Jeff Probyn’s column: Stuart Lancaster’s left with more questions than answers

Well, well at last the bridesmaids have become the brides as Saracens stormed to victory last weekend in the Premiership final but has it helped Stuart Lancaster answer some of his selection quandaries? It was obvious that whichever team won would receive the biggest boost in the media – but would that really reflect how the players played?
Man of the match Owen Farrell was lucky to stay on the pitch after committing not just one high tackle (on Anthony Watson at the start of the game) but two (one on Jonathan Joseph at the start of the second half), both of which were penalised by referee Wayne Barnes. Usually if a player is given the benefit of the doubt on a first hit they will get a yellow card if they make a second, but for some reason Barnes allowed Farrell to stay on the pitch.
I have to say that unlike Bath coach Mike Ford I don’t think Farrell’s hit on Watson was a red card but it was close to a yellow. Games like the final are won and lost on decisions like that and if Farrell had left the field it would probably have cost Sarries the match.
That said, I thought the most cynical challenge of the day was Alex Goode’s late block on Semesa Rokoduguni, a professional foul if ever I have seen one and they always get a yellow card, except again Barnes just awarded a penalty.
Saracens took their chances, both those given by Bath’s mistakes and by some interesting refereeing to win the game but it hasn’t made matters clearer for Lancaster.
He also wasn’t helped by the complete capitulation of a Barbarians team that conceded 73 points against a third string England side.
Lancaster’s hope was that a Barbarians team stuffed full of international players would challenge his team to produce a performance that would have enabled him to identify possible replacements for any injuries in his World Cup squad, particularly after they had beaten a good Irish side just three days before. Instead, he learned nothing from what was little more than an opposed training session.
Credit has to be given to the England players for sticking to their task, given that they had little or no opposition, as it would have been easy to switch off and just cruise to a 20 or 30 point victory but they didn’t and kept pressing to the end.  It is always hard for a Barbarians team when they play against a structured international squad but they usually have the advantage of experience and a combined team will not be embarrassed.
The Barbarians are not match prepared in the usual way, so players are required to have a certain self-discipline that allows them to enjoy the entertainments on offer but still train hard to make sure they are a team when they run out on the pitch.
Last week something went wrong and that could create an enormous problem for one of the oldest institutions in the game. It has taken a lot of effort and sacrifice on behalf of the Barbarians committee to re-establish the brand and they know that the club has a tenuous hold on the international fixtures that results like last week could easily destroy, costing the club the games they so desperately need.
Unfortunately for the Baabaas, they must field competitive sides in every game they play, a side that can give opposing international managers something they can use to either test new combinations against, or as warm-ups for tours. A less than half-full Twickenham says a lot about how the game last week was perceived by fans but it was probably the thought that the England team was not of a high enough standard given the Premiership final the previous day and the Barbarians’ result against Ireland.
The Barbarians’ win against what was virtually a full Irish side set expectations high but whether through exhaustion or just a lack of desire, the team failed to match that expectation and, as a result, have endangered the very existence of the club.
Another club that has failed to live up to expectations is another one of my old clubs, Bristol, who again failed to gain promotion to the Premiership despite winning the league.
Although it is tough and a part of me agrees with Bristol chairman Chris Booy, that there is something slightly unfair that the team that wins the league do not get promoted, those are the rules of the league and all teams knew that before the start of the season. If they wanted it changed they should have petitioned the rest of the league before the season began.
I must admit I think play-offs in the Championship are a waste of time and have no real foundation, unlike the Premiership. The Premiership can justifiably claim that selection for international matches has an impact on a club’s league performance and so it is only right that they be given a fair chance to compete to be champions in a play-off.
The Championship has no reason to have play-offs as there is a deal between the Premiership and the RFU that doesn’t allow for selection of international players from the Championship, so the league is unaffected by international matches. If the Premiership wants to be expanded to 14 it would make sense not to ring fence, but to copy the French.
By allowing the Championship winner automatic promotion with a play-off for the between the Championship runner up and the team second from the bottom of the Premiership, maybe then Bristol will finally make it back to the Premiership.