Meanwhile, it emerged over the weekend that Bristol director of rugby Pat Lam did not select three of his key players because of the state of the StoneX Stadium pitch.

Pedro Rubiolo, AJ MacGinty and Steven Luatua were rested for the trip to north London.

“They came off big injuries last season so it wasn’t worth putting them on that pitch,” Lam explained.

“If we were playing the game at home or if it was a semi-final, they would have played.”

Saracens have been contacted for comment.

Lam has previously voiced his opposition to artificial pitches being used in the Prem.

Following the Bears’ league win at Newcastle in April, Lam blamed the pitch for causing a number of injuries to his team.

“These pitches are hard – I’m not a big fan of them,” Lam said at the time.

“We always take injuries on them and we’ve taken a few more.”

Newcastle installed a new pitch at Kingston Park this summer before the 2026-27 season and have kept it fully artificial.

Former Real Madrid captain Dani Carvajal has joined Getafe on a free transfer.

The Madrid-born right-back has been without a club since his contract at the Bernabeu expired in June.

The 34-year-old spent 23 years with Real Madrid and is one of the most decorated players in the game’s history, with 27 titles to his name – including six Champions League wins.

He has signed a deal until June next year with Getafe, who sit 11th in La Liga and are based in the south of Spain’s capital city.

Carvajal made 51 appearances for Spain including the Nations League win in 2023 and the European Championships triumph in 2024.

But he has struggled with injuries in recent seasons, suffering a cruciate ligament tear in October 2024 then another serious knee injury a year later.

Injuries and the arrival of Trent Alexander-Arnold last summer limited his appearances in his last season at Real Madrid but Getafe said they welcomed his “experience and leadership”.