Saracens named for Ospreys clash

The Men in Black take on the Ospreys at StoneX Stadium on Sunday with a place in the quarter-finals up for grabs, and Christie is hugely excited for what will be his first appearance in the European knockouts.

Director of Rugby Mark McCall has the luxury of naming an unchanged starting line-up after the win over Harlequins at The Showdown 3 in Association with City Index, which confirmed that Sarries have booked their home semi-final in the Gallagher Premiership.

Captain Owen Farrell is named in the XV after leaving the field early at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, and he will be aiming to guide his side through to the last eight.

Mako Vunipola, Jamie George and Marco Riccioni continue their formidable front-row combination, with Maro Itoje and Hugh Tizard in the second-row.

Christie joins Ben Earl and Billy Vunipola at the base of the scrum and they will have a big job on their hands against an Ospreys pack who have a wealth of experience.

Ivan Van Zyl joins the skipper once again in the half-back pairing, with Nick Tompkins and Alex Lozowski who both scored against Quins in the midfield.

Sean Maitland, Max Malins and Alex Goode will be looking to take any chances that come their way in the back-three in order to help the team progress.

On the bench there is one change as Tom Woolstencroft returns to the squad, and Aled Davies will take on plenty of his fellow countrymen when the Ospreys come to town.

Christie is aware of the challenge ahead on Sunday afternoon.

“This weekend will be my first experience of knock-out rugby in the Heineken Champions Cup. It’s the tournament we want to play in, and we all realise that it’s ‘win or go home’ – it could be the end of the road for us in Europe.

Saracens have enjoyed some great experiences in the Heineken Champions Cup in the past. It is another chance for us to step up and try to emulate some of those achievements at this great club.”

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Saracens Men team to play Ospreys:

1 Mako Vunipola

2 Jamie George

3 Marco Riccioni

4 Maro Itoje

5 Hugh Tizard

6 Andy Christie

7 Ben Earl

8 Billy Vunipola

9 Ivan van Zyl

10 Owen Farrell (c)

11 Sean Maitland

12 Nick Tompkins

13 Alex Lozowski

14 Max Malins

15 Alex Goode

Replacements:

16 Tom Woolstencroft

17 Eroni Mawi

18 Alec Clarey

19 Nick Isiekwe

20 Jackson Wray

21 Aled Davies

22 Duncan Taylor

23 Alex Lewington