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No stopping champions Leicester as Saints implode with 12 men

By PA
(Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)

Freddie Steward scored a hat-trick and Chris Ashton crossed for the decisive try against his former club as Leicester rallied to seal a 41-21 derby win at Northampton. The Saints finished with twelve men due to yellow cards for Juarno Augustus, Emmanual Iyogun and Alex Mitchell after leading for much of the match.

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A fast start for Saints saw Alex Mitchell and Tommy Freeman score tries inside the opening 20 minutes, though their advantage was dented when Steward crossed for the visitors at the end of the first half. Alex Coles restored a healthy advantage for the Saints five minutes into the second period, although Guy Porter provided an immediate response for the Tigers as they attempted to close the gap.

Late tries from Ashton, George Martin and two from Steward then sealed an ultimately emphatic victory for the reigning champions after Saints had controlled the opening exchanges but were unable to turn their possession into an early lead, a Freddie Burns penalty for the visitors the opening score of the contest.

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The hosts thought they had taken the lead when Dan Biggar ended a seemingly sublime passage of play with a try, only for it to be ruled out for an earlier forward pass. Yet Saints did not have to wait much longer for their first try of the afternoon, Mitchell opening their tally after a strong carry by Lewis Ludlam in the build-up.

Two minutes later they scored a second, Freeman bursting down the wing following a poor kick chase from the Tigers, with Biggar nailing both conversions to hand the hosts a 14-3 lead. Tigers improved after a poor opening 20 minutes but continued to make sloppy mistakes when it really mattered and Jimmy Gopperth’s chances of a try were scuppered by a superb tackle from Biggar.

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However, after further pressure, they went in at half-time just four points behind after Steward’s 39th-minute try, with Burns adding the extras. A frantic start to the second period saw both sides score tries as the contest ebbed and flowed. Saints initially restored their eleven-point lead through Coles, who surged over the line, with Biggar adding the extras.

But their margin was cut just two minutes later when Porter provided an immediate response for Tigers with a try generated from a scrum just outside Saints’ 22, with Burns providing the conversion. Tigers continued to press and it appeared they had taken the lead through Jack van Poortvliet, but he was ultimately held up on the line thanks to some strong defending from the hosts.

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It was Ashton, shortly after coming on, who gave Tigers the lead, finding space out wide and powering over as Saints became fragile defensively after Augustus and Iyogun received yellows. The victory was confirmed when Martin scored Leicester’s fourth try, Mitchell sin-binned for a knock-on in the build-up, with Steward scoring two tries late on to finish the contest in style.

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Adrian 45 minutes ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

Thanks Nick The loss of players to OS, injury and retirement is certainly not helping the Crusaders. Ditto the coach. IMO Penny is there to hold the fort and cop the flak until new players and a new coach come through,…and that's understood and accepted by Penny and the Crusaders hierarchy. I think though that what is happening with the Crusaders is an indicator of what is happening with the other NZ SRP teams…..and the other SRP teams for that matter. Not enough money. The money has come via the SR competition and it’s not there anymore. It's in France, Japan and England. Unless or until something is done to make SR more SELLABLE to the NZ/Australia Rugby market AND the world rugby market the $s to keep both the very best players and the next rung down won't be there. They will play away from NZ more and more. I think though that NZ will continue to produce the players and the coaches of sufficient strength for NZ to have the capacity to stay at the top. Whether they do stay at the top as an international team will depend upon whether the money flowing to SRP is somehow restored, or NZ teams play in the Japan comp, or NZ opts to pick from anywhere. As a follower of many sports I’d have to say that the organisation and promotion of Super Rugby has been for the last 20 years closest to the worst I’ve ever seen. This hasn't necessarily been caused by NZ, but it’s happened. Perhaps it can be fixed, perhaps not. The Crusaders are I think a symptom of this, not the cause

6 Go to comments
T
Trevor 3 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

21 Go to comments
B
Bull Shark 7 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

29 Go to comments
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