Season Reflections - A Season with Smurf

By Smurfomatic
June 9 2003

As a relatively new Saints supporter(making the transition from "Seeing if we've won on Teletext" to "Wow, we're actually a reasonable team" in 2000), every season has new adventures for me.

This one started with my playing debut (admittedly for the Supporter's Club in the NRSA Touch Sevens, at sun kissed Sunbury). The season was soon upon us after an ever-shortening summer break. This brought my first trip to the former home of Sale, Heywood Road. Not a ground that's likely to be missed, with it's poor viewing angle (three rows from the front and still can't see the touchline), shoddy floodlighting and poor bar staff (note - do not train all of your bar staff on the first day of the season, two hours before kick-off).

Having to fit in games around the impending start of the final year of university tended to restrict away travel somewhat, yet I still managed a trip to Vicarage Road to watch a shoddy Saints team defeated by a weak Saracens. The regular wander to the Madejski was soon needed, albeit on an extremely windy day, a fact which didn't help the rugby on display. My first trip to Kingsholm beckoned, great atmosphere, shame about the result. An indication of the trust people have was a very tall gentleman behind me having to "find where he left the kids" after the match!

The autumn internationals arrived, and with it strange kick-off times and even stranger line-ups. A defeat by a strong Leicester second string, coupled with fair performances against Leeds and a cracker against Quins set up the most memorable trip to Welford Road in my life. We won! Only the second time in my lifetime (the other being a narrow 22-19 on 4th April 1991, when I was more anxious about the upcoming milestone of turning ten). Could this be an omen for the season ahead? Last time we won at Welford Road, we finished above them in the league.

Well, if the Leicester result was an omen, the next two games could only make things better. A double over Cardiff (and their first non-score at the Arms Park since 1969) pushed us closer to the knockout stages of the European Cup (anyone remember last time that happened?) - being involved in the BHF walk prior to the home game (the torture I put my poor body through for the Saints!) was great fun - honest! I take no responsibility for my mum encouraging Joe to jump in every puddle on the route. Parents, eh?

Another first in a trip to Edge Hill Road, home of fallen giants Orrell. A game which has so many points: weeks beforehand, the loss of their clubhouse, destroyed by fire. With the clubhouse went the floodlight controls (only just worse than Sale!) and so, with the tense game going into extra time, the December gloom closes in. What happens after extra time, if bad light stops play? Fortunately, the question didn't need answering. With everyone nicely insulated by free drink (thanks Mr Barwell), a good day was had by all. Except, that is, the Orrell fans near us. Making comments about the lack of homegrown talent in our team, the announcement was given that Steve Williams was to come on. "At last, an Englishman!" was the cry from the home fans. Well, close enough!

A disappointing end to the year with another narrow defeat at the hands of Gloucester (the only team to beat us twice this season - eventually three times!) and a poor start to the new with bad losses to London Irish and Wasps (another first, a trip to Adams Park - nice ground, shame about the parking. Nice to see people using the shuttle bus second time around.)

In between these games, a narrow victory over Biarritz and an equally close game at Ulster put us through as group winners. Thanks to London Irish defeating Toulouse in the last pool game, we faced the southern France team - in France - in the quarter finals.

Another narrow cup game introduces me to the Recreation Ground. With the ever-present dubious decisions (even the Bath fans around us thought Bruce Reihana's early run wasn't in touch), and the now traditional fight between Grewcock and Connors, the match was a nail biter. The brilliant Saints ploy of only winning the game in injury time - and therefore giving your opponents no time to come back - may work, but it's hell on the fingernails.

Then comes a cracker at Franklins Gardens. A 34-25 victory over a strengthening Sarries, leading us into the intermittent club game throughout the Six Nations. The next game Saints were to play at Franklins Gardens (ignoring the fantastic game against the Super 12 side The Cats) was to be on April 16th! A cup semi-final at another new venue, this time Kasaam Stadium Oxford (more bad parking!). A chance for revenge over the Irish, finally dispelling the appalling game that was Powergen Cup Final 2002. A game against Gloucester awaits, or does it? With Leicester's peculiar appeal over the use of Gloucester's front row subs (which no-one could really explain) - this was finally dropped, I assume for PR reasons - the West Country boys were to go to Twickers for their first Knockout Cup Final since 1990.

