Hartley throws it away as Exeter sink struggling Saints
If the Northampton board thought that firing Jim Mallinder would be a panacea for their problems then this was resounding proof that they were sorely mistaken.
There is no disgrace in losing to Exeter. Jack Yeandle’s try in the last play of the game secured the bonus point which extends the champions’ lead at the head of the Premiership to 11 points. Yet this was hardly a vintage Chiefs performance and they still steamrollered Northampton 12 days after Mallinder’s departure as director of rugby to inflict their 10th consecutive defeat in Premiership and European games.
Exeter were remorseless in turning the screw which forced Northampton into conceding 17 penalties, two of which resulted in yellow cards for Ben Foden and Francois van Wyk. Taken apart at the set-piece, bullied at the breakdown and lacking direction around the field, their only shining lights were England second row Courtney Lawes and full-back Harry Mallinder, who was involved in their best attacking moments.
There was a small snapshot towards the end of the first half that was revealing in terms of the type of mindset that has enveloped the club. Trailing 7-11, Northampton win a penalty well within kicking range. They opt for the corner but Hartley’s line-out is stolen by Don Armand. Still they get another penalty and opportunity to make it a one-point game. Again they kick to the corner. Again Hartley’s line-out is stolen. This is the type of pig-headed arrogance a team in 10th place can ill afford.
When the line-out falls to pieces, it underlines how little Hartley contributes elsewhere. The England captain made just one carry and missed several tackles, including one that led indirectly to Foden’s yellow card and Sam Simmonds’s try. Opposite man-of-thematch Luke Cowan-Dickie, his performance was all the more revealing. It remains the strangest of paradoxes that the first name on England’s teamsheet would not merit a starting place at any of the Premiership’s top six teams.
Hartley is not solely culpable. There is too much talent and experience at Northampton for them to be languishing in 10th place. A new voice, a fresh set of ideas and a Bonfire night’s worth of rockets to place underneath certain individuals’ backsides are desperately needed at Franklin’s Gardens.
“It was disappointing,” Alan Dickens, the interim head coach, said. “One of the problems we have talked about in the last few weeks is confidence. We need that win. I have every belief in the players and I could not have asked for more from them this week. The players need to take responsibility and they certainly do that. They will be the ones that drive us forward. It is a challenge, but one I am relishing and enjoying.”
As you would expect, Saints started like they had a point to prove. Campese Ma’afu and Piers Francis both landed a pair of wince-inducing hits. As is their wont, Exeter took those in their stride. Their first spell of possession lasted a good five minutes until they drew a penalty, allowing Gareth Steenson to kick them ahead. Mallinder and Foden both broke the Exeter defensive line but the Chiefs regrouped and snuffed out the danger. If that is a sign of their collective spirit, their opening try was solely down to the individual opportunism of Will Chudley. With Exeter winning a scrum penalty, the scrumhalf chose to have a crack. He sold Lawes a wicked dummy and then chipped over Foden’s head to issue a timely reminder of his enduring class.
Exeter might have put the game to bed in this period. From a Cowan-Dickie turnover in midfield, Mallinder did superbly to push Olly Woodburn into touch as he dived for the tryline. Another turnover in midfield, from a loose Saints pass, allowed Ian Whitten to kick ahead but his footballing skills
let him down as Foden rescued. Those were opportunities they would regret not taking as Saints hauled themselves back into the contest thanks to a fabulous team try. From a line-out on the 40m line, a combination of Mallinder’s vision and Foden’s line created an edge in Exeter’s defence that Rob Horne found and the Australian put Ahsee Tuala over in the corner. Exeter restored a little bit of a buffer through Steenson when Francis conceded a penalty for holding on after a tremendous Henry Slade kick.
A closely fought first half gave way to the most one-sided of second halves as Exeter tightened up their game plan to focus on exploiting the Saints set-piece. When centre Sam Hill broke through Hartley’s tackle, Foden was sin-binned for killing the ball.
Three times Exeter kicked to the corner, twice Northampton conceded penalties for bringing down the maul before finally Sam Simmonds was driven over.
Having dissected Northampton at the line-out, Exeter proceeded to dismantle them at the scrum after Thomas Waldrom was denied a try by the television match official. Referee Tom Foley awarded the Devon team four penalties in a row, one of which resulted in Van Wyk’s yellow card, before Exeter finally used the ball for Waldrom to bring up his 50th try for the club. A bit of daydreaming from the restart allowed Northampton replacement scrum-half Cobus Reinach to snatch a try that he celebrated with a little too much vigour considering their situation before Yeandle sealed the last word, picking a tremendous line to barrel his way over.
After back-to-back defeats against Leinster, this was an important result for Exeter who, unlike Northampton, have lost none of their hunger since winning the Premiership last season.
“This gives us a pretty good Christmas,” Rob Hunter, the Exeter forwards coach, said. “It is really pleasing to perform well after successive defeats. Even if we are at the top, it is important that we don’t sit back and think everything is rosy.”