‘Henry can use this to keep on improving’

GLOUCESTER coach Johan Ackermann saluted Henry Trinder’s influence in Gloucester bouncing back from last week’s trouncing at Sale.

He said of the two-try centre: “He showed some great skill today and hopefully he will just grow in confidence and use this as a stepping stone.

“I’d never worked with Henry until I arrived here and hadn’t even seen a lot of him. I just heard from the coaches that he was brilliant as a junior and went through a bad spell of injuries.”

Saints rugby director Jim Mallinder said he was frustrated.

“It was an arm wrestle, particularly in the first-half and we never really got to grips.

“We didn’t seem to get on the front foot like we’ve been doing the last few weeks. We came back and nearly gave ourselves a chance but it was a little too late.”

He added that captain Dylan Hartley’s return was a bonus. “He’s come through unscathed, so that’s a real positive.”