Thoughts from the Chron

18th March 2010

That Saints actually got over the whitewash four times was perhaps overlooked in the euphoria of the win but it emphasised once again that have the tools in their armoury to unlock the best of defences.
 
Be it the subtle touch of Shane Geraghty edging Chris Ashton through at breakneck speed to send Paul Diggin over or the brute force of Phil Dowson and Neil Best for their tries and even prop Brian Mujati popping up on the wing for a very popular score it shows that Saints are not one trick ponies going forward. As for the Sarries attack well they arrived at the Gardens with a reputation of something of that equine singularity themselves. Indeed with just 21 seconds on the clock Derrick Hougaard looked to have set their stall out early with a wildly speculative drop goal attempt from within their own half much to the amusement, sorry bemusement, of the Saints crowd. Despite an early Saints try Hougaard stuck at it though and through a series of penalties he kept his side’s nose in front until referee Romain Poite dispatched Sarries Richard Skuse to the bin after several warnings. Saints had failed to capitalise on an earlier yellow to the visiting skipper Ernst Joubert but the resulting penalty gave Saints the chance to edge ahead at the break. It was a lead they were never going to surrender.
 
Making good use of the numerical advantage Saints got two quick fire tries in the opening minutes of the second half and were by now cruising, Sarries were not finished yet though. To prove they do indeed have more than just the boot as a weapon, with the introduction of Glenn Jackson and the evergreen Justin Marshall at halfback, they started to actually throw the ball about a bit. It was all in vain though as Besty’s try sealed the win and a consolation score for the visitors by  Justin Melck was too little too late. Had Saracens changed tactics earlier, well who knows but in the end the comprehensive four try to one scoreline –though we did ‘lose’ the yellow card battle three to two – sends Saints in a winner takes all clash with our old friends Gloucester this coming weekend.
 
THE FINAL
 
So it is all eyes to Sixways, Worcester this Sunday for the final. No disrespect to the Worcester club and their fine supporters but the choice of venue still baffles me. As has been mentioned a lot of supporters have already voted with their feet and opted not to go in the ballot for final tickets. Whether it is because the cost of bigger fish to fry on the horizon, the logistics of getting there and back on a Sunday or just a general disillusion with the whole competition now given how the supporters have been treated it will be sad that a club with 9,000 season ticket holders may only have around three or four thousand at the final. Gloucester are of course in the same boat. They have a comparable fan base in size to ours but the relatively short hop up the M5 means we will probably be outnumbered especially as some Glos supporters were buying up our allocation this week. But then on the face of it Gloucester might have a lot more to play for than Saints.
 
Though still in the Amlin Cup they face a quarter final trip to Wasps and Sunday’s game might be the West Country clubs last realistic shot at silverware this season. More importantly though with a guaranteed Heineken Cup spot for next term it could be the making of their season. Currently in seventh position in the Guinness Premiership they are more than one game adrift from a possible automatic Heineken spot through the league so Sunday’s encounter may have a touch of the all or nothing from them.
 
Certainly for Saints perhaps looking to bigger and better things later in the season it is no time to take the collective eye off the ball as Gloucester have been coming back into some form of late. It is of course no coincidence that Ian McGeechan took a consultant role at Kingsholm around the same time that their fortunes started to improve and certainly we will face a team that will know our strengths and weaknesses – though hopefully they are few – inside out. The bookmakers have Saints as overwhelming favourites to take the trophy. However in a two horse race it might be a lot closer than the three to one on odds offered might suggest.
 
In my mind it is too close to call, an evens chance for both sides at best. Our plans might yet be disrupted by Six Nations calls but then if that’s the nature of the Anglo-Welsh from now on so be it. Certainly we have very able replacements but it could again be a bit of a leveller and the head says it could go either way. The heart however says the Saints, just, and our fourth bit of silverware in three years in the bag by Sunday evening.
 
Whilst Saints won the second tier cup two years ago they have never been successful in the premier competition. Under its various guises, the Pilkington, The Tetleys, the Powergen and now the LV = this is Saints fifth attempt at the final hurdle. In the previous finals, all held at Twickenham we went down to Quins in 91 before appearing in three finals in four years at the start of the last decade losing to Wasps in 2000, Irish in 2002 and Sundays opponents Gloucester in 2003.
 
On Sunday I am hoping we can rewrite a little bit of history and not only see the lads put our name on the trophy but it be a springboard to higher heights as the season progresses. Bring it on!

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