November 24 2004

Northampton Saints - Thoughts from the Chron
By Chris Gleadell
November 24 2004

So, much change at the Gardens since the last column, this week we enter into a new era at the Saints. The short reign of Alan Solomons is over after just a few months following the eighth Zurich Premiership defeat at home to Worcester on Saturday.

Just why and how it all went wrong is still a bit of a mystery but I have to say I feel a bit sorry for Solly. He came here with a good track record at both club and national level and the comments from some that he was out of depth were way off beam but for whatever reasons his methods bore little fruit at the Gardens and ultimately he has paid the price. I am sure he will find another position, get back on his feet and prove all us doubting Thomas’s wrong. I for one wish him well.

A new coaching panel has been put in place with Budge Pountney and Paul Grayson moving upstairs to join Paul Larkin, Frank Ponissi and Adrian Kennedy in the collective hotseat while the club scours the world for Solly’s replacement. It’s a great opportunity for Larry and Budge though and with a strong internal structure to support these two fledgling coaches they might just be the guys here for many years to come. It would be nice to say lets give these guys some time but time is something we do not have a lot of at the moment so it is straight in at the deep end for the new boys.

The Saints now sit just one point off the bottom of the table and it looks like we are in for one hard slog but to use a very well worn cliché if the lads just take one game at a time I’m sure we have the potential and the personnel to get this season back on track. Number one priority must of course be safety. We’ve proved we can do it in the wins over Bath, Quins and Llanelli, now it’s a matter of adding a heavy dose of positive consistency to the mix starting at Newcastle on Sunday

I am sure you will all remember a trip to Newcastle on a December Sunday three years ago. The Saints were again in the doldrums and John Steele had stepped aside to allow Wayne Smith to take over the mantle of coach. Wayne only arrived in the country that morning from New Zealand but headed straight up the North East and the lads put in the performance of the season winning 28-13 the start of a run that saw us eventually reach a Twickenham final and qualify for Europe by season end. It’s a tall order buts there’s still a lot of rugby out there to be played but I’m certainly more optimistic writing this column than I was this time last week. So its good luck to Budge, Larry and the lads, we’re all behind you, take a deep breath I’ve a feeling we have some exciting times ahead.

The Saints Supporters Club will be running coaches to Newcastle. To get further details and book places call Jean Collingwood on 01604 583283, after 6pm, with your name, telephone number and the number of seats required.

GET SHIRTY FOR TOULOUSE

On our last trip to Toulouse you may well remember the Toulouse ‘Le Trek’ T-shirts we had run up for the occasion with the proceeds going to rugby charities. Sales on the shirt in 2003 allowed us to contribute over £1,000 to the PRA
(Professional Rugby Players Association) Benevolent fund. This year we have produced the ‘Le Trek 2’ shirt for the weekend an image of the Moulin Rouge cancan girls playing rugby (see message board for pic), just the thing for the fashion conscious Saints supporter on the avenues and boulevards of Toulouse. You can order the shirts via the Jimmies End T-Shirt Company website at www.jetsco.org

Paul Shaddick is also trying to organize a ‘Toulousain’ night at ‘The End’ at Southbridge for any French supporters in town for the weekend on the Friday before the home game, more details next week.

AWAY WITH THE LIONS?

So whatever happened to Matt Sansome? Matt was the little lad that was born to Saints supporting parents on the day of the European Cup Final in 2000. Matt along with Mum and Dad, Chris and Beth and little sister Lucy have now moved to Matt’s Mums native New Zealand. Dad Chris who is Gold, Black and Green to the core stills keep up with events at the Gardens from afar and still instills the faith in Matt. Now I know it is a few months off yet but I know a few of you out there are looking forward to going to New Zealand for the Lions tour at season end. Chris now owns a car rental business in the land of the long white cloud and has been in touch offering reduced rates to any Saints supporters who may be in need of wheels on their trip down south. You can contact Chris in NZ on 06 757 5255 or email him at newplymouth@rentalcars.co.nz.

Chris is also organizing a ‘Saints Night’ while we are all in Auckland for the last test where it is hoped several familiar ex-Saints will be in attendance. All traveling Saints are of course invited and I’ll let you know details nearer the time. We are also hoping to organize a get together this side of the equator before everyone travels down to New Zealand so people can make contact while they are on tour. We know a lot of people travel in small groups or even alone and a network of Saints might help cut those costs for those day trips, nights out etc, and of course car hire!

WANDERERS

A date for your diaries. According to Chris Wearmouth who covers the Wanderers for the club the much awaited rematch between Saints and Tigers 2nd XV’s takes place on Monday evening (29th) at the Gardens. With over 9,000 turning up to the return game at Welford Road it just goes to prove how popular these games can be so why not pop along and give the lads a cheer.

