The venue was the dilapidated Vicarage Road for a  rare Saturday fixture. So rare that I didn't bother to check the date and consequently found myself watching from an armchair, rather than the Upper Rous! 

Saracens’ poor end-of-year performance was instrumental in relegating Northampton, a fact often repeated to me by Saints fans. The Franklin's Gardens visitors must have had a sense of foreboding as they climbed from their buses in Vicarage Road. Here was a sight that more resembles a failed Soviet five year development plan than a rugby stadium. Whether it be in Hertfordshire, Docklands or Timbuktu, Saracens players and supporters deserve better, which may be some reason, coupled with a Saturday kick-off and TV coverage, for the dismal attendance of 7,409.

Eddie Jones is blessed with an exceptional set of forwards, peerless in the GP.  As for the backs, some faithful old soldiers and talented raw youngsters, kept firmly in order by the ultra professional Jackson and de Kock combination.

The Saints team contains the best of the bunch prior to their tour of ND1, plus some good new signings such as Foden, and youngsters that have been developed by the club. Like Jackson and de Kock, Saints’ cohesion depends  on Reihana and Spencer who, much to their credit, have stuck with Saints during their time of need.

Saracens retained the same team that had soundly thrashed Newcastle six days earlier. Perhaps not their strongest team once the Southern Hemisphere cavalry arrives in November, but pretty close to first choice. Saints were forced to change players from the team that beat the insects, specifically the talented but ill-disciplined Best, who has been cited for gouging, and Ashton who had a tooth abscess.

Stephen Myler, latest generation of a famous rugby family, came in at full-back with skipper Bruce Reihana switching to the right-wing while Mark Hopley replaced Best in the back row.

The unfortunate Mr Fox, recently on the wrong end of a bollocking from 'hanging judge' Blackett, was the referee.

The first few minutes of the match were reassuringly similar to the best parts of the Falcons game, Sarries dominating at the set pieces, open and fast running rugby initiated from the secure hands of de Kock.

The very first scrum, barely five minutes into the game, resulted in a penalty when the Saints forward row lifted, shocked by the sheer brutality of the Sarries push. It was not a difficult kick by Jackson's high standard, but the ball sailed far to the right of the uprights and the scoreboard remained empty.

For the next ten minutes it was one way traffic with Saints, defending solidly. The beads of perspiration falling from the foreheads of the Saints players, shown in close up by the cameras, seemed to confirm that it was merely a matter of time before the dam burst and Sarries flooded over the try line.

Powell, Jackson, Penney and Haughton combined to produce a dazzling sequence of play, but the attack fizzled out. In rugby, as in many other aspects of life, the KISS (keep it simple, stupid) principle pays dividends. Saints were very fast to the tackle, disrupting service to Saracens’ backs and forcing errors and turnovers whenever their line was threatened. In an effort to play 'clever' rugby, Sarries showed the same impatience that EJ has commented upon and their game began to unravel. It was a good performance from Northampton that sapped the spirit of the Saracens players.

Mr Fox was  refereeing in the style of Vogon Jeltz. His officious and public rebuking of the players may be a consequence of the tongue lashing that he received from the RFU. However, his timing of the crouch, touch, engage sequence seemed laboured, consequently unsettling both packs. Perhaps he should take tango lessons to improve his sense of rhythm? Whilst eagle-eyed at the breakdown, as required by the new RFU directives/iRB protocols, he was completely blind to the crooked feeds at the scrums by both teams throughout the match. I saw little other reason to fault in his performance, though.

At ten minutes, further indiscretions from Saints resulted in another easy penalty kick, which Jackson also duly missed.

At twenty minutes into the game Sarries had racked up 80% possession and 'nul points'. The dogged and determined Northampton defence resisted all attempts to break the line, and both teams were secure under the barrage of aerial ping-pong that has afflicted the GP this year.  Bullocking runs at the defence by Cencus gained yards and the appreciation of the Saracens supporters, but invariably ended in slow ball or the the ball going forward from the tackle. Sarries backs looked bereft of ideas and Haughton's running returns were easily snuffed out at first impact by the impressive Northampton defence.

