By Ian Todd
March 27 2007

Northampton remain firmly stuck to the bottom of the Premiership table after a 31-19 defeat to Bristol on Sunday. Rob Higgitt, Dave Hilton & Roy Winters scored tries as the home side moved clear in fourth place and pushed Saints closer to the abyss. Bristol started very positively with the returning Alfie To’oala relieving his frustration at missing a few games when injured by charging into the opposition like an irritated rhinoceros. Sadly he gave away an early penalty chance when he failed to release one of his victims. Myler had a long-range attempt but, as was to be the case on a number of occasions, he was well wide with the effort. He was at fault again soon after when his steepling kick was way too long for the chasing players and it was claimed by Bernardo Stortoni. Solid as always under the high ball he gave the lie to those who doubted his pace as he ran back through a bemused defence, side-stepping some, handing off others before being halted after 30 or so metres. The Bristol support got the ball away quickly and winger Craig Morgan put in a deft grubber kick that Cohen was forced to carry back over the try-line to concede the five-metre scrum. The ball was eventually secured at the scrum and work down the line, a sloppy ‘pass’ looked to have sent the ball into touch in Idiot’s Corner but David Lemi showed tremendous skill and determination to sprint after the ball, plant his feet and reach out to hook the ball back infield just before it crossed the touchline. Andrew Blowers, to the chagrin of the Northampton supporters, had his best game so far in Bristol colours and he secured the difficult ball and fed on to Gareth Llewellyn who made a couple of metres through the defence. The ball went on to Brew who accelerated close to the line, popped the ball up to Rob Higgitt who bounced off one ineffectual challenge to plunge over just to the side of the posts. The conversion was a nice straightforward one for Danny Gray to settle any nerves he might have on starting a league game after so long on the bench and it was 7 – 0 after seven minutes.

Northampton held on to the ball from the restart and went through the phases as they sought a way through the rushing defence. When play broke down it was Bristol who turned-over possession and Shaun Perry, returning from being woefully misused by England, made a nice defensive kick downfield. Saints gave away a penalty and Gray struck it confidently through the posts to extend the lead to 10 – 0. Northampton knew they had to get some points on the board soon and they continued to try to get the ball wide to outflank the defence. Lamont used his strength to make a break in midfield and the ball went to Spencer who chose Northampton’s other main tactic of kicking into space behind the defence. This time it was the wrong choice as Perry was in position and alert to the danger. Soon, it was Myler’s turn to receive the ball and look up to see just one Bristol defender opposed by two or three Northampton players. He changed the angle of attack by launching a long, well weighted, cross-field kick. Brew, the lone defender, was unsurprisingly out-jumped by the considerably taller Lamont, who neatly tapped the ball into the hands of Cohen who went over untouched. Myler was way off with his conversion attempt so the score was 10 – 5 as the match went into its second quarter.

It was Bristol’s turn to attempt to strike back and Brew was set free in midfield with a gaping hole in front of him. He was so startled by the space offered that he failed to catch the ball and knocked on. Cohen was on hand to boot the ball back towards the Bristol line. It looked dangerous as Llewellyn attempted to cover but the unpredictable bounce was away from Cohen and straight into Llewellyn’s hands. He hesitated for a brief moment before sprinting back down towards the Bristol support and away from danger. If Bristol had dominated the first quarter, things were more even in the second. Blowers was penalised for failing to release the ball and Northampton tapped it quickly. The move broke down but the referee felt the defence had failed to retreat 10 metres (although the first tackle was clearly after 10 metres) and so Myler had a kick almost straight in front of the post. It clearly wasn’t his day for place kicking; this time he was even further off target. Bristol swept back into the Northampton half and Spencer gave away a really stupid penalty when he came into a ruck almost from the Bristol side even; the dullest set of officials would have been hard put to miss this and it has been interesting to see how this referee has improved so much since we first encountered him. Gray was once again spot on with his kick to make it 13 – 5. Bristol were looking dangerous as the half drew to a close and looked to score points whenever they got within range. Brew latched on to a poor Northampton pass and passed out to Gray who attempted a drop-goal which was well wide of the posts, so wide indeed that a Northampton defender carried the ball back over the line and conceded a five metre scrum. The scrum proved a scrappy affair and Gray resorted to the drop-goal attempt but was again wide.