November 17 2004

Northampton Saints - Thoughts from the Chron
By Chris Gleadell
November 17 2004

In the two years I’ve been writing this column this has probably been the hardest to write and it’s not been a pleasurable experience. Here we are again, another week, another loss, that’s now seven in a row. Each week we build up our hope, each week we have that hope shattered.

I don’t know about anyone else but for me it’s not so much a feeling of disappointment anymore, that almost seems inevitable, it’s more a feeling of being emotionally drained week in week out. It’s been a long, long time since I’ve asked myself is it all worth it but on Saturday that’s just how I felt at the final whistle. Of course that passes and I’ll be back week in week out like many thousands of others but to say our form is trying the patience of a Saint is an understatement.

What is even more worrying is that we are now hearing from players, coaches and other dignitaries at the club that we have indeed “run out of time”, we are “in a mess” and it’s the “last chance saloon”, but yet again we still have to suffer 80 minutes of frustration each and every Zurich afternoon.

The general opinion on Saturday from a fair few people I spoke to after the game was that the first half was the worst display of rugby seen at Franklins Gardens in many a year. Just when we thought it could not get any worse, it did. We only really fired into life with the introduction of Shane Drahm when all was almost lost and although we almost stole the game we yet again failed to close out the match that was there for the taking. The lineout was a shambles but we still persisted in a kicking game which saw the Irish win the ball on their throw then whack the ball back down into our territory where they knew nine times out of ten they would steal it on our put in.

We still seem bereft of a Plan B when the chips are down but are yet again told it’s down to luck, the rub of the green, the bounce of a ball and no doubt this week a gypsy curse. The Saints have always had the reputation of having a knowledgeable crowd – even the old ‘enemy’ Ed Morrison has stated so – we might not all be as concise as the Paul Ackfords and Stuart Barnes of this world but again talking to many people after the game the general consensus was that its abundantly clear that things are far from okay on the pitch and a lot of it is to do with things that are in our hands not the gods.

So please can we hear less that the game was lost because of XYZ, we’re not falling for it and its wasting time and effort and does little to engender new faces to the support. To put it bluntly people are getting sick of the excuses. Lets have some straight talking, if we are bad say we bad we would respect you for that (that might be a legacy of Wayne Smith but it sure worked). Supporters criticising (apart from those few hell bent on a witch hunt) are not the enemy as was thinly suggested on Saturday, if a lot of people criticise, there is usually a reason for it, it’s not a case of whinging for whingings sake, far from it, it’s people raising their concerns about a club they hold close to their hearts.

I am sure the whole club would feel better for it, a clean slate and a fresh start and a better understanding all round but above all a bit more openness. Let’s get this club out the mire together starting with a win on Saturday.

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LOOKING AHEAD

It’s the first visit in the leagues for Worcester on Saturday and given the closeness in points, and Quins win last week this is yet another must win game for the Saints.

The Worcester supporters have really thrown themselves into the season after making it into the top flight. They endeared themselves to a lot of the Saints support by raising over £2,000 for the recent Saints with Heart fundraising for the BHF and certainly look like they want to play a big part in the ZP supporter’s community.

On the pitch they have perhaps faired better than anyone outside the Worcester area could have expected and already they have a win under their belts so will not be the usual whipping boys we have seen in recent years coming up from Div One.

It could be a tough one and again we must fight tooth and nail for the victory.

So be nice to the Worcester supporters both before and after the game but lads, give their boys hell on the pitch.

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LOOKING EVEN FURTHER AHEAD

Being a bit of a Francophile the games in France are always one of the highlights of the season for me and with the game in Toulouse now less than a month away I’m starting to count the days.

Rob, a Northamptonian in exile who helps run the Frog and Rosbif in the city has been in touch with us once again welcoming all to the bar over the weekend and offers a free beer to anyone who produces their match ticket. It was quite some party in there last time round both on the Friday and Saturday night so it’s worth a visit, even if it’s just to visit my shirt that’s now framed on the wall in there. You can find the Frog and Rosbif on the Rue de la Industrie just north of the city centre.

On the Sunday, as you may have seen elsewhere in the Chron this week, an ever growing group of Saints supporters are planning to spread the entente cordiale a little further and take in another game, the local derby between Albi and Montauban in the French second division. These cultural attaches will be heading off up to Albi mid morning on the train from Toulouse’s main railway station. If more concrete details are available I will keep you all posted. 

