Elliot Daly commits to Saracens as England wing has no regrets over leaving Wasps despite imminent relegation
Elliot Daly is set to join Jamie George in the Championship next season after vowing to stick with Saracens, and believes that the retention of their England internationals will help to keep the club’s famed “team culture” alive regardless of the salary cap scandal.
Saracens will be disbanded at the end of the season when they are relegated to the second tier of English rugby, having received two points’ deductions in the Premiership this season totalling 105 points for breaching the £7m cap over the last three seasons, as well as failing to adhere to a mid-campaign financial audit last month.
England wing Daly only joined Saracens from Wasps at the start of the season, yet his first day back following World Cup duty saw the club hit with the first heavy sanction that triggered months of developments and uncertainty, ultimately leading to the club being condemned to the drop.
It is a far cry from what the 27-year-old pictured when he agreed to swap Coventry for Barnet, but like close friend George he is not planning on abandoning the club in their time of need.
“My first day wasn’t the best, not the best day you could ask for,” Daly said at England’s temporary London training base for the week. “It’s a big thing and it’s not to be taken lightly but the way that they dealt with it I thought was really good with the players. Everyone knew what was happening which is all you can do in that situation because they were still probably unclear whether we were going to be docked any more points after the first 35.”
Should his stay be confirmed next season, it will not be the first time that Daly has graced the Championship. The former Wasps utility back made two appearances for London Scottish nine years ago as he returned from injury, though anyone who could have predicted that he would be making a return following the move to Saracens last summer would have been laughed out of Allianz Park.
“No, definitely not,” Daly said on whether such a development would have been in his wildest dreams. “But no regrets about what I’ve done. The way that we train, the players there, the coaching staff, it’s an amazing club to be at.
“It’s a conversation to have after the Six Nations. I’m just thinking about what I need to do here now. Obviously we’ve got the rest of the season until June to work out what we’re going to do next year but it could be a massive positive.”
A key reason in why the Croydon-born Daly is willing to stick with the club in the second tier is what he’s experienced since arriving. Much has been made of the Saracens ‘culture’, and even if that ideology has been shredded apart by the biggest cheating scandal the sport has seen, the players are adamant the bonds they’ve built will survive.
“It’s one of the strongest cultures of a club team I’ve ever been in,” acknowledged Daly. “Everyone knows where they stand in the squad and everyone is pretty honest with each other and that’s what you need. Everyone wants to get better and that’s the kind of environment which is going to thrive going forward.”
When news of the breach was finally confirmed by Premiership Rugby – who themselves have faced plenty of uncomfortable questions regarding their handling of the situation – plenty of Saracens’ rivals spoke of how their long-term suspicions had been justified. After all, how could a club that was adhering to a £7m plus two marquee players boast more England internationals than any other side and then add Will Skelton and Jack Singleton to the roster at the start of the campaign?
But for Daly, that suspicion was never really there, he says, and the hope for him and those around him is that their reputation as among the greatest teams English rugby has ever seen is not tainted forever. “Definitely not. When a club like Saracens want to sign you, it’s the best team in Europe, they were at that time so it’s a no brainer for me to go and play with some very good people. I didn’t see it coming.
“Personally I don’t think so but I’ve only been at the club for a few months really. The way that the boys are, you can see the boys who have been there for 10 years – Faz, Jamie, Mako, Billy – I know he came from Wasps but he came at 18-19. They’ve created a great culture around some great players who have come through the academy. I don’t think it has but that’s my personal opinion.”
Daly will also have high hopes of keeping himself in the frame for the British and Irish Lions tour next season, having started all three Tests against New Zealand three years ago in Warren Gatland’s side. He admits that there has been no contact with the future Lions boss about the South Africa tour next year, with Gatland currently on Super Rugby duty with the Chiefs, but Saracens boss Mark McCall has already put the wheels in motion for that to appease those internationals in the ranks and convince them to stay.
“I’ve not spoken to him. Smally (McCall) has spoken to him but we can’t think that far ahead yet. We need to know what we’re doing next year but that will come after the Six Nations is done. Hopefully come back with the trophy and then speak about what’s going to happen for the rest of the year and next season.”
