Northampton Saints ……41pts
Tries: Smith 3, Freeman 15, 30, 73; Sleightholme 20, 47
Conversions: Smith 4, 16, 21, 74
Penalty: Smith 83
Tries: Hennessey 9, Green 26, Carr-Smith 41, de Glanville 50, Griffin 60, Tuipulotu 76
Conversions: Donoghue 10, 27, 42, 77
These two sides illustrated why they remain a class above the rest in the Prem as Bath’s second-string side pushed the table toppers all the way in an entertaining affair, which saw Northampton Saints extend their lead at the summit.
Bath rotated heavily ahead of their crunch Champions Cup semi-final against Bordeaux-Begles in a week’s time, with Johann van Graan keeping his prized assets Finn Russell, Ben Spencer and Santiago Carreras away from the action.
The visitors’ rotations meant this had a different feel to their Champions Cup quarter-final two weeks prior, but for the third time this season, this fixture delivered in abundance, with more last-gasp drama as Fin Smith’s penalty secured a statement win over their title rivals.
Northampton boss Phil Dowson recognised that his side were far from their best but was pleased to secure the all-important five points.
Defence
He said: “Recently, for whatever reason, we haven’t quite been where we need to be defensively.
“It’s about staying true to what we do. We’re known for our attack, but internally the focus is always on physicality and defence.
“We won’t move away from that. It’s about tightening things up without losing what makes us dangerous.”
Louie Hennessey, 22, made his senior Wales debut off the bench in the Six Nations, and this performance showed why he’s set to be a pivotal figure for both club and country following this standout display, despite being on the losing side.
Match action
Smith opened the scoring with a seven-pointer, profiting from wonderful, quick hands orchestrated by England colleague Fraser Dingwall.
However, the hosts were quickly down to 14 as, at the other end, Tom Litchfield was sent to the sin bin for a cynical foul.
The impressive Hennessey utilised Bath’s numerical advantage, but it was then 14 on 14 when Will Muir was yellow-carded for a deliberate knock on
Northampton wings Tommy Freeman and Ollie Sleightholme scored a try apiece within five minutes, but Bath hit back as Arthur Green finished a free-flowing move, set up by Hennessey being rock solid in contact and then offloading to get the assist.
Bath flanker Josh Bayliss kept up with Sleightholme in a remarkable foot race, but the forward’s efforts were in vain as Freeman crossed for his second off the recycled phase.
Style: Louie Hennessey was in fine form for Bath
Second half
A beautiful across-the-body pass back inside by Hennessey allowed live-wire nine Tom Carr-Smith to run in, but Sleightholme, despite drawing a glut of Bath defenders, was too strong and also went over.
The seesaw contest continued as Tom de Glanville got on the scoresheet and Carr-Smith kicked a pinpoint 50:22 on the 5m line.
That laid the platform for Archie Griffin to score from close range and level the scores, setting up a grandstand final quarter.
Freeman played a superb one-two with Litchfield to score his sixth try in the two Prem meetings with Bath this season, which is not quite Noah Caluori against Sale levels (10) but pretty formidable nonetheless.
Kepu Tuipulotu equalised late on, and it looked as if the spoils would be shared when Smith missed a drop goal.
However, the TMO spotted a high tackle from Enoch Opoku-Gyamfi, which allowed England’s fly-half Smith to drop over a routine three.
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