We often hear players and coaches explain that big games have to be won more than once, such is the inevitability of momentum swings. Teams must keep their nerve and tackle problems in the workplace every now and then.
Both Premier League semi-finals were equally strong this weekend, with Northampton Saints holding off Saracens on Friday evening. In doing so, Phil Dowson’s side overthrew the opponents who had dismissed them at the corresponding stage twelve months earlier. They also underlined a new-found determination, based on physical steel and mental agility, that has underpinned their season.
Mentality: patience and confidence
Fraser Dingwall suggested afterwards that the first twenty minutes were “some of the most physical rugby I have been a part of”. “Sarries came out and threw pretty much everything at us,” the brain center admitted. “We got through that, which gave us the confidence that we knew we could take what they were going to give us, and we hadn’t really fired a shot yet.”
Dingwall cited the Champions Cup semi-final defeat to Leinster earlier this month as Saints starting to appreciate their own worth. “It took us too long to realize we were capable of beating Leinster,” he said. “We probably thought ‘this is pretty much an all-Ireland team’ and just sat back and watched what they did rather than attacking them with our game from the start.”
“Last year we had the exact same tools,” Dingwall added. “I just don’t think we had the faith.” Although their performance was not perfect, Saints showed composure and resourcefulness.
Attack: finding different paths
The Saracens did not surrender their crown easily. They scraped hard and stifled Northampton’s rhythm, pushing off the line and putting pressure on the collapse. This made it difficult for saints to give breadth. On Northampton’s wings, Ollie Sleightholme and Tommy Freeman combined for a paltry 21 running metres, according to Stats Perform.
Early on, there was a glimpse of an archetypal attack from the Saints. This clip, from the opening minutes, demonstrates the kind of slick attack we associate Saints with. After a high ball from Fin Smith, recovered by Tommy Freeman, they adopt a neat phase shape. Smith is behind a group of three with two more attackers – Curtis Langdon and Alex Coles – in midfield. George Furbank offers an outlet for the wide channels:
Alex Waller lifts a pullback and Smith sends Langdon forward. A move to Coles gives Northampton a boost:
These scenes did not occur as often as they have in this campaign, with Saints only scoring one try. Saracens scrambled hard and stifled their hosts’ rhythm even as Northampton looked to have earned momentum. Here Burger Odendaal cuts a corner from a scrum:
He crosses the gain line and constricts the defense, but Ivan van Zyl times his dart perfectly to tackle Alex Mitchell and force a fumble:
Saints had to use different tools to defeat the defense. Their attempt came on a kick return situation. As Lucio Cinti clears the far touchline…
…look at Smith, Odendaal, Juarno Augustus and Freeman. They all work desperately to get behind the ball again:
Mitchell collects Cinti’s strike and feeds Furbank, who further opens the field with a pass to Odendaal:
After Northampton work their way back to the far touchline, Mitchell looks at the edges:
He arcs towards the near sideline as Owen pushes Farrell up and reduces his options. Watch Curtis Langdon:
The hooker cuts under his scrum half into the space close to the breakdown and crashes through bodies:
Only then will saints spread it more widely. After the transfer of Tom Pearson to Smith, Furbank comes into the line. He watches Nick Tompkins push past the ball…
…and makes a beautifully timed pass to Odendaal:
A reverse angle shows how small the window is for Furbank to find his mark:
View the full structure here:
Saints continued to counter the Saracens’ aggression and create opportunities. This box kick from Mitchell…
…is recovered by Freeman, yielding three points:
In the second half, Smith slots through a left-footed clearance for Sleightholme:
Another method to negate aggressive line speed is zigzagging phase play. Just before half time, Langdon finds Dingwall with a throw over the lineout. Mitchell finds Odendaal behind Augustus’ flight…
…and saints continue to move in the same direction from the next phase:
They then bounce back into the field, as Pearson…
…before Mitchell investigates in the opposite direction. Smith and Landgon combine, with Mitchell getting a second touch from an offload before Saracens commit an unlucky foul:
Later, after more zigzagging, Dingwall sets Mitchell free after cutting back against the grain, as Langdon had done much earlier:
Mitchell’s no-look film is beautiful…
…and he would have scored if Juan Martín González had not performed heroic deeds.
Watch in slow motion as Mitchell pushes González away from the ruck before putting Dingwall into the space the defender has vacated:
Although Dingwall was disappointed with the attacking performance and blamed a degree of rust, Saints responded impressively to the defense’s problems.
Set piece: an 80-minute effort
The sight of Maro Itoje leaving the field with twelve minutes to go, with Saracens trailing 19-13, was both highly unusual and a compliment to the Northampton scrum:
Mark McCall apparently felt he needed a sturdier slot and brought in Hugh Tizard for extra ballast. It didn’t matter. Saints milked another scrum penalty in the 70th minute, which Smith kicked for a decisive lead:
When the stakes are high, an effective set piece requires four props and muscle in the second row. On the loosehead side of the front row, Saints have started Alex Waller and introduced Emmanuel Iyogun. The latter, who has not found it easy to maintain mass in the past, now weighs around 120 kg and has performed excellently in the second half of this season.
Trevor Davison is playing excellently at tighthead with Elliot Millar Mills, a Scottish debutant during the Six Nations who troubled Leinster from the bench and went from strength to strength. Alex Coles and the outgoing Alex Moon are obviously good shovers in the engine room. Saracens fought hard in the air at the lineout but only managed one steal and were bullied by a powerful maul in the 59th minute:
In areas where they were previously considered weak, Northampton appears strong.
Defense: Playing the referee
A robust strike from Smith on Tompkins five minutes after half-time, before Juarno Augustus fired an interception, summed up Saints’ defensive resilience. Saracens pull off a cute escape play from a maul, with Jamie feeding George Van Zyl behind Ben Earl…
…but Smith powerfully fends off Tompkins, with the help of Augustus. Tompkins hands off his load to Van Zyl and Smith completes a second tackle in as many seconds. Augustus then takes possession:
Coles topped the tackle count by some distance, completing 18 according to Stats Perform. Mitchell was also vibrant and engaging. He starts this line-out in the five-meter channel…
…and heads across to stop González after Owen Farrell’s kick pass moments later. Watch as Mitchell untangles himself to immediately tackle Ben Earl, as Courtney Lawes arrives at the Jackal:
It was crucial that Northampton responded to the interpretations of Christophe Ridley, who only rewarded jackallers if they were technically perfect. Both Lawes and Tom Pearson were collared at the breakdown because they were unable to support their body weight.
Here, in the build-up to Alex Lewington’s try for Saracens, Lawes battles in two successive phases without success. Tompkins almost challenges him here…
…and Ridley doesn’t reward him here:
However, it was fitting that the match ended with a coup for Lee Radford’s defence. The rugby league convert has encouraged his players to stop carries with grappling tackles that slow down attacks. With Saracens’ final roll of the dice, Theo Dan starts a carry from his own 22. Odendaal, Lawes and Temo Manayavanua face the dynamic hooker…
…and swamp him before any supporting players can arrive:
Ridley whistles for the turnover, and Northampton are on their way to Twickenham.
Bath are packed with quality and will cause more problems in the Premier League final. It seems Saints have become a team equipped to roll with the punches and throw flurries of their own.