Bulls v Northampton: Five takeaways as hosts 'abysmal game ...

Following Northampton’s epic 21-30 win over the Bulls, here are our five takeaways from the Investec Champions Cup encounter at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.

It was a tough encounter in the Pretoria warmth with the hosts showing dominance in a lot of the game, especially the first half where the Bulls had their claws in the Saints, but this failed to show on the scoreboard.

It took half an hour for the first score coming from the prolific George Hendy, who had only been on the field for a moment or two. The Bulls responded quickly through Marcell Coetzee and it appeared to be business as usual for the hosts. However, they let their guard down just before the interval which was capitalised on by Juarno Augustus.

The first quarter of the second period followed the same plan with the Bulls playing all the rugby but not showing up on the scoreboard and, like the first-half, Saints grew into it again with a Tommy Freeman double and two penalties from Fin Smith, keeping them away from a Cameron Hanekom brace that was more down to individual brilliance rather than Bulls dominance.

Jake White and his coaching staff will have sleepless nights after this one as they should have claimed the win. Having said that credit must go to the Saints who never looked flustered and played a composed performance of champion quality.

The Bulls utterly dominated possession and territory, putting the visitors under pressure and earning penalties as a result, but they failed to take advantage. White’s men consistently went for the corner, despite having penalty opportunities in front of the posts, and they were profligate.

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Whether it was a needless infringement at the maul, which happened twice, or the hosts dropping the ball when in good positions, which occurred far more often, the tactic simply did not work and makes you wonder whether it was the right decision.

You could understand them laying down a marker early and going for the try but, when it wasn’t working, the posts may have been the better option. Ultimately, the Saints would eventually get an opportunity and they took it, increasing the pressure on the hosts. It was abysmal game management and duly cost them.

It wasn’t as brutal as it can be in Pretoria but, let’s be honest, it wasn’t exactly the British winter Northampton are used to. The hosts aimed to make the the Saints suffer, beating them to a pulp up front before running them off their feet out wide, but Phil Dowson’s men were excellent for the most part.

Particularly in the first half, when they were placed under significant pressure, Northampton defended superbly. You could tell that the conditions were taking their toll on the Englishmen, but they kept on coming and making their hits on the gargantuan South Africans.

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There comes a breaking point, though, and as the game moved into the third quarter, the Bulls started to find more holes, resulting in two tries for Hanekom. But once again, the Saints showed tremendous spirit and earned a famous win.

It is some weapon that Bulls scrum, even if they failed to make the most of it. In Gerhard Steenekamp and Wilco Louw, they have two current Springboks at the peak of their powers, and they tore into the Northampton props, Elliot Millar-Mills and Manny Iyogun.

Millar-Mills and Iyogun tried their best, but they were simply outmuscled and it eventually led to a yellow card for the visiting loosehead. You have to credit the Saints, who were manful, but they were ultimately overpowered.

However, the South African outfit have to find a way of making best use of their set-piece as it almost became superfluous considering the endless errors in the loose.

There are plenty of serious competitors for the Champions Cup title this season, but Northampton might be emerging as one of them with this victory against the Bulls. The Saints have made it pretty clear that the next progression for them as a squad is the Champions Cup – with star back James Ramm previously telling Planet Rugby that it was their aim – but this win in Pretoria showed that they could do exactly that.

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A win like that, in the heat of the South African summer and under the pump for large parts of the game, shows the grit and determination you need to go deep in Europe, as it also shows they can just find different ways to win. Their attack was crisp, fast and expansive, but crucially they were able to just motor up the pitch with relative ease despite being under the cosh.

Again, there are plenty of teams who will fancy their chances at winning the title, but there is no reason Northampton shouldn’t be in that conversation.

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