Premiership: Saracens 20-19 Bristol Bears: Leaders come from behind to snatch win

Theo Dan scored Saracens' archetypal effort to kick-start their comeback against Bristol

Francois Hougaard scored a last-minute effort arsenic Saracens came from down to bushed Bristol 20-19.

James Williams and Alex Goode traded penalties earlier a Theo Dan effort reduced the spread to 4 points.

Gabriel Ibitoye's effort 10 minutes from clip enactment Bristol 9 points clear, but Rotimi Segun retaliated and Hougaard crossed astatine the decease to snatch the win.

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Saracens extended their unbeaten tally astatine the StoneX Stadium to 14 matches and stretched their pb astatine the apical of the array to 8 points, portion Bristol stay bottommost but took distant a losing bonus constituent to adjacent the spread to 2 points connected Bath supra them.

But Sarries were acold from their champion and missing a big of planetary players - including 7 England internationals - they took 51 minutes to enactment immoderate points connected the board.

MacGinty's aboriginal punishment gave the Bears the pb but the visitors' struggles successful onslaught this play - they person the worst points quality of immoderate squad successful the league - were each excessively apparent. They dominated possession and territory for astir of the archetypal fractional but were held to 3 points for astir of it.

Semi Radradra burst down the blindside and yet crossed the try-line lone to person it chalked disconnected for a knock-on and Rich Lane was denied by a Duncan Taylor tackle a fewer metres out.

Ibitoye came up abbreviated arsenic helium tried to dive implicit aft a close-range line-out earlier hooker Thacker yet scored seconds later, powering implicit successful a maul astatine the extremity of the archetypal half.

MacGinty missed the conversion and a consequent penalty, but centre James Williams - making his archetypal Premiership commencement for Bristol - stepped up to person a long-range punishment and agelong their pb to 11 points.

Goode yet enactment Saracens connected the committee with his ain seconds later, but Williams landed different arsenic the punishment number racked up against the hosts.

Dan scored from a maul to spark Sarries but Ibitoye seemed to wrapper up triumph for Bristol with his ain effort successful the country arsenic their forwards pulled successful Saracens' defence.

The leaders proved wherefore they person been truthful ascendant this play though arsenic Segun powered implicit to acceptable up a tense finale.

With Bristol's defence rattled and the hosts upping the pressure, Hougaard broke Bristol hearts with the past play of the crippled arsenic Sarries moved the shot wide from a line-out to people successful the corner.

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Saracens: Goode, Segun, Lozowski, Taylor, Lewington, M. Vunipola, Davies; Hislop, Dan, Judge, Kitchener, Tizard, Christie, Wray (c), B. Vunipola.

Replacements: Pifeleti, Mawi, Clarey, Boo, Ellis, Van Zyl, Tompkins, Hougaard.

Bristol Bears: Lane, Naulago, Radradra, Williams, Ibitoye, MacGinty, Randall; Thomas, Thacker, Lahiff, Batley, Vui, Luatua (c), Heenan, Bradbury.

Replacements: Byrne, Woolmore, Benz-Salomon, Holmes, Harding, Uren, Sheedy, Bates.

Referee: Anthony Woodthorpe.