By Chris Gleadell
October 27 2006

Well maybe not quite the result we dreamed of but you would have to search very long and hard to find someone who did not have a good time in Biarritz. Estimates put the number of Saints supporters making the trip at touching the 2,000 mark and each and every one of them did the club proud. From our arrival on Friday everywhere you looked about town you could not avoid Saints shirts and by Saturday when all the latecomers had arrived I am sure tourists of other nationalities visiting Biarritz must have thought we were the home side as the town was virtually painted gold, black and green.

As predicted last week it was pretty much party time for the whole duration with even the traffic being stopped for a time on Saturday afternoon on one of main avenues to allow the more energetic Saints supporters to dance in the street for a while. The townsfolk rather than getting heated over the congestion just stood back smiled and enjoyed the spectacle and as always even given the high numbers there was not one hint of trouble the whole weekend.

The people of Biarritz and especially the supporters of BO made every effort to make everyone welcome. Several of the town bars were bedecked in Saints colours and several became small enclaves of Northampton for the weekend. Whilst in previous years La Caritz may have been the focus due to its location this time round the twenty or so smaller bars especially the Café Kirola and the Red Bar became the choices of waterhole for the throng.

Of course the person who made the most effort was the Biarritz supporter in the club coloured native American head dress who was driven around town with his dancing troupe on scaffolding atop a flatbed truck for a dozen or so hours each day rousing the troops of both sides with music and singing. If you couldn’t see him, and you could hardly miss him once he started setting off flares, you could hear him as he announced his arrival with police sirens and foghorn before blasting out his tunes at 120 decibels.

On Saturday lunchtime the players were expecting a quiet lunch sitting on the terrace of Pascal Ondart’s bar overlooking the ocean, they hadn’t reckoned on the Cheiftan though. Despite being one storey up his driver managed to position him singing at full tilt right at the end of their tables and it was an amusing sight seeing some of the older heads doing their best to pretend he wasn’t there whilst the younger players were manouvering themselves to get the best pictures on their phones. It was all in very good nature though and by Sunday he was doing a passable version of Oh When The Saints, though sadly we failed to convince him that ‘Who the hell are Leicester Tigers is their club song should they ever visit.

If the support was a testament to the club around town it was even more so at the game. There were small pockets of Saints everywhere but standing behind one goal I had a great vista of the vast majority which formed a massive gold, black and green U shape sea set in BO red in the main Serge Kampf stand. Once they started to sing ‘Oh Wendy’ it was an impressive sight but the moment that will live long in my mind was the long repeated chant of ‘Come onnnnn you Saaaaaints’ in the second half which almost hung on the air like a mournful lament and not only for a time did this totally silence the BO support as another supporter said next to me it also sent a tingle down the back of your neck.

Of course the Biarritz faithful played their part too with their bands, songbook and colourful approach to the game and all in all I think we complemented each other well. At game end the Biarritz tannoy announcer proclaimed ‘Goodbye Northampton supporters, we love you!’ and talking to some supporters afterwards they were so impressed with our showing that they intend to make the return journey in January. I hope we can make as much effort as they did in making us welcome.

As for matters on the pitch well it was so near and yet so far as we only just missed out on, and given the second half performance a probably deserved, bonus point.

However playing away against a team that most pundits predicted would be Heineken Cup winners this term and only going down by a dozen points is no disgrace despite what some of our detractors back home might say and who knows with the cutting edge that Ben or Carlos might have supplied we might well have won. That’s not detracting from the efforts of the lads that played on Sunday, each and every one of them can hold their head high and Biarritz were fully aware they had been in a game and their defence more than their attack saved the day for them.

So for the Saints it’s back to the Gardens on Saturday and a game against Gregor Townsend’s Borders. The aim for the Heineken Cup is now clear, maximum points in the next four game to not only keep some kind of pressure on Biarritz before they visit here in January but to put us in the driving seat for a best runners up spot at least.

However as we have seen before in this competition Scottish sides can be potential banana skins and should be respected but I am sure if we get anywhere near the effort we did on Sunday then we will prevail.

Saturday is also the day for this years Saints with Heart charity walk in aid of the British Heart Foundation. There will be bucket shakers inside the ground so fill your pockets with change before you leave home. I’ll be walking the 17 miles along the canal from Wolverton to the Gardens and if any of you want to sponsor me, and I’ll be eternally grateful if you do, you can do so online at: www.bhf.org.uk/sponsor/chrisgleadell