By Will Castle

Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall has hailed the fighting spirit of his players after a last-second penalty sent them to the top of the Premiership table.

Having spent much of the contest chasing Bristol Bears’ tail, Alex Lozowski's 83rd-minute kick ensured a dramatic 37-35 victory for Sarries in a thrilling encounter at Ashton Gate.

The win puts Saracens two points clear of Bears at the summit, with the hosts dropping to fourth place despite gaining two losing bonus points.

McCall could not be prouder of his side’s never-say-die display, managing to overcome the odds and seal victory despite a stellar attacking performance from Bears.  

"I have been at the club a long time and I can't remember a win like that one,” McCall said.

"There were so many occasions when it felt like they were on top, and somehow there was this fighting spirit among the group.

"Even if we had lost, I would have been proud. We had quite a lot to contend with this week with some injuries and some illness in the camp. People like Jamie George and Elliot Daly had the illness and played and got through.

"Their attack is superb. It is unique in world rugby. No one is attacking the way they are attacking, and they make you feel bad a lot because their line-breaks are 30-40 metres, and somehow we found a way to get back and fight and somehow won the match."

Bristol director of rugby Pat Lam similarly struggled to fault the efforts of his side, but nevertheless could not hide his dismay after falling victim to a late Sarries fightback.

"We're disappointed, but there was a lot of quality rugby from both teams - and certainly from our boys,” Lam said.

"I can't fault the effort, but it's pretty clear we left a lot of points out there, a lot of tries we could have scored, opportunities we created and didn't finish.

"I think we got five tries to four, but there was a lot of other tries and points that we didn't take."

Eager to maintain their status as league leaders going into the autumn internationals, Saracens will look to pull off another big win against potential title rivals Leicester Tigers this weekend at StoneX Stadium.

Tigers have started the season in fine form, with four wins from five putting them in third place with 19 points - just two adrift of Sarries.

With Michael Cheika’s side on a three-game winning streak, Saracens will seek to stifle Tigers’ momentum and leave a sour taste in the mouth going into the Premiership’s month-long break.