Northampton Saints Stun Leinster, Will March Into Champions Cup Final
Northampton Saints Stun Leinster, Will March Into Champions Cup Final
The Northampton Saints shock favorite Leinster 37-34 to reach the Champions Cup final, led by Tommy Freeman’s hat trick and Henry Pollock’s heroics.
Completing quite possibly the biggest upset of the past five seasons, the Northampton Saints ransacked Leinster 37-34 at the Aviva Stadium to book their place in the Investec Champions Cup final.
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Labeled as 21-point underdogs by the bookmakers, the Saints, who were missing a handful of key players, were given little chance of progressing.
Staring down a Galactico Leinster squad, the Saints came out hot to take the lead inside seven minutes through winger Tommy Freeman.
Freeman would go on to score a first-half hat trick to put the Saints 27-15 ahead at halftime.
Joining Freeman in laying down a big time marker for a spot in the British and Irish Lions squad were Alex Mitchell, Fin Smith and Henry Pollock.
Focusing on the 20-year-old Pollock, who has become a global sensation in what is his first full season of senior rugby, the former World U20 player dominated the tackle stats with 24 and had a hand in several Saints turnovers.
Offensively, he made 58 meters from eight carries and scored a peach of a try in the process.
Halfbacks Mitchell and Smith combined superbly with a combination of top-quality tactical kicking and an up-tempo carrying game, which brutally exposed Leinster’s heralded blitz defense.
Getting plenty of joy in the wide channels, the Saints mirrored the Scarlets' model of a week prior by getting their big carriers to make yards into the heart of the Leinster defense.
Staying patient, the Saints then lured the on-rushing Leinster tacklers out of the line, before clever short balls from Mitchell, Smith and captain Fraser Dingwall put their teammates into gaps.
Mixing in a well-worked cross-field kicking game, the Saints exploited mismatches with the likes of Freeman, Pollock and fullback James Ramm, utilizing their height and pace in the contest.
Carrying the ball just 87 times, the Saints were ruthlessly efficient and made large chunks of yards regularly.
Interestingly, the Saints were content to let Leinster have the bulk of the possession and territory in the knowledge that the Leinster attack would revert to either a one-off carrier or an out-the-back loop play.
For Leinster, this loss will sting as much, if not more, than its past four defeats at either the semifinal or final stage.
Employing the same tactic of resting their key players the week prior in the league had them looking a touch off their best once again.
Appearing lethargic in attack, with the exception of their quick-tap penalty plays, Leinster rarely looked like troubling the Saints' defense.
In the halfbacks, Jamison Gibson Park and Sam Prendergast appeared stumped for ideas without their pack being completely dominant.
Neither player offered much of a running threat, which allowed the Saints defenders to simply slide to the next possible carrier. This issue was eerily similar to the one they encountered in last year’s final, where Ross Byrne was found out by the Toulouse defense.
Up front, the hosts held a slight edge, but they were undone by a lack of discipline and clinical processes. Coughing up possession time and again, the men in blue squandered several point-scoring opportunities.
Questions now will be asked of where this squad goes to next.
In reality this season was shaping up to be its best chance of success, with La Rochelle taking a step back, Toulouse in the midst of an injury crisis and Bordeaux remaining an unknown at this level.
Just five days out from the Lions squad being announced, could a few names of been added and removed from Andy Farrell’s squad list?
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