November 11 2004

Northampton Saints: Thoughts from the Chron
By Chris Gleadell
November 11 2004

Did anyone hear a rather large bang in the Northamptonshire area on Friday night? No it wasn’t anything to do with Guy Fawkes, it was the collective sound of the Saints supporters backsides hitting the floor as the Zurich Premiership rug had been pulled out from under us yet again. (Leeds 26 Saints 21)

Just when we thought all was well and good in the world, after the resounding win over Llanelli Scarlets in the Heineken Cup last week, than we are rudely brought back to earth with a bump with yet another loss in the ZP and at that yet another game we should have won.

Ten weeks into the season and we have already lost more Zurich games than we did in the whole of the last term. Our worst run since our relegation season of 94/95. The rumblings from some sections of the Saints support are again starting to gather pace with some calling for heads to roll before it’s too late.

That’s not something I would subscribe too in the current climate as we could well find ourselves in a worse position if any such action divided the club and the talk from some of a dream coaching team of ex-players could in the short term do more harm than good not only to the club but to those being thrown in at the deep end and any possible future coaching ambitions they may have. Much as some would like to believe that returning heroes could save the day the only quick fix can come from the personnel already in place.

One things for sure the spirit can be there by the spade full as we saw in the Llanelli game last week and yet again you cannot fault the guys effort but we still seem to struggle in getting the ball over the whitewash and at times we still seem bereft of ideas which is all the more frustrating given that Scarlets victory.

However being ever the optimist I’m still backing the lads to turn it round but there does now surely have to be a reappraisal of our season and its aims.

The harsh reality is that the Zurich championship is now almost certainly already out of our reach with six defeats so early on. Qualification for next years Heineken Cup now must surely be the main aim, but then isn’t it always? To not qualify would be a disaster not only on the playing side but also as a business and would any of those international players we are rumoured to be talking to be interested in joining a club in the secondary competition? If this were to happen I’m sure those rumblings about drastic measures would be heard above all else at season end.

We now go into a run of three ZP games before our attention turns back to Europe and a double figure haul of points at the very least must be the target. We start with London Irish at home on Saturday, again a must win game. Irish have always been a bit of bogey side for us, indeed they were the only side to win here in the league last year, but all past history means nothing, as does the previous six games, come 12:30 on Saturday we have to throw everything and the kitchen sink at them. We simply have to win, no ifs no buts or we could well entertain Worcester the week after as underdogs. That simply cannot be allowed to happen.

WASPS, WHAT'S THE PROBLEM?

Just what is it with Wasps and the Saints? Not content with Warren Gatland questioning Northamptons selection policies a few weeks back now shy and retiring Lawrence Dallaglio has got in on the act. The former England captain suggests that Saints are doing nothing for the England cause by having Corne Krige at skipper instead of Steve Thompson.

Not that it’s any of his business but just like his boss Dallaglio doesn’t look at himself and his own club before spouting forth. He suggests that Corne is blocking young England hopefuls getting skipper practice but guess who is captain at Wasps? Yes Dallaglio. Now he’ll never play for England again, having given the job up, so will he be standing aside to let a young English player get a grounding in the art of captainship at Wasps. No of course not, it’s a plain case of do as I say not do as I do and if you can disrupt another club into the bargain all well and good.

To his credit, when questioned Wally was very diplomatic on the subject and thanked Dallaglio for thinking so highly of him while making the point that he will learn an awful lot while serving as vice captain alongside Corne just as he had from Pat Lam.

Diplomacy has never been my strong point though so I’ll just put Dallaglio’s remarks down to someone talking out their backside.

THE FALLEN

Tomorrow, the 11th is Armistice Day and I make no apologies in repeating something I wrote about Edgar Mobbs a year ago. On Saturday there will be the traditional wreath laying and minutes silence at the Gardens before the reading of those few short lines that say so much ‘When you go home, think of us and say, For your tomorrow, we gave our today.’ Its always a very moving occasion and one of those long held traditions that still makes the Gardens that special. Every year my thoughts go not only to family members lost but to ‘one of our own’, Edgar Mobbs.

Having captained both Saints and England early this century Edgar was denied an officers commission because he was considered too old at 32.

However being a resourceful chap he went away and set up his own battalion, the 7th of the Northamptonshire Regiment more famously known as The Sportsman Battalion as many of its volunteers came from local sporting clubs, including the Saints. Despite being wounded on three separate occasions he always returned to action until the Third Battle of Ypres, known as Passchendaele in 1917.

