On a crisp early spring day under high broken cloud with an easterly breeze, sent straight from Moscow to chill to the bone, Saints returned to league action at Franklin’s Gardens, after a break for the Six Nations, to resume their quest for a top six finish in the Guinness Premiership and qualification for the Heineken Cup next season. Other results on Friday evening did Saints few favours at the relegation end of the league with Sarries, everyone’s favourite bet for relegation last week, pulling off a surprise win away at Sale and even Leeds nearly winning at Welford Road to really upset the order at the bottom of the Premiership.

Saints are correctly focussed on moving up the league but one doesn’t drive along the motorway without frequent checks of the rear view mirror. There are still only nine points between us and 12^th place in the league.  Anyway, to events on the pitch yesterday.

Bruce Reihana led the Saints team out to the acclamation of another full house at FG. Welcome home Bruce, it’s good to have you back.

Referee Dave Pearson trotted out after the teams sporting a hairdo sponsored by HM Prisons Service.

The early exchanges were fairly even until the seventh minute when James Pritchard, playing full back for his FG debut for Saints, deliberately swatted the ball into touch. Ludovic Mercier stepped up for the formality of the goal kick, only to miss well left of the uprights.

After a clever restart kick by Carlos Spencer to the open side of the field rolled obligingly in to touch, Los had an opportunity to open the scoring for Saints after the Glos front row were pinged at the scrum for the first of many times yesterday. It was becoming clear that the return of Pat Barnard to the tight head was more than Nick Wood, his opposite number, could handle and that dominance was to continue most profitably during the first half.

Carlos opted to kick for goal 2 metres inside his own half with the help of the stiff breeze and while the kick seemed to have the distance, it faded just to the right of the posts.

Shortly after an altercation between Paul Tupai and Peter Richards, the Glos No 9, Saints were awareded the penalty after a long chat between the ref and the touch judge and then the players concerned during which Carlos kept up a running banter with any of the opposition who were in ear shot. Saints failed to use the penalty profitably but shortly after Tupai received a knock and struggled to stay on the pitch for the rest of the half. But play on, he did.

The Saints scrum was now totally dominant and another huge drive forward after two resets allowed Carlos to thread through an inch perfect kick to the corner. Saints drove from good line out ball and Glos were pinged in contact for being everywhere they shouldn’t have been. Saints opted for the scrum 5 rather than the kick and again showed total dominance. The front rows kept collapsing and eventually Nick Wood was warned by Pearson.

What seemed like an eternity passed, as scrum after scrum had to be reset or Saints took more scrums after Glos were penalised for the umpteenth time. The way the Glos pack wrere struggling would have caused grown men in The Shed at Kingsholm to cry in their scrumpy but suffer it did until eventually, just as Saints showed they could score from the back row, Pearson simultaneously signalled a penalty try which Bruce easily converted.

22 minutes gone, Saints 7-0 in the lead and some very weary forwards trudged back for the restart to find that most of the Saints back division had been away on a weekend break, Carlos had stayed but finished 3 Sudoko puzzles and Canadian James Pritchard had got so cold standing about that he had broken out the dog sled and was about to head south.

Glos hit back straight away and went on the attack, their forwards appearing to have responded to the earlier embarrassment and Terry Fanoula proving to be a real handful in midfield. And it was Fanoula who burst through the Saints midfield defence with a finger tip catch of the ball that many others would have dropped. He was stopped just short of the line but Peter Richards was on hand to burrow over the line to bring the scores level after Mercier’s conversion from in front of the posts.

7-7 after 27 minutes and the score stayed that way until half time.

For the second half Saints replaced Pat Barnard with Chris Budgen and David Gerrard with Matt Lord. Saints attacked immediately and were nearly in for a try by Pritchard after Sam Harding had robbed the ball from a Glos attack and Bruce had chipped through but Jon Goodridge just beat him to the ball.

