Rugby Union: Saracens prop Richard Barrington looking forward to having international stars back
Saracens prop Richard Barrington (pic: Adam Davy/PA) - Credit: PA Archive/PA Images
North Londoners have been without likes of Owen Farrell, Maro Itoje and Liam Williams during Six Nations
Saracens prop Richard Barrington is looking forward to the Aviva Premiership side welcoming back their international stars when they return to action later this month.
After suffering a 24-12 defeat at Exeter Chiefs in the league on Sunday, the Allianz Park outfit are without a game until March 24 when they host fellow capital club Harlequins at the London Stadium in Stratford.
By then, Saracens should have the likes of Owen Farrell, Mako Vunipola, Maro Itoje and Liam Williams back in their ranks, having been on international duty with their countries in the Six Nations in recent weeks.
And Barrington knows the importance of having players of that quality back for selection ahead of an important stage in the season.
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“We’re looking forward to the internationals coming back. We’ve got a couple of weeks now so we’ll have a few days off to rest the bones in the body,” he told the club website.
“We’ll have a full strength team with the internationals coming back against Harlequins and then we have a big game the week after against Leinster (in the European Champions Cup).
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“Hopefully we can regather and get ready for the challenges ahead during the rest of the season.”
Sarries head into their three-week break off the back of a disappointing result against Exeter that saw the north Londoners slip eight points adrift of Chiefs at the top of the table.
Despite the result, Sarries director of rugby Mark McCall believes the display was on an improvement on the one in a home defeat against Leicester Tigers the week before, a message Barrington echoes.
“We came to Exeter to right some wrongs from last week as we were off the boil against Leicester at Allianz Park,” added the 28-year-old.
“It’s definitely a tough challenge and one of the hardest places to go to in the Premiership at the moment.
“They’ve made Sandy Park a fortress and haven’t lost many there, and it’s always hard to come and play against the champions.
“The heart of the boys was amazing, it was just a bit of detail that wasn’t there.”