The battle saw over 400,000 casualties. Colonel Edgar Mobbs was one of them. Attacking a machine gun post that was holding up his infantry he got within thirty yards before he was mown down in a hail of German bullets. Despite his injuries he managed to write down the location of the post before he died, an action that saved many of his men. It was his final act, his body was never found and he still lies where he fell.

So on Saturday when Geoff Allen reads the time honoured tribute just pause and spare a thought for those hundreds of thousands of Edgars from all walks of life that never made it home.

November 3 2004

Northampton Saints - Thoughts from the Chron
By Chris Gleadell
November 3 2004

Well all is well again in the world of the Saints. We’ve hopped off that terminal ghost train of a season and happily jumped on the merry-go-round and after Saturdays performance against Llanelli Scarlets merry is certainly a very apt word.

It was one of those days at the Gardens that will live long in the memory with almost a packed house and both team and supporters on song. After an early onslaught from the Welsh side the Saints took the game by the scruff of the neck and took the game to the Scarlets virtually sealing the win in five power packed minutes before half time. With first Darren Fox then Wylie Human scoring scorching tries to send Saints in at half time you could almost sense a tangible sigh of relief from the crowd that we were indeed back on track.

Wylie, who is fast becoming a crowd favourite, rounded off the game with a superb Paul Grayson and Bruce Reihana crafted try to put Saints out of sight a couple of minutes before the end. That score almost took the roof off the stands such was the noise inside and at game end the players took a very well deserved standing ovation.

Ben Cohen was back to his best and will be giving Andy Robinson food for thought this week. The Wylie, Bruce and Ben combination seems to work well as a back three unit. The return of Larry at 10 steadied the ship while Sharky at scrumhalf was a thorn in the Scarlets side all afternoon. The forwards had their best game as a pack this season.
Props Chris Budgen and Tom Smith were effective in both the tight and the loose while Damian Browne in the second row added a large abrasive presence we seem to have been missing for the last couple of years.
The backrow of Foxy, Andy Blowers and skipper Corne krige just about covered every inch of the Gardens and didn’t let Llanelli settle all afternoon.

Finally everything seems to have dropped into place. There was no apprehension or visible frustration from the team that we had seen in previous weeks, a great weight looked like it had been lifted from certain shoulders and above all the guys not only looked like they were playing for each other but looked like they were having a great time doing it.

Given the reaction of the crowd and the intensity of the support I think for the first time maybe some of the new guys really now know what it is like to be Saintsman.

Wylie laughing with the crowd, the wide wide grin on Damians face and the way Corne celebrated the last try spoke volumes about them and us as a club. That faith has returned, now lets take that form back into the Zurich Premiership.

A CREDIT TO THEIR CLUB

The fun was not over for some of us at the final whistle as sizable group of Scarlets supporters made their way to the Bus Club after the game. Far from being down after their teams performance they were determined to have a good time whatever. From teens to a 74 year old grandmother who sat at our table, not only were they singing from their own book of songs including Sospan Fach and Calon Lan but they also gave a liberal rousing of our club song and praise for Northampton as being the ‘One team in England’ They encouraged all to join in, anything from hymns and arias to Tom Jones and three hours later they were still at it and everybody both Saint and Scarlet had a great afternoon, my sore throats a testament to that. Given certain problems at last years game not only were the crowd from Llanelli a credit to their club they were a credit their country and the game itself.

On leaving one Welsh chap mentioned to me that despite their loss they had a great time and been made to feel more than welcome and invited us all to meet up with them in the return leg but the thing that I’ll remember was him commenting that in the closing moments of the game the singing of ‘Oh When The Saints’ made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. From a Welshman there’s probably no greater compliment.

SWH3

The night before the Scarlets game there was a final fund raising event for this years Saints with Heart in aid of the British Heart foundation at The End, Southbridge.
Everyone there seemed to enjoy the night but the biggest cheer was when Maggie Barwell, Keiths wife, won a pair of tickets for Leicester Tigers.
There was a good turnout and the raffle and auctions added to donations already made took this years total to over £20,000. A final figure will be published in December but so far we have doubled last years total. A big well done to all involved in the organisation of this years events and an even bigger thank you to those of you who donated.
We are already making plans for events next year, watch this space for details.

LOOKING FORWARD

It’s back to the bread and butter of the Zurich Premiership this week for Saints as they travel up to Yorkshire to play Leeds on Friday night. The Tykes are having a bit of a mixed bag of so far this season but with them going out of European competition last weekend to Dean Richards Grenoble they have just the ZP on their mind and could be a tough nut to crack. However I’m taking the lads to continue their new found form and come home with the spoils.

For those travelling up independently remember to allow yourselves plenty of time given the weight of traffic on the M1 on Friday afternoons.