NORTHAMPTON FIND DERBY INSPIRATION
WHAT a difference a week — and a derby — make. Northampton were a rabble in their abject defeat at home against Saracens. That was on April 7. Seven days later, they won at Leicester, the club with title aspirations laid low by the team scrapping for dignity. How it mattered to the Saints. That much was obvious when Cobus Reinach touched down. The Springbok scrum-half very nearly combusted when he scored his try. It was equally obvious in the performance of George North. His commitment has been questioned of late, but the Wales wing was bloodied and battered in the cause and kept coming back for more. And in the closing stages there was hope for the future as Ehran Painter delivered a remarkable cameo off the bench. The 20-year-old prop looks a real prospect. Northampton’s decline may be brief.