Theo Dan gave us a glimpse too of the post-George future for England, with a remarkable carrying display, one that yielded two tries as Saracens once again demonstrated their ability to harness momentum of their England players returning to the fold from international action when others appear to be content with going through the motions.
Ben Earl picked up where he left off from his barnstorming England displays while Elliot Daly excelled at full-back, reminding England head coach Steve Borthwick of his exquisite skills.
It proved to be little more than a glorified training run for McCall’s side, who delivered the kind of statement performance founded on a ferocious defensive display that suggests they are fully equipped for the sprint finish to the Premiership title. They were well worth their eight tries.
It may have been marketed as ‘The Showdown’, and over 61,000 supporters packed out the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to create a carnival atmosphere, but it was an embarrassingly one-sided contest. Harlequins, who had started the game two places above Saracens in second place in the table, simply didn’t turn up, dropping to fifth in the standings with Saracens replacing them in second, just three points behind Northampton Saints.
It took just 27 minutes for McCall’s side to secure their four-try bonus point, when the magnificent Sean Maitland powered over for his second try, but in truth the game was gone even before then.
Farrell was irresistible, mixing up long passes with chip-kicks, Earl fired through half-gaps, Theo McFarland provided breath-taking rangy physicality while Juan Martin Gonzalez was a totemic figure in the forward exchanges.
The tone had been set from the kick off, with a wide pass from Farrell to Rotimi Segun launching the attack on the right-hand side. A penalty ensued but Juan Martin Gonzalez drove on to the left of the posts, and then quick hands created half a gap for Alex Lewington and the Saracens wing finished with aplomb.
The fast and furious start by Saracens continued as they looked to their pack to turn the screw.
A succession of drives from five-metre line-outs culminated in a yellow card for Quins flanker Stephan Lewies. The pressure told at the next line-out, with Dan driving over for Saracens’ second.
A floated pass by Farrell enabled Maitland to cross for a third try before the end of the first quarter after a break and offload by McFarland with Lucio Cinti initially providing the support. The rout continued as a sumptuous pass through his legs by Daly that opened up the Quins defence for Maitland to finish for his second. George, starting the game as a replacement, could only gasp at what he was seeing.