Bath vs. Saracens: Winners and Losers from Aviva Premiership Final

Saracens were crowned champions of England at Twickenham with a 28-16 win over Bath.

The Londoners raced into a healthy lead as they preyed on their opponents' mistakes and gave the West Country side a mountain to climb in the second half if they were to end their 19-year wait to reclaim a title they used to win with such regularity.

It was a triumph for experience and ruthless efficiency over the ambition of a Bath side that found no outlet on Saturday.

The all-court style of Mike Ford's team was ineffectual against the pressing of the Sarries defence.

After defeat in last year's final, Saracens get their hands on the silverware at last.

Here are the winners and losers from the final.

Referee Wayne Barnes should have yellow-carded Owen Farrell for the high shot on Anthony Watson in the second minute.

Five minutes later, Farrell scored the game’s opening try. The laws, per World Rugby, state: "An illegal high tackle involving a stiff arm or swinging arm to the head of the opponent, with no regard to the player’s safety, bears all the hallmarks of an action which should result in a red card or a yellow card being seriously considered."

By the letter of the law, Farrell’s tackle merited more than just a penalty. Barnes botched a big decision at the start of a big match.

For a man who had no qualms sending off Dylan Hartley in this final two years ago for swearing at him and calling him a cheat, it’s surprising that Barnes got this one wrong and a huge shame that Watson’s afternoon ended so early.

Farrell had a fine game and was named Man of the Match, but it should have been 10 minutes shorter.

Bath were guilty of trying to play rugby in the wrong area of the field, and they paid the ultimate price for it.

Kyle Eastmond’s poorly timed pass to Ross Batty resulted in a try after the loose ball was snatched up by Jamie George for the second try of the game.

In their next meaningful period of possession, Mike Ford’s men resorted to short pop passes close to the ruck to slow-moving forwards, a strategy that was meat and drink to the Saracens narrow defenders.

Then they hit the self-destruct button again with another loose offload that was gobbled up by Saracens and resulted in a try for Chris Wyles.

The pattern continued early in the second half when they tried to run from their own 22 and Kyle Eastmond got wrapped up by the big Saracens tacklers.

Apart from Jonathan Joseph's score, nothing Bath did worked.

Early in the game, Bath were shunted off their own put in after winning the ball by holding up a Saracens attack.

It was great work by Mako Vunipola and the rest of the Saracens front row to make amends for the loss of possession and illustrated perfectly the indomitable spirit among Mark McCall’s side.

In the next set scrum, they then made mincemeat of them and won another penalty.

Even when Bath got an early nudge on a Sarries put in, the Saracens back row was alive to the mess and looked after their possession.

Later in the second half, they sucker punched the Bath scrum by allowing them to shove them back at engagement, winning a penalty for an early push and getting out of their own half as a result.

More evidence of a streetwise team knowing how to play to their strengths in a final.

When Bath finally did create some breathing space for their fleet-footed backs, it was no surprise that their first moment of magic was produced by Jonathan Joseph.

The centre had two defenders in front of him, but hitch kicked his way through the gap between them and used his space to score Bath’s first and only try.

As much as Bath made it easy on many occasions for Saracens to smash them backward, credit must be handed to the organisation of the Londoners' defensive wall.

Whether it was the gnarled Jacques Burger or the youthful Maro Itoje in the dark alleyways, or Chris Wyles and David Strettle out wide, their pressurising, hassling approach gave Bath hardly any time to breathe and even less to find openings with their offloading game.