to put some pride back in the shirt next week, with some guys leaving and others playing their last games of rugby.

"I thought Saracens were absolutely error-free and they were good, but I'm not sure we put our best foot forward.

"We didn't fire any shots today and when opportunities arose we were a bit conservative in how we played."

Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall:

"Owen [Farrell] was amazing. His game was exceptional. He lives for these important matches and significant games. I thought he was magnificent.

"We were right at it from the beginning and although it was only 10-0 after 17 or 18 minutes, we were putting them under pressure, denting them, and eventually that always tells.

"We've got to be Covid-free next week, God knows what would happen if we're not. Hopefully this scoreline would dictate what happens.

"But we've wanted and waited for this opportunity for many months and we were determined to take the opportunity and dictate from the get-go."

Ealing Trailfinders: Johnston; Hammond, Bodilly, Gordon, Cordy-Redden; Willis, Hampson; Davis, Malton, Whyte, De Wee, Cannon, Murphy, Uzokwe, Smid (capt).

Replacements: Van Vuuren, Gibbons, Thiede, Linsell, Thompson, Burns, Daniels, Al-Jiboori.

Sin-bin: Thompson (65)

Saracens: Goode; Lewington, Daly, Tompkins, Maitland; Farrell (capt), Davies; M Vunipola, George, Koch, Itoje, Swinson, Rhodes, Wray, B Vunipola.

Replacements: Woolstencroft, Adams-Hale, Clarey, Hunter-Hill, Reffell, Whiteley, Taylor, Segun.

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