Is it bye bye to Saracens

So Saracens have had some problems this year, Breaking the Salary Cap, huge fine and a 35 point deduction putting them bottom of the Premiership and putting them under pressure to stay up and to make Europe next season, this led to CEO Nigel Wray stepping down.

You would think that would be it, you would think that Saracens would of stayed whiter than white after this, but apparently not.

Saracens have been handed another 35 point deduction on there current league position putting them on -42 points. This is due to a mid season audit of their books by Premiership Rugby. It has been found that they are again in breach of the Salary Cap this season and will finish this season above the current Salary Cap.

Clubs had a meeting in London to discuss the sanctions and agreed that a drop into the Championship is a fair sanction.

So what does this mean for the club? Well even with the best will in the world and if they win all their remaining games Saracens will be relegated at the end of this season and will play there rugby in the Championship next season.

This was all told to the players at Saracens last week, the club will now have to make some important decisions around the players and what to do with the large crop of international players they have on their books including a number of current England internationals.

Eddie Jones has been told that he can pick players from the Championship so there may be a small possibility that some current international players on Saracens books will stay at the club but it gets more unlikely when they will not be able to play in the in Europe next season even if they win the title this year. This is because Championship clubs are not able to play in Europe.

There is also the question of the upcoming British and Irish Lions tour to South Africa and it is unlikely that Warren Gatland will want to pick players from the Championship.

So Saracens will most likely have to let a lot of there top players go to other Premiership Clubs , that will most likely mean that a number of players will need to take large pay cuts to fit into other club squads.