The Last Time We Met - Tigers 12 Saints 25
Happy days.......
By From the Archive
October 21 2003
In the build up to Saturdays local derby at Welford Road against the Tigers we look back to that epic game last November when Saints finally ended the home sides five year run with their first win in a decade. Saints fans went bonkers, Rich talks conkers!!!
Saints Storm Fortress Welford Road In Style
By Rich on the box
It's been a decade of waiting but finally Saints have won at Welford road for the first time since 1992. The match may not have been of the highest quality but by winning three tries to nil the Saints claimed an emphatic victory.
Three weeks earlier the Tigers had beaten the Saints at Franklin's Gardens with both teams heavily affected by the concurrent autumn internationals. Yesterday at Welford road the star names were back with some notable exceptions. The Northampton second row was still missing the impressive combination of Connors and Williams, whilst the Tigers back row was without the equally impressive Moody and Back and herein lies the tale of the game. For Saints were never going to out jump Kay and Johnson so they varied their line out tactics accordingly. Tigers were not so lucky and Kronfeld and co. in the Leicester back row were taught lessons by the returning Pountney a determined Mark Soden and Sky sports man of the match Andrew 'hurricane' Blowers.
To the game...
The opening signs were ominous for the Saints as the home side came out like 'hats on wheels'. Dawson still battered and bruised from last weeks Springbok encounter was hurt twice by heavy challenges. First from Murphy and secondly from Corry which saw the dazed and confused England scrum half stretchered off after just nine minutes. Replacement Vass then made a real hash of a very nervous start. The former Roade school pupil's pass putting Grayson under so much pressure that he conceded a five-metre scrum. Thankfully for Saints they defended well and the Tigers remained pointless.
The first points of the game predictably came via Larry's boot. A routine clearance downfield suddenly became a penalty as Ellis hit Grayson late after his clearance kick. In one of Mr Spreadburys better decisions Saints were awarded the penalty where the ball landed. Grayson banged it over. 0-3 after 11 minutes.
The lead did not last as with Tigers next visit to the Saints 22 Vass caught Kafer with a high tackle. Stimpson made no mistake. 3-3 after 16 minutes.
The kicking contest continued with Grayson restoring Saints lead on 21 minutes and Stimpson missing soon after to leave the score at 3-6.
On 32 minutes Saints delivered the sucker punch. Budge Pountney scored what he described as a 'gypsy try'. Thompson and his regular jumpers conned Leicester into setting themselves for the catch and drive, Budge looped from the back to the front of the line and Wally threw underhanded to the Scottish flanker who waltzed through the open door. Grayson kicked a fine touchline conversion to make it 3-13 after 32 minutes.
Tigers look of confusion quickly changed to determination as they sought to avenge the try. Saints however were defending as if their very lives depended on it and all Tigers had to show for their efforts was another Stimpson penalty on 40 minutes.
The other significant event before half time was Cohen's incident with the advertising hoardings as he slid the ball over the dead ball line from Murphy's chip and chase. Memories of Beal's broken leg at Watford sprang to mind. Thank goodness we have the padded hoardings at Franklins Gardens. The Welford road advertising naturally came off second best.
Half time: Tigers 6 Saints 13.
The only team change at half time was for Leon Lloyd to replace the dangerous Ollie Smith. The Tigers had clearly done some soul searching during the break and threw everything they had at the Saints line.
Stimpson pulled another three back for the home team on 43 minutes and then came the passage of play that defined the match. Tigers had a superiority in both the line out and scrum and used this to pound the visitors. Saints continued to defend like demons. A 5-metre line out from a penalty saw the home crowd's expectations rise. This was Leicester at Welford road. Catch and drive for an easy 5 points, they'd seen it countless times before. What they hadn't seen before was a team that had been coached in drive prevention and that had the application to match the skill. Saints crouched American football style as they had three weeks ago at the Gardens, Tigers took the catch the roar went up but the Tigers went back, they peeled and went for the secondary drive and were repelled once more. The ball was held up the Saints were going forward surely a gold scrum. Unfortunately no! Spreadbury sent Hunter to the sin bin, in a very poor example of refereeing.
Saints now had a 7-man pack. Surely then the Tigers just had to do the same again, it would work this time. Saints had other ideas and like many teams in this situation were galvanised by being a man light. Leicester had to settle for kicking the points as Stimpson reduced the deficit to a single point.12-13 after 53 minutes. It was the last time the Tigers would trouble the scorer.
Play continued at a frantic pace and was often error strewn through the third quarter. Hunter returned and Robbie Morris replaced Budgen going into the last 20.
Then came the 8-minute spell where Saints finally threw off the shackles of expectation and fulfilled their potential. Another 'trick' lineout saw Wally make some space for Vass. Actually he obstructed Corry preventing the tackle but Mr Spreadbury, a law to himself, continued to favour the attacking side. Vass scampered through the gap down the touchline for a try from 20 metres out. He had grown in confidence despite the shaky start and the try was well deserved. Grayson kicked the touchline conversion. 12-20 after 64 minutes.
It's traditional for Saints teams at this point to give themselves a large pat on the back and let the opposition back in. Well this is the Wayne Smith and Brendan Ratcliffe era and they've brought some new traditions to the club. Saints went for the kill.
On 70 minutes rapidly improving academy centre Chris Hyndman looped around the blind side of a ruck inches from the Tigers goal line. He had enough to get through Stimpson's desperate tackle for the try. The whole move started like most of Saints good work with turnover ball from Pountney that was carried forward through Saints impressive driving featuring backs and forwards alike. Grayson missed the conversion but no matter 12-25 after 70 minutes and the travelling Saints fans delight was clear to see from the Sky pictures.
All that was left was to shut the Tigers out for the remaining ten minutes. Phillips replaced Hunter and Richmond replaced England hero Thompson. The Saints once again showed superior guile by slowing the game to walking pace and the defensive door was slammed in the Tigers faces.
As time became short it was Leicester fans turn to stream away from the ground early. After five years of success it must have been quite a shock. It would be easy to rub salt in the wounds but Saints fans should reflect on the significance of this victory. In football terms we are still the Man City to their United, in cricket terms England to their Australia. Tigers fans didn't celebrate as wildly at Franklins Gardens as the Saints fans did at Welford road because it didn't mean as much but today they will hurt more than we did three weeks ago. Beer sales over the border have probably trebled.
You might want to switch the lomulator on for this last bit!
To outdo Mr Barnes in the ridiculous analogy stakes and to use a Northamptonshire world championship sport the Welford road record can be compared to conkers. When this home run started in 1997 no one could have predicted that the Tigers bright shiny horse chestnut would go on to become a 57er. In the early stages the Leicester faithful would have been proud of their conker as it progressed in to double figures and then they became very protective of it. So what's the real point of my self-indulgent ramble? It was the look on Deano's face because Wayne Smith 1er, probably soaked in an Antipodean Sauvignon Blanc, had smashed his prize conker!
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