Harrison butt costs Northampton final place
Teimana Harrison added to Northampton’s woes with a moment of madness which cost his side a place in next weekend’s Anglo Welsh Cup final. The No8 was sent off 13 minutes from time for butting Bath prop Nathan Catt after they tangled at the back of a maul.
Welsh referee Adam Jones consulted with television match official Jon Mason before issuing a red card to Harrison, who was booed off by angry home fans.
Josh Lewis kicked the resulting penalty to put Bath into their first domestic cup final in 13 years. They will meet either Exeter or Newcastle at Kingsholm a week tomorrow.
After heavy rain in the day, both sides opted to hoof the ball upfield to force mistakes, and it was Northampton who cracked first when they failed to control the ball at a defensive line-out, which allowed Bath lock Levi Douglas to roll over.
Four penalties from Stephen Myler wiped out Bath’s lead, but Harrison saw red and Lewis held his nerve to complete a miserable week for Saints after technical coaching consultant Alan Gaffney’s criticism of George North.