Saints again decided to let their forward superiority do the work and a series of attacking scrums on the Gloucester line, during which the visitors were penalised more than once and warned for killing the ball, led to a Saints try after a scrum moved forward, then wheeled right to give Mark Easter his first try for the senior team. Pritchard added the conversion to put Saints ahead 14-7 after 10 minutes of the half.

Eventually Tupai had to retire from the fray to be replaced by Darren Fox and Gloucester brought on James Forrester for Luke Narroway, a Number 8 and not scrum half as listed in the programme!

Immediately Saints were penalised for driving througfh a ruck off their feet and Mercier, now on target took the 3 points. 14-10 after 12 minutes.

Then an overlong kick by Mercier went dead at the South Stand end and Saints had the scrum put in 35 metres out from the Glos line. Saints attacked right with some beautiful handling and were nearly over but the move was killed illegally by Glos and a much overdue yellow card was shown to the skipper, Pete Buxton.

Saints opted to scrummage but the move went nowhere really and the backs moved into action. Unfortunately a long miss pass by Carlos was knocked on in midfield.

Simon Emms then replaced Tom Smith but at the very next scrum, Saints were pinged for standing up in the front row. Glos attacked left and the speed of their backs nearly saw them through but a crunching tackle by Pritchard saved Saints’ bacon.

The Canadian was replaced shortly afterwards by Paul Diggin, with Bruce moving to 15. Glos the attacked through the middle but a huge tackle by John Clarke on Fanoula stopped the move dead. And then, as if from nowhere, Sharky pooped up with the ball and fed Sam Harding. He chipped ahead over the Glos defence, their last man fumbled the ball and Clarke was on hand to scoop it up and canter in under the posts for the try. Bruce added the extras and it was 21-10 to Saints after 22 minutes.

Immediately, Glos hit back with 3 points to Mercier after Saints were penalised in front of their own posts. 21-13. Carlos missed a penalty attempt shortly after.

On 31 minutes Saints intercepted the ball as Glos attacked and Carlos broke through. He produced an amazing curled ball out of the back of his hand to JC, but the Saints centre didn’t have the legs to outrun Forrester. Saints were then penalised for going over the top at the ensuing ruck.

Glos attacked to the right and after Pearson missed two forward passes and a “minor” knock on, he yellow carded Mark Easter for, apparently, punching as Saints wrestled the ball free from the Gloucester grip at a ruck. So the position of the first half Saints attack at the Lake End was reversed with Glos now having a man extra in the pack and attacking scrums 5 metres out from the Saints line Although Paul Diggin was drafted in to play blind side flanker Glos had the advantage in the scrum.

The turf at this end had obviously had enough from its exertions in the first half and getting a firm foothold was proving to be difficult as the grass rolled up into deep ridges. Saints managed to hold the Glos 8 for several minutes as scrums were reset and the clock ticked down towards no side, but eventually Pearson decided to award a penalty try although the first head to pop up out of the front rows had red shirt on. Perhaps the ref can explain that one to me, although that wasn’t his only baffling decision of the day.

Mercier quickly took the conversion and the scores looked menacing from Saint’s point of view at 21-20 with 3 minutes to go.

After the restart Saints lost a line out with Glos forwards climbing over and through the Saints line but Pearson had long ago given up refereeing this aspect of play. Another Glos knock on seemed to go un-noticed as well until Glos moved the ball forward in such an obvious manner that it had to be called. Saints managed to keep possession of the ball as the time ticked away and the ref blew for the narrowest possible victory for Saints with their 7 man pack just managing to hold on.

So, a tight home victory for Saints after an enthralling game very much controlled by both sets of forwards. Saints remain in eighth place in the Premiership (or seventh equal with Newcastle if looked at another way) but maintaining a reasonable margin over Leeds Tykes. The Saints pack is becoming a well honed unit who do not take a backward step and are really coming on to their game at the right time.

Dave Quinlan continued with all the hard work he does at inside centre and his tackle rate yesterday was stratospheric.

So another week off next week to repair bruised bodies and then it’s bring on the Falcons. That really will be an 8 pointer if we can win away at Kingston Park.