Northampton ushered in 2014 by defeating Harlequins and they saw out the year in which they finally won the Premiership in the same way – this time at the home of England, a ground they have become accustomed to visiting.
They were some way short of their assertive best but a combination of knowhow and self-belief allowed the champions to douse the home side’s early fire and finish the first half of the season on top of the table in what has been a breakthrough 12 months for the Saints. They played 24 Premiership matches in the year and lost a mere five having developed the capacity to win tight matches on the road.
“We are happy to be top of the table but we are still some way off where we want to be as a squad,” said the flanker Calum Clark, whose ability to force turnovers was crucial for Northampton given their unusual vulnerability, at least in the first half, in the set pieces. “There is more to come from us. We were not at our best against Quins but we found a way to win.”
Clark was the only one of the four back-rows used by Northampton yet to win a cap. He has been a regular in Stuart Lancaster’s England squad without featuring in a match-day 23 – yet is still to shake off a reputation for indiscipline he earned when he was banned for 32 weeks in 2012 for hyperextending the arm of the Leicester hooker Rob Hawkins.
“I have only had one yellow card since then,” said Clark. “I have worked really hard on that side of the game and the big focus for me is the mental side. I am pretty proud of my record [since the suspension] and look to set a good example: you cannot afford to put your team in jeopardy. I would like to play a part in the Six Nations but that means getting better and putting myself in the frame.”
Harlequins, like Northampton, have been regulars in the top four in recent years but they are in the bottom half of the table having lost six of their 11 matches. With trips to Saracens and Franklin’s Gardens to come they have it all to do to finish in the top four with a squad that is considerably younger and less experienced than those of their rivals. While the Saints had players such as Alex Corbisiero, Phil Dowson and Kahn Fotuali’i on their bench, Quins largely had rookies to call on and had to ration their replacements at the point in the second-half when they were chasing the game.
“I know it sounds strange after a defeat, but I feel we turned a corner,” said Conor O’Shea, the Quins director of rugby. “We looked like ourselves again and while there is still a long road to travel in the league, if we keep playing with that level of intensity and ambition we will win a number of games and challenge.
“We have London Welsh and Leicester next; after those matches we will know what we have to do for the rest of the campaign.”
Harlequins had not scored a Premiership try for more than four hours, but they needed only five minutes to repair that statistic when George Lowe finished off a move he started in his own half for his first try for almost two years, having missed most of last season with a neck injury.
Quins regularly attacked from deep and stretched Northampton, but they conceded too many penalties at the breakdown and failed to capitalise when the Saints forward Salesi Ma’afu was sent to the sin-bin for a high tackle.
Northampton scored 10 points without reply in the prop’s absence to swing the match their way. “We have experience of playing with 14 men,” said their director of rugby, Jim Mallinder, with a wry smile. “I was not overimpressed with our performance, but the lesson is that when you come away you do not have to play too much rugby to win.”
Harlequins Brown; Yarde, Hopper, Lowe, Monye (R Chisholm, 67); Swiel, Care; Lambert, Ward (Gray, 67), Collier (Sinckler, 67), Matthews, Robson (Twomey, 63), Trayfoot, Clifford (J Chisholm, 77), Easter (capt).
Tries Lowe, Clifford, Twomey. Cons Swiel 2. Pens Swiel 2.
Northampton Foden; K Pisi, G Pisi (Stephenson, 48), Burrell, North; Myler, Dickson (Fotuali’i, 54; Wilson, 72); A Waller (Corbisiero, 54), Haywood, Ma’afu (Denman, 60), Dickinson, Day, Clark (Dowson, 60), Wood (capt), Manoa. Sin-bin Ma’afu 33.
Tries Manoa, North, Fotuali’i. Cons Myler 3. Pens Myler 3.
Referee Wayne Barnes. Attendance 82,000.