A significant win over Bath at the Rec again (aka Grewcock v Connors, round 2) brought on a run of big games. April 5 saw the fourth trip to Twickenham in three years, unfortunately the result brought yet another defeat for the Saints. Oh well, there's always Europe!

My first overseas trip to watch the Black, Green and Gold (I'm told Cardiff doesn't count) was brought on, nicely falling a week prior to Dad's 60th. As all of his kids clubbed together to send him to France, someone needs to go with him to keep him under control. Seeing as the whole thing was my idea (and none of the others wanted to share a room with 100dB of snoring) I boarded the Eurostar on the 10th April. A pleasant trip down was followed by a delightful stay in the Ibis (along with half of the town, it seemed), the only disappointment being the result. Several memories stand out: The Frog and Rosbif (Howlin was there, I saw him!), the use of my rough GCSE French, the sight of Lol on Sunday morning drinking tea a drop at a time, cheering Munster on in the Melting Pot (and getting strange looks from the locals), the scenery, the architecture, the food, well you get the idea! A trip back on the Monday gave us just enough time to recover before the next game, on the Wednesday.

Bristol were the opponents in a game closer than the 43-13 scoreline suggested. But would the team's poor performances earlier in the season mean another battle for European qualification? A narrow defeat at Kingston Park didn't help matters, but an almost convincing win over Sale stabilised the league position. Now the question was, can the Saints make the top three, and with it a chance of the title?

A trip to Quins (yet another first this season) was a strange game, with penalty tries for both sides, and a bonus point gained right at the death. Seeing all the "famous" players on the pitch signing autographs, with Rob Hunter waiting to be asked with his hands on his head, was a great laugh! If only I could still laugh the next day, after some irritating pillock had stolen my car.

A winner takes all game against Leeds (the victor taking fourth, a European place, with the possibility of third if Sale get no points) went our way, and the planned farewell for the departing players had to be put on hold - we were in the Championship semi-final!

The second experience of Adams Park brought no better a result than the first, with a clearly exhausted Northampton, fielding an injured Nick Beal and Paul Grayson, over-run by a dominant Wasps side that should have scored more. The light hearted moment that tied the two Wasps away games together was Kenny Logan's "kicks at goal".

And so, the end of another season. With Leicester narrowly defeating Saracens for the last European place, and Gloucester being thrashed by Wasps for the title (a farce when a team 15 points clear at the top of the table aren't the champions - although everyone knew the setup at the start of the season). However, this did mean that the teams which knocked us out of the various tournaments went on to win it (Gloucester, Toulouse and Wasps on the Powergen Cup, European Cup and Championship respectively), as well as the only team to "do the double" over us in the league finished top.

My picture taking at matches has now progressed somewhat, but I've only captured a couple of lineouts, as the delay on my digital camera requires pressing the shutter half a second before the ball is thrown in. The only time I can recall getting it lined up perfectly (right in front of me, timing spot on) was Budge's score at Welford Road. Missed the whole manoevre looking through the viewfinder! I did however get Larry going over for his only try of the season - more by luck than judgement to be honest.

We have many players leaving: Mattie Stewart, a club stalwart for many years, Ian Vass, constant understudy to one of the best scrum halves in the world (and who'll forget that try at Welford Road in November 2002?), Peter Jorgensen, only a short time here but so many great tries (including almost single-handedly getting us back to Twickenham), Kelvin Todd, who was nearly always last in the queue behind Pagel, Scelzo, Smith, Stewart and the rest, and Simon Hepher, whose return after a two-year run in France didn't quite turn out as promised.

We also have new arrivals: Renaud Peillard, a demon in the scrum for Perpignan this season, Mark Robinson, who seems to be almost on a par with the great Dawson (that's if the hype can be believed), and Shane Drahm, one of the gems in an otherwise poor season for relegated Bristol.

Logic dictates that the next Saints Cup Final appearance will be against a team even further from Twickenham (think about it - Harlequins, Wasps, London Irish, Gloucester, has to be either Sale, Bath or Leicester next!)

So that's it, I'm back in training for the Supporter's Team (hopefully won't be playing against Paul Gustard this time round!), and patiently awaiting the start to another season, again away to Sale, at their new home in Stockport.

See you there!


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