There are moments on which a season turns. Northampton, looking edgy and indecisive after defeats by Clermont Auvergne and Exeter, were trailing by a point after 33 minutes when Billy Vunipola charged down Stephen Myler’s clearance and picked up the ball 10 metres from the Saints’ line. The England No8 lost his balance in securing possession and as he dived for the line early he let go of the ball, a mistake that was picked up by the television match official. Within four minutes he was being helped from the field after rolling his ankle following a dangerous tackle by Samu Manoa and his replacement, Jackson Wray, lasted only two minutes before being concussed in a clash of heads with his team-mate Ernst Joubert.
The chain of events robbed Saracens of their momentum and by the end of a match which all but confirmed Northampton will enjoy home advantage in the play-off semi-finals they were fortunate to leave Milton Keynes with a bonus point. Their director of rugby, Mark McCall, said after the match the defeat condemned them to being on the road in the knockout stage but that presupposed a Bath victory at Harlequins in the next round, something they have not managed in the Premiership since 2004.
Northampton’s place in the top two would have been in jeopardy for the first time this season had they lost a home fixture that was played at Milton Keynes for the benefit of the World Cup organisers who will be using the ground during the group stage of the tournament. The Saints struggled in the opening half when the game was, surprisingly for a match involving two leading sides, often unstructured but they took control after the break, pinning back their opponents, eliminating mistakes, playing for positions and turning penalties into points. Just in time they rediscovered themselves. “We had had a dodgy few weeks and some soul-searching went on,” said Northampton’s replacement scrum-half, Lee Dickson. “We stayed together and the brilliant thing about this club is that there are no little groups here and there. There are always going to be ups and downs in a long season and roads that lead to dead-ends. We went a bit off song and talked all week about getting back to what Saints are good at: the basics, making sure the game management was right and making sure we finish at the top of the Premiership, get a home semi-final and take it from there.
“After winning the title last season we do not want to be a one-year pony but get into final after final, as a brilliant club like this should do. The forwards were exceptional against Saracens, the starting pack and those who came off the bench, but we also showed some flair behind. We had hunger, desire and attitude, qualities we need to take into the next few weeks.”
Both sides have a week off. Northampton will unwind in Portugal while Saracens have yet to decide whether to take off somewhere for a few days. “We have had a tough few weeks and need some rest and relaxation,” said McCall, who refused to cite the previous week’s Champions Cup semi-final against Clermont as an excuse for the way his side fell away in the second half.
“We did not manage our energy well enough, giving them plenty of people to hit around the halfway line when we were only two points down and should not have made things difficult for ourselves, and our discipline was not good enough, losing a player to the sin-bin and giving away penalties on the offside line. I am frustrated with my team because we pride ourselves on discipline and we kept giving Stephen Myler opportunities to kick points.”
Vunipola will be assessed this week after leaving the ground on crutches while Wray, who was taken from the field on a stretcher and receiving oxygen, recovered in the dressing room. Northampton had no injury problems and with their next fixture at home to doomed London Welsh they should go to Leicester in the final round with their mind on other matters, even if the east Midlands derby always matters.
Northampton Tuala (Wilson, 65); K Pisi, G Pisi, Burrell, Elliott (Stephenson, 73); Myler, Fotuali’i (Dickson, 53); Corbisiero (A Waller, 56), Hartley (capt; Haywood, 68), Ma’afu (Denman, 47), Lawes (Dickinson, 73), Day, Wood, Clark, Manoa (Fisher, 73.
Try Manoa. Con Myler. Pens Myler 6.
Saracens: Goode; Strettle (Ashton, 56), Bosch, Barritt, Wyles; Hodgson (Farrell, 53), De Kock (Wigglesworth, 50); M Vunipola (Gill, 65), Brits (George, 68), Johnston (Longbottom, 53), Kruis, Itoje, Joubert, Brown, B Vunipola (Wray, 37; Hamilton 39).
Tries Wyles 2. Con Hodgson 2. Pens Hodgson 2. Sin-bin Itoje 48
Referee G Garner Attendance 27,411
