Fin Smith placed his name high in the pile for the England number 10 shirt after a superb kicking performance, which helped boost Phil Dowson’s men to gaining retribution after their defeat to Bath in a close 30-24 victory at a sold-out Cinch Stadium at Franklin’s Gardens.
By Ben Grundy
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A home crowd roar followed by an array of green smoke and fireworks welcomed Northampton Saints home as defending premiership champions on Saturday evening.
Saints started strong after a bruising night in Bath and in the 4th minute, Exeter were penalised for offside, allowing Fin Smith to send the ball into the away side’s 22. The resulting lineout led to George Furbank attempting an ambitious grubber kick which could not be gathered by any of his teammates.
Phil Dowson’s side’s relentless attacking was rewarded in the 9th minute when a superb line break from Juarno Augustus allowed him to offload to Alex Coles on his return from injury to go over the try-line in front of a fired-up Cinch Stand. Fin Smith knocked over the extras for a seven-point lead inside 10 minutes.
The English fly-half extended his Saints’ lead by another three points in the 12th minute when the away side were penalised for a high tackle.
Saints’ defence proved strong consistently in the opening stages, again being awarded a series of penalties for Chiefs being too slow at the breakdown and holding on.
A handling error in the 19th from James Ramm nearly allowed Paul Brown-Bampose to run the full length of the pitch but Captain Furbank was on hand to deny him with a tackle inside the 22, which again led to Chiefs being penalised at the breakdown.
On the 30-minute mark, debutant Josh Kemeny was denied what the home crowd thought would be his first try in Northamptonshire when it was adjudged that Augustus had knocked the ball on in the build-up. However, the Saints earned a penalty in front of the posts from the resulting scrum, giving Smith more points to his tally and a 13-point lead without reply for the home side.
Exeter found a response just before the half in the 36thminute when Harvey Skinner broke the Saints’ defensive line with a dummy pass and had Olly Woodburn on hand to score underneath the posts. Hodge added the extras, reducing the deficit to six points at the break.
Rob Baxter rotated the entire front row at the break after a first half of ill-discipline for his side and the substitutes had their opportunity to impress with a lineout a minute later, which was overthrown and recollected by the Champions.
A penalty at the breakdown in the 43rd allowed Josh Hodge to gain three points for his side, which he did emphatically as the fullback slotted home from an impressive 55 yards out, 13-10 Saints.
On his 50th Premiership appearance, Chunya Munga charged down Sam Maunder’s box kick two minutes later and scored in front of the Barwell Stand with the ever-reliable Fin Smith on hand to restore Northampton’s lead to 10 points, 20-10.
A beautifully-weighted cross-field kick from Furbank set up Rory Hutchinson to dot down in the corner for his side’s third try of the evening in the 49th. Despite, the tight angle, it was no trouble for Fin Smith, whose hand will be very much in contention for the England number 10 role after the injury to George Ford in North London, 27-10.
Impressive kicking from both sides saw Josh Hodge give the Chiefs a 50-22 lineout, however like the first half, Exeter’s performance at the breakdown was penalised. Northampton’s kicking was not absent either as both Smith and Furbank placed teasing kicks deep into the Chiefs’ 22.
The fantastic Fin Smith added a further three to the Saint’s scoreline with a drop goal awarded after consultation with the TMO in the 60th minute, boosting his contributions for the day to 13 points from the boot, 30-10.
Immanuel Feyi-Waboso was denied superbly by a Tommy Freeman last-ditch tackle in the 65th, however, Chiefs earned themselves a series of penalties moments later with Northampton being found guilty of collapsing the maul on two occasions, both came to no fruition.
Exeter’s second score of the evening came in the 69thminute after the TMO found no knock-on in the build-up to Feyi-Waboso’s score down the right flank, the try was converted again by Josh Hodge, 30-17.
Lee Radford’s defensive sessions showed their worth in the 76th as Saints survived an onslaught of attacks from the away side. A great rip in the middle of the park provided Saints with the chance to clear their lines.
Adam Leal placed a halt on defensive celebrations however as Hutchinson was shown the yellow card for a high tackle in the 76thminute after advice from TMO Matthew Carley.
The resulting penalty allowed Feyi-Waboso to go over for his second and Exeter’s third of the evening, again dotting down in the right corner, Hodge adding the extras to reduce the deficit to six points with just two minutes remaining, 30-24.
A shaky Chief’s lineout in the final minute led to them being pushed back by the Champions and a huge penalty for Exeter off their feet at the breakdown was met with an even bigger roar inside the Cinch Stadium, 30-24.
RUCK Player of the Match:
A superb kicking performance from the home-grown fly-half. Not only great from the tee, but fantastic with the boot throughout the game, constantly placing Chiefs under pressure in their 22 and finding the touchline well repeatedly. A big statement from the Saints’ number 10 to Steve Borthwick for the England jersey after injury to George Ford earlier today in North London and the absence of Owen Farrell.