A scrub in the midfield seemed the perfect opportunity for everyone to catch their breath. Instead, the Harlequins used it as an opportunity to deliver the next blow. A huge push from the first row of the Quins, with the spearhead from the tight Will Collier, took the back row of the Saracens out of the equation giving Marcus Smith the match he longed for. His right foot let Farrell squeeze the air and he quickly passed Aled Davis before passing into Danny Kerr, who made the gesture of silence in support of the Saracens. If the first quarter belonged to the Harlequins, then the next period was the time of the Saracens to dominate. Building pressure inside the Harlequins 22 with big wings from Billy and Mako Vunipola, Earl showed why he was selected as the player of the season in the Premiership with a dynamic course that hit Will Evans and Joe Marler. Farrell lost the conversion and then was out with a falling goal. The feeling of being in wars was heightened when he was hit by Quins hooker Walker, drawing blood from behind his ear, with Joe Marchant collecting the loose ball to score. Instead, the referee of the televised match rubbed the match and ruled out Walker for a head-on collision. The Saracens immediately started working, taking advantage of their husband, Vunipolas drove hard and Maro Itoje fell a few inches. Farrell had a three-on-one over, but used the option to pass Smith and unload to Nick Tomkins to ensure the Saracens had a half-time lead. Given a 28-0 draw in last year’s semi-final, the Harlequins should not have seen the 15-13 deficit too scary, but they made the worst possible start to the second half. Dombrandt failed to collect the restart, Billy Vunipola pulled Quins with a long run, allowing Alex Goode to serve Earl his second line after Care got off the line and slipped.
