Mako Vunipola has paid Vincent Koch the ultimate compliment
Mako Vunipola has labelled Vincent Koch the best tighthead in the world when he is on his game, as was the case last Saturday in Dublin when Saracens dismantled the Leinster scrum.
The Irish side had come into the Champions Cup quarter-final on the back of a 25-match winning streak, but they failed to absorb the pressure Saracens applied at the set-piece and the penalty count of 7-1 at the scrum was a massive factor in tipping the result the way of the London club.
Vunipola will now scrum down again with Koch as Saracens look to see off Racing in this Saturday's semi-final in Paris and keep the defending champions on course to win their fourth European trophy in five seasons.
"The old notion is tighthead is probably the most important player in the team and it's no different (now), the performance he [Koch] gave at the weekend, not only in the scrum but around the park," said Vunipola at a semi-final media conference.
"When Vincent is in that kind of mood and going at teams I honestly feel there is no one better in the world than him. He knows that and he knows that he has got the backing of the people around him. When he is able to be confident to go out there and do his thing, it's a happy day for us."
Having taken great satisfaction in how the power battle at the scrum went in Ireland, Vunipola now hopes a similar platform can be laid in France to help get Saracens though to next month's final on October 17. "You talk about head to head battles and winning those, it's probably the only facet you can say head to head, taking on your opposite man in the scrum.
"You understand how massive that is to impose yourself as a pack, how much energy it gives, not only to you as the team and it takes away from the opposition... it made my job easier (in Dublin), I didn't have to do much running. That was probably the best thing about it."
England and Lions international Vunipola is a bit of a rugby nerd, admitting he regularly delves into his trove of video to watch old games in his leisure time to remember how he felt about them.
It's not just the wins, such as the 2016 final victory over Racing, that he will settle down to. The losses can be equally informative. "I watch games we have played in the past more just for my enjoyment than anything really. You watch to remember being in the game. It's not just the games that we win either, there are losses that I watch to remember to what I felt that day.
"Sometimes I think back to that game (in 2016) and I have watched it back a lot as well. You watch and think how did we get away with playing like that. It was just the enjoyment, people were just appreciating each other... people were emotional. Saturday is a chance for us to go and make another memory."
With just two more Premiership games remaining before their automatic relegation to the Championship, Saracens won't be able to participate again in the Champions Cup until 2022/23 at the earliest. That prospect is added incentive for Vunipola and co to finish out this campaign on a high and leave everyone remembering them as one of the European greats.
"This is our last opportunity to win silverware – not just this year but for a while," said Vunpila. "The Champions Cup is dear to us because we have had a few heartaches in it, but we have also had the delight of winning it... we just want to out there and make memories.
"I remember after we lost the Premiership and European finals in 2014, we spoke about wanting to be in the same league as Munster, Leinster and Toulouse, dynasties really. When people talk about the Champions Cup, those are the sort of teams people think of as the best in Europe and we wanted to be in that conversation.
"We knew we had to cross that big hurdle of winning it for the first time, but when we did that (in 2016) we wanted to go back... and it's no different this time. We want to go out there and enjoy this moment with the people around us because we don't know when we might get this chance again."
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I have heard it asked if RA is essentially one of the part owners and I suppose therefor should be on the other side of these two parties. If they purchased the rebels and guaranteed them, and are responsible enough they incur Rebels penalties, where is this line drawn? Seems rough to have to pay a penalty for something were your involvement sees you on the side of the conned party, the creditors. If the Rebels directors themselves have given the club their money, 6mil worth right, why aren’t they also listed as sitting with RA and the Tax office? And the legal threat was either way, new Rebels or defunct, I can’t see how RA assume the threat was less likely enough to warrant comment about it in this article. Surely RA ignore that and only worry about whether they can defend it or not, which they have reported as being comfortable with. So in effect wouldn’t it be more accurate to say there is no further legal threat (or worry) in denying the deal. Unless the directors have reneged on that. > Returns of a Japanese team or even Argentinean side, the Jaguares, were said to be on the cards, as were the ideas of standing up brand new teams in Hawaii or even Los Angeles – crazy ideas that seemingly forgot the time zone issues often cited as a turn-off for viewers when the competition contained teams from South Africa. Those timezones are great for SR and are what will probably be needed to unlock its future (cant see it remaining without _atleast _help from Aus), day games here are night games on the West Coast of america, were potential viewers triple, win win. With one of the best and easiest ways to unlock that being to play games or a host a team there. Less good the further across Aus you get though. Jaguares wouldn’t be the same Jaguares, but I still would think it’s better having them than keeping the Rebels. The other options aren’t really realistic 25’ options, no. From reading this authors last article I think if the new board can get the investment they seem to be confident in, you keeping them simply for the amount of money they’ll be investing in the game. Then ditch them later if they’re not good enough without such a high budget. Use them to get Jaguares reintergration stronger, with more key players on board, and have success drive success.
Go to commentsYeah, and ours is waaay bigger than yours. Just as you's get a semi…oh hold on that never happens
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