It all looked a bit worrying for Saracens, help was needed in the form of Faz's ability to draw defenders whilst retaining the skills to offload accurately. However, it was about to get worse. Having weathered the early storm and empowered by Dickson's efficient distribution, Northampton began to set about Saracens.

A series of moves orchestrated by some good tactical kicking by Spencer pushed Saracens back into their own half. EJ was prowling the abandoned East Stand with a worried expression by now and, right on queue, Saracens conceded a penalty for some cynical handling in the ruck on their twenty two that could have easily resulted in a yellow card. The confident young Myler struck the first of a series of excellent kicks and the score was 0-3 in favour of the visitors.

Saracens were feeling the pressure and this showed in errors in the kicking exchanges between the backs, reinforced with flashes of brilliance from Spencer and Reihana. Around the thirty minute mark Jackson landed a penalty kick against the run of play and it was 3-3.

Spencer, Reihana, Myler and Hartley produced a series of cross-field kicks and passes that threatened to break the Saracens line. Northampton moved back in front with Myler's second penalty after Saracens were caught offside in front of their own posts on thirty eight minutes. Northampton were denied the first try of the match on the stroke of half-time when Dickson's pass, which released  Mayor on a clear run to the line, was ruled forward. Half time came with Northampton in the ascendency and Sarries fortunate to be trailing by 3-6.

Jack had been subdued in open play throughout the first half although very dominant at the lineout, where Sarries performed much as they have done in previous games this season. Jack's handling errors may well have been exacerbated by injury to his left arm, a problem with the sterno-clavicular joint that saw him substituted in the second half by Skirving. On a more positive theme, Owen's runs from the back of the scrum were highly effective and he seems to gain confidence with every game.

The second half started much as the first had ended, although Skirving looked lively and fast whenever he had the ball. Wilson was running well off the back of the Saints scrum, Sarries began to string sequences of passes together, pressing the Northampton defence.

Cencus charged again; the resulting ruck generated yet another penalty against Sarries and Myler executed an exquisite kick from close to the try line making the score 3 - 9 to the visitors. It seems that the more stringent application of the 'feet' rule at the breakdown often penalises the attacking team, perhaps this is one cause of the tedious end-to-end kicking?

Sarries continued to gather momentum, pressing the Saints line, with the ball sweeping quickly across a seemingly impenetrable Northampton defence. Saints, although feeling the heat, were far from outclassed and following a scintillating break from de Kock which was turned over, Spencer executed a beautiful cross field kick from the Northampton twenty two that put Lamont and Sorrell in foot race that was easily won by the the Northampton player, but a knock on denied Spencer a certain try.

At fifty minutes Owen had achieved twice the GP average carry for a number eight, the pressure on Saints was building, but Spencer still threatened to punish Sarries on the break.  A flurry of substitutions from Saints included Foden, brought on as a blood replacement for Dickson. Haughton, who had a solid if lacklustre performance in the match, was replaced by Wyles.

The increasing energy of Saracens’ attack brought reward in the form of a penalty that was duly converted by Jackson to give a 6 -9 scoreline at fifty seven minutes into the game. Saints were using desperate tactics to slow the onslaught and Fox was becoming impatient with the professional fouls that impeded Sarries’ progress to the try line. However, before Sarries could capitalise on their advantage, Myler executed a brilliant drop kick from the half way line to make the scoreline  6 -12.

Yet another Sarries attack from the restart saw frenzied defending from Saints and a penalty against Northampton for illegal work around the breakdown. Jackson slotted the ball over the posts and the score was 9 -12 to the visitors. This offence brought about a ‘final’ final warning from Mr Fox to Reihana, on behalf of his team.

