Saracens, one of the biggest clubs in England, finished last season playing the semi-finals of the European Rugby Champions Cup. But the club was sanctioned for breach of salary caps at the end of 2019 and they were required to regularise their contractual situation. The club eventually suffered an automatic reduction for the following season.
Due to this sanction of -105 points, the club finished the Premiership Rugby 2019-20 season in last place with -38 points.
The club has announced the re-sign of some English stars in Owen Farrell, Maro Itoje and Mako Vunipola. However, they have lost a lot of important names for the competition, like Matt Gallagher and Will Skelton. Furthermore, they have obtained the help of some players from the academy like the American Kapeli Lifeleti and the young English star Manu Vunipola who have played for the U20s.
Saracens have had numerous pre-season fixtures to prepare them for the 2020-21 Greene King IPA Championship season. They played in the Trailfinders Challenge Cup against Ealing Trailfinders and the Doncaster Knights. They were defeated by Ealing Trailfinders in their first match the February 6 with a score of 26-39. They then won their second game against Doncaster Knights on February 13 with a score of 29-10.
They have played two further friendly fixtures against Coventry, one at home and other away. They won both matches 48-33 and 12-47 respectively.
Nottingham will face Saracens at The Bay on the weekend of May 1.