Sale Sharks 20 Northampton Saints 7

By Whaley Shark
January 11 2015

Well, the good run of results in the runup to Christmas is fading in the memory, with the last two matches yielding a frustrating defeat at home by Tigers and a good stuffing away to Wasps. So what better way to turn things around than to play Saints at home on a cold, windy day?

For the first couple of minutes, Saints looked like the table-toppers they are, but after that first flurry, it was all one-way traffic. We pinned them back into their half, threatened their try line and then decided to accept an easy three pointer. We doubled the lead in much the same way after 15 minutes, and then really turned the screw. Saints couldn’t get out of their half at all and, after coming close twice, first from our old faithful rolling maul, and then almost getting a pushover try, Eifion finally touched down emphatically enough to convince the referee. In the mayhem, one of Saints’ makeshift locks saw yellow to add to their problems. Danny slotted the difficult conversion for 13-0 at the half hour. The last ten minutes of the half were a bit more even but Saints still didn’t really threaten our line.

After the Leicester experience, you can imagine the half time conversation- would a 13 point lead be sufficient? Well, the players answered that petty clearly, keeping up the pressure, with Sam and Magnus Lund combining to rip through the Saints defence and, a few minutes later, a stunning tackle by Will Addison on George Pisi, just as he threatened to break out. Saints had their first serious scoring chance of the half in this period, but the windy conditions sent Myler’s kick wide, but Saints lost their other lock to the bin and the man advantage told a few minutes later. Penalty to the corner, rolling maul, Dan Braid try and 20-0 up just before the hour.

As the game entered that oh-so-dangerous last quarter, and the substitutions started, the game took a familiar turn. Saints built some pressure and, with 15 minutes to go, got their first points on the board with a converted try. However, this story has a happier ending. Not only did we almost nick a third try, but our defence coped as Saints threw everything at us. The game ended with phase after phase of Saints possession and an impenetrable blue wall on our 22 metre line.

So that wasn’t one I saw coming at all. We successfully closed out a difficult match for a well-earned four points. A dominant forward display set up some strong and penetrating running by our back division, with Will Addison being particularly prominent. My man of the match would be Josh Beaumont though, dominant in the lineout, robust in defence and strong at the breakdown. New boy TJ Ioane’s ten minute cameo at the end looked pretty promising too. I think it’s fair to say he’s quite a ‘direct’ player. Well done all, for stopping what could have turned into a costly losing run.