London Welsh crashed to their heaviest defeat in an already disastrous Aviva Premiership season when they conceded 11 tries in a 78-7 loss to a star-studded Saracens at Allianz Park on Saturday.

The scoreline surpassed the Exiles’ 71-7 defeat to Wasps last month and after definite signs of improvement on the pitch in recent weeks, the manner and margin of the defeat was hugely disappointing, albeit against a very good Saracens side.

The Welsh simply had no answer to the pace and power of a Saracens team which will no doubt be challenging for major honours come the end of the season.

Welsh trailed to a fourth minute Mako Vunipola try with Sarries crossing four more times before the break to lead 38-7.

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Rugby League convert Elliot Kear marked his Premiership debut with a try to reply for Welsh, with Will Robinson adding the extras.

But that was as good as it got for Welsh as Saracens ran in a further six tries after the interval – scrum half replacement Richard Wigglesworth claiming a 13-minute hat-trick.

Mark McCall’s men, who had not secured a league victory for more than two months, did not give Welsh a sniff, as Mako Vunipola, who grabbed two tries, Brett Sharman, George Kruis and Chris Ashton all crossed in the first half.

In addition to Wigglesworth’s treble, there was also tries for Jackson Wray, Richard Barrington and Ben Ransom. The eagle-eyed Owen Farrell converted ten tries of 11.

Exiles wing Seb Stegmann gave away a kickable penalty early on and after Farrell decided to go for touch, Vunipola burrowed over to score a try.

Farrell, who in total notched 23 points from the tee, converted and then bagged a penalty, before the England fly-half got himself involved in a flowing move with Neil de Kock.

That nearly resulted in an Ashton try, but after he was held up on the try-line, Sharman was eventually adjudged to have touched down after referee Ian Tempest consulted the television match official.

 

Kruis piled through the Welsh defence beneath the posts, with Farrell nailing the conversion once more.

Then a mighty leap from Kruis gave Saracens possession from a line-out, and Vunipola scurried over for his second converted try to snatch the bonus point by the half-hour mark.

Try No 5 came after a blistering run by Ashton down the right, with Farrell doing well to make the conversion.

The Exiles did, however, get off the mark when Peter Browne slipped a pass through to Kear, who touched down.

Saracens kept the pace up after the break as flanker Wray scored a try from a rolling maul after 48 minutes.

And the home fans were in seventh heaven as replacement Barrington bagged a converted try on the hour mark.

A wonderful jinking run by fellow substitute Wigglesworth saw him dance through the Welsh defence to touch down, and moments later Ransom used his speed to race away for the home side’s ninth try.

Wigglesworth bagged two more tries in quick-fire fashion, the first of which came from a shimmy and pass from Farrell, as Welsh’s miserable day came to an end.

Saracens: Ransom, Ashton, Bosch (Tompkins 74), Taylor (Hodgson 56), Wyles, Farrell, De Kock (Wigglesworth 56, M Vunipola (Barrington 47), Sharman (George HT),  Johnston (Du Plessis 47), Kruis, Hamilton (Botha 57), Wray (B Vunipola 60, Brown, Joubert (capt).
London Welsh: Robinson, Stegmann, Reynolds (May 63), Barkley, Kear, Weepu, Lewis, Reeves (Trevett HT),  Britton (Morris 46), Vea (Cooper 62), P Browne (Schofield 62), Down, McCaffrey, Kirwan (capt), Fonua (Pienaar 74).
Replacements not used: Rowley, Scott.
Referee: I Tempest (RFU).
Attendance: 8,037.

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