Northampton hold off late Newcastle fightback in thriller to reclaim top spot

Northampton 28-27 Newcastle
Bottom side secure losing and try bonus points

On the face of it, not a lot to see here. The league leaders return to the top of the table with a bonus-point win against the team placed bottom. But don’t you believe it. Newcastle may have shipped 60 the last time they played a Prem game here, but they pushed the Saints all the way.

Northampton, it must be said, were about as far from full strength as can be. George Furbank was given his latest run-out at full-back, but otherwise none of their myriad England internationals were present. They will consider this a smart collection of the full five points without them. And they may have to get used to some of the absences, Alex Coles and Alex Mitchell both rated by Phil Dowson as likely to be out for “a decent amount of time”, which he clarified meant more than a month.