Lemi, though, was on hand just a few minutes later when the defence once more failed to pick up Stortoni, finally halting him in front of the posts. The ball was passed sweetly from the base of the ruck out to the perfectly positioned Lemi, who appeared to have all the time he needed and the ball was smartly struck to make the score 16 – 5 at half time.

Bristol looked good value for the lead and I hoped that Idiot’s Corner would see no more action in the second half! Me and my big mouth. Northampton made the break in midfield and made a lot of ground. The ball was driven to the Bristol 22 as the defence attempted to re-gather. The maul was driven on and, just as it seemed Bristol had halted the thrust, Lamont was seen to take the ball and dash clear of the surprised looking defence to go over under the posts without a hand being laid on him. Myler made the conversion, although even this easy chance looked far from secure as it wobbled over, and Saints were right back in it at 16 – 12. Bristol were stung by this, or perhaps Northampton lost concentration. Llewellyn carried the ball back downfield, the Bristol support was slow in arriving and Saints were able to turn over possession and clear the ball back into the Bristol half. Stortoni was well positioned and took the ball cleanly and yet again made a lovely run that bamboozled the defenders. As he was closed down he fed on to the Blowers who was following up at pace. He, in turn, shipped the ball on to Dave Hilton who got himself low(er) to the ground as he powered under the despairing tacklers to go over for a rare try. The conversion was relatively undemanding and Gray took the score to 26 – 12.

Northampton must have known that with nearly an hour gone they had to get back in contention as soon as possible. Their defence was aggressive and put Perry under pressure as he hesitated over some slow ball. They poured through and drove for the try line. The replacement hooker, Cortese, was drove over despite the attention of several defenders. The decision went to the TMO. Although he appeared to be turned a he went over the line and several defenders appeared to get hands under the ball there was one camera angle that seemed to hint that the very tip of the ball had brushed the turf and it was a try. Spencer took over kicking duties and added the points to narrow the gap to 26 – 19. With a quarter of an hour to play and Northampton surely desperate for points it looked like Bristol were in for an awkward time. From the restart though Northampton surprisingly left Grays’s kick alone and it bounced into touch to carry play deep into Northampton territory. The Saints’ lineout had struggled all afternoon (with one throw being so precisely claimed by the excellent Joe El Abd that it appeared to be intended for him) and it was Bristol who came away with possession. The maul was driven towards the line, the angle of attack was altered several times as players picked up from the ruck and set up the maul again. Perry urged his forwards on, manhandling them into position. The defenders hurled their weary bodies against the seemingly never-ending tide but it was unavailing as the Bristol forwards at last propelled the ball over the line and to the ground. Roy Winters emerged with the ball. Gray was narrowly off-target with his conversion attempt but it was 31 – 19 with just minutes to go. Northampton must have been utterly drained but still they endeavoured to get back at Bristol. They worked the ball wide, but the Bristol defence covered well and they were unable to fashion a breakthrough. At last the ball was turned over and Bristol were able to play out the last seconds before the ball went dead and the game was brought to its conclusion.

It was good to see Bristol return to winning ways even if it was at the expense of Northampton. Why are they where they are? On Sunday’s evidence their backs looked strong and creative. The forwards though lacked cohesion, they struggled in the lineout and appeared to have no ball-carrier in the pack, instead using Lamont in this role. Given how Bristol have struggled in the absence of Dan Ward-Smith it is not hard to see the problems this lack can cause. Bristol, on the other hand, looked to be playing well as a team. Stortoni had an excellent return to the Mem, solid defensively and an unconventional attacking threat. Gray too had a very good match and it is disappointing that a player who was always said by the coaching team to have done what was asked of him looks to be leaving. He is one of those players I’ve always felt would do well if given the opportunity and it is sad to think that he won’t get that opportunity at Bristol. The forwards were collectively strong, but Winters was a strong presence, El Abd ubiquitous at 7 and Blowers showed that, while he may not have the pace of yore he has a formidable intelligence and authority. How Northampton must rue that lack at the moment.