With over 80% of the possession going to the home team and endless waves of attack, ably assisted by the impressive Wyles, it was merely a matter of time before the Saints defence finally crumbled. It was yet another professional foul by Foden close to the Saints try line that caused Fox to reach for his yellow card.

The conservative approach was to secure three points with an easy kick at goal and bring the scores level, but Borthwick was having none of it. He sensed that the Saints defence, depleted of one player and exhausted by the fury of the Saracens attack, could not resist further pressure. He opted for a scrum ten metres out, close to the left hand touch. Jackson made his characteristic run behind the centres from the back of the scrum and executed a perfectly weighted looping pass to Penney, who duly slid over the Northampton try line near the right hand touch. With assistance from the Fez Boys, Jackson worked his magic and the score was 16 – 12 at sixty seven minutes into the game.

The hearts of the Northampton forwards must have sunk when they saw Cairns and Visagie join the fray as Cencus and Ongaro left the field. Saracens pressure was relentless and soon Hartley was joining Foden in the sin bin for stealing the ball eight metres in front of the Northampton posts. Again, Borthwick elected for the scrum rather than three points as Sarries could now push the Saints pack back at will.  The Saints pack crumpled under the force of the Sarries front row and the scrum advanced to within five metres of the line. Owen, a potent force throughout the match, picked up the ball and crashed through the Saints defence directly between the posts.  At 23 -12 on seventy minutes, the game was won and Borthwick's tactics had been entirely vindicated.

Owen, who has been the subject of some bitter criticism for a perceived lack of form, was voted man of the match by Fat Boy. Owen's post match interview was a pleasure to watch, self-effacing, although clearly happy to be part of a team that allowed him to achieve his ambitions and win back his pride.

As for the rest of the game, Eddie acted quickly to protect his players for the forthcoming busy schedule of games.  Kris Chesney, Gordon Ross and Moses Rauluni replaced Hugh Vyvyan, Glen Jackson and Neil de Kock. It was Chesney's 200th appearance in premiership matches, although this was barely mentioned by the SKY commentary team.

Northampton enjoyed four minutes of possession after the restart, without really threatening, as they strived for two quick scores. When Sarries obtained possession, the squad resumed the attacks on  the Northampton line, with Wyles, in particular, making numerous searing runs that resulted in a further penalty. Borthwick decided that the two further tries that Sarries needed for a bonus point were now out of reach with little time remaining and so invited for Ross to practice his kicking - an astute move as the back-up fly-half and kicker will surely be needed during the fixture pile-up of the coming week. The Scotsman made no mistake to make the final score 26 – 12.

As in the Falcons match, sustained pressure had forced Northampton to adopt desperate defensive measures that resulted in yellow cards. However, the match was not won until the last ten minutes, when a brave decision by Borthwick to back his team's ability to cross the try line paid dividends. Northampton were no pushover and will not be in the relegation zone at the end of the season.

Sarries are not the finished article, too easily ruffled by a solid defence, but Eddie is getting the best from his players, a sure sign of a good coach. I am still not convinced about playing Jack out of position, to my mind Skirving's extra pace was a clear benefit to the team, but given Jack's injury, the debate may be academic for the immediate future.

Saracens: R Haughton (C Wyles, 51); R Penney, K Sorrell, A Powell, K Ratuvou; G Jackson (G Ross, 73), N de Kock; M Aguero (C Johnston, 79), F Ongaro (M Cairns, 67), Johnston (C Visagie, 67), S Borthwick (capt), H Vyvyan (K Chesney, 73), C Jack (B Skirving, 40), M Owen, A Saull.

Northampton: S Myler; B Reihana (capt), J Ansbro, J Downey (C Mayor, 11), S Lamont; C Spencer, L Dickson (B Foden, 51); S Tonga'uhia (T Smith, 53), D Hartley, E Murray (B Stewart, 53), I Fernandez Lobbe (A Rae, 45), C Day (P Shields, 70), M Hopley (B Lewitt, 70), R Wilson, S Gray.

Referee: M Fox (Leicestershire).

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