The Premiership is about to go into hibernation for two months and Exeter badly needed a mood-enhancing win before the Six Nations pushes the club game into the background. They duly claimed a relieving victory against weakened opponents but only after a last-quarter surge from 15-10 down in a previously nervy, scrappy contest.
![[Tobias Elliott dives over for one of his tries for Saracens]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/3be75e803565eaa0fc3e26db9725bb1e916218fb/0_179_3669_2203/master/3669.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
The final scoreboard will show a healthy bonus-point success clinched by two tries inside three minutes from Tommy Wyatt and Ethan Roots but, until that rat-a-tat late burst the outcome was in real doubt courtesy of two tries by the visitors’ speedy right wing Tobias Elliott.
A 71st-minute red card shown to the Saracens lock Harry Wilson for a shoulder to the head of Rus Tuima, however, effectively sealed Sarries’ fate with Dan Frost registering a fifth Chiefs try. This was very much an opportunity Exeter knew they could ill-afford to spurn. Sarries had also travelled down without 16 first-team players either injured or away on international duty and the selection of the Welsh centre Nick Tompkins as a replacement back-row forward underlined the lack of available alternatives.
It definitely did not help them, then, when their Argentina Juan Martín González flanker was sent to the sin-bin after seven minutes when Jacques Vermeulen was tipped out of a ruck upside down and landed on his head. Luckily for Gonzalez there were several other bodies in the vicinity and the referee, Ian Tempest, settled for just a yellow card.
Exeter swiftly nailed a driven maul try, finished by Jack Innard, but both teams were guilty of unforced errors and lacked any consistent cohesion. Saracens needed something to get them going and finally found it after 27 minutes when the rapid Elliott somersaulted over in the right corner to give his side an 8-5 half-time lead.
