Saracens rally after half-time to beat Newcastle 39-31
Saracens came back from 10 points down at half-time to beat Newcastle Red Bulls 39-31 at the StoneX Stadium, a result that lifts them back into the top four of the Premiership.
Newcastle had led 17-7 at the break, and BBC Sport described the second half as a blitz. Saracens scored 22 unanswered points in a spell of 17 minutes, during which they had at least a one-man advantage. Tries came from Sione Va'enuku, Toby Knight, Nick Tompkins and Noah Caluori.
A one-man advantage means one side has more players on the pitch than the other, usually because a player has been sent to the sin bin. A yellow card sends a player off for 10 minutes. Newcastle's Sam Graham and Alex Hearle were both shown yellow cards in the second half.
Saracens scored seven tries in total, six of them after the interval. Jamie George, Elliot Daly and Rotimi Segun also crossed the line, and Owen Farrell kicked two conversions. A conversion is a kick at goal after a try, worth two points.
Newcastle did not fold. They scored two tries in the final five minutes, through Ollie Leatherbarrow and Alex Hearle, and that gave them a bonus point. A bonus point is an extra league point awarded for scoring four or more tries, or for losing narrowly. It was not enough to change the result.
Newcastle Red Bulls said the defeat extended their wait for a Premiership away win. It was their fourth loss in five Premiership matches, and they go into the November break at the bottom of the table.
Saracens' own report, headed "Saracens Men 39 - 31 Newcastle Red Bulls", listed the match as Premiership Round 5. For Saracens, the win is a timely lift. For Newcastle, the break comes at a point where they will want to find some answers before the league resumes.
The match also showed how quickly a game can turn in rugby. A team that is 10 points behind at half-time still has 40 minutes to work with, and a spell of sustained pressure can change the score fast. Newcastle's late tries showed they were not finished either, even if the final whistle came with the scoreboard in Saracens' favour.
