Saracens and Sale have proven themselves to be a class apart in the Premiership this season and on Saturday they will go head-to-head in an intriguing Twickenham final.
The two sides finished first and second in the regular season, separated by just five points, and the finalists look tough to split.
Recent meetings between the pair have been close and given the high stakes it could be another nail-biting finale to the Premiership season.
- Saracens to win by one to 12 points
- Sean Maitland anytime tryscorer
Final Experience Saracens Key
Nine of the last 12 Premiership finals have been decided by margins of eight points or fewer, while there have been just six points between glory and despair in the previous four years.
Saracens were on the wrong end of a tense decider against Leicester 12 months ago, when a 79th-minute Freddie Burns penalty broke Sarries’ hearts as the Tigers won 15-12.
But the London club have used the pain of that loss to drive them on this season, winning 15 of their 20 regular-season matches as they finished well clear of the rest of the field - bar Sale.
A move to a more expansive style has worked wonders for Saracens, who were the Premiership's top scorers and posted 38 points against Northampton Saints in their play-off semi-final.
This will be Sarries' ninth final in the last 13 years and they’ve taken home the top prize on five occasions.
Their squad is brimming with former champions who are no strangers to big games at Twickenham, led by skipper Owen Farrell, who is chasing a sixth winner’s medal.
In contrast, Sale will be playing in their first Premiership final in 17 years and are bringing a largely young, inexperienced squad to London.
They can look to England internationals Manu Tuilagi and George Ford for guidance and the latter, in particular, has been hugely influential in Sale’s run to the final.
Ford missed the start of the season through injury but his return coincided with the Sharks winning their final four matches, a run that included an impressive semi-final success against Leicester.
The fly-half battle between Ford and Farrell is just one area where there is little to separate the two sides. There’s little between the two packs either, albeit Sale will be without skipper Ben Curry for the Twickenham showdown.
Little differences, such as Curry’s absence and Saracens’ final experience, could prove decisive in a fixture which has been closely fought in recent years - the last five meetings between the pair have been decided by fewer than 12 points
Sale were underdogs in their sole Premiership final appearance to date, but the Sharks upset the odds that day to beat Leicester 45-20.
However, a repeat performance could prove difficult against a Saracens side desperate to make amends for last year’s near miss.
SARACENS TO WIN BY 1-12 POINTS
Maitland Impact Crucial For Sarries
Maitland Magic A Factor
There’s the potential for Saturday's final to be controlled by the imposing packs on show. But with the prospect of a balmy London afternoon, the forwards could tire earlier and gaps should appear for backs, such as Saracens winger Sean Maitland, to strut their stuff..
The former Scotland international has enjoyed a strong end to the season, scoring twice in the semi-final win over Northampton to take his try tally for the year to ten.
Maitland has scored a try in a Premiership final previously and having looked incredibly sharp for Sarries recently, Sale will need to keep an eye on the experienced speedster.
SEAN MAITLAND TO SCORE ANYTIME
Sale Sharks v Saracens Teams
Saracens: 15 Alex Goode, 14 Max Malins, 13 Alex Lozowski, 12 Nick Tompkins, 11 Sean Maitland, 10 Owen Farrell (c), 9 Ivan Van Zyl, 8 Jackson Wray, 7 Ben Earl, 6 Nick Isiekwe, 5 Hugh Tizard, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Marco Riccioni, 2 Jamie George, 1 Eroni Mawi
Replacements: 16 Theo Dan, 17 Mako Vunipola, 18 Christian Judge, 19 Callum Hunter-Hill, 20 Toby Knight, 21 Aled Davies, 22 Duncan Taylor, 23 Elliot Daly
Sale Sharks: 15 Joe Carpenter, 14 Tom Roebuck, 13 Rob du Preez, 12 Manu Tuilagi, 11 Arron Reed, 10 George Ford, 9 Gus Warr, 8 Jono Ross (c), 7 Sam Dugdale, 6 Tom Curry, 5 Jonny Hill, 4 Jean-Luc du Preez, 3 Nick Schonert, 2 Akker van der Merwe, 1 Simon McIntyre
Replacements: 16 Ewan Ashman, 17 Bevan Rodd, 18 Coenie Oosthuizen, 19 Josh Beaumont, 20 Tom Ellis, 21 Raffi Quirke, 22 Sam James, 23 Tom O’Flaherty
