Following a 22-20 victory over Saracens in the Premiership semi-final at Franklin’s Gardens on Friday, here are the player ratings for Northampton Saints.
15 George Furbank: Lovely pass for Burger Odendaal’s try and he was also a solid presence under the high ball. Linked up nicely with Fin Smith. 7
14 Tommy Freeman: Couldn’t quite break through with ball in hand but his aerial work was superb, helping the Saints to get on the front foot. 7
13 Burger Odendaal: Excellent line for the try while he added physicality in the midfield, forming a nice partnership with Fraser Dingwall at centre. 7
12 Fraser Dingwall: A classy player at Premiership level where he rarely makes a mistake. Often takes the right option and that was important in a game of this magnitude. 7
11 Ollie Sleightholme: Unlucky not to score a try when he chipped through. Grew into the encounter, but couldn’t quite continue his Saints form from the previous few weeks. 6
Test class half-backs
10 Fin Smith: Continues to impress. Enjoyed a great battle with his opposite number, the great Saracen Owen Farrell, where both players made the odd error but ultimately ended with positive contributions. 7
9 Alex Mitchell: Once again, Mitchell was a livewire who was a real threat around the fringes. Was somehow denied a great try by the brilliant Juan Martin Gonzalez, but that didn’t detract from an immense performance. 8
8 Juarno Augustus: Utterly bruising on both sides of the ball and is surely propelling himself into Springboks contention, especially with Jasper Wiese out. 8
7 Tom Pearson: A mixed game from the talented openside, who gave away a couple of penalties but also had a couple of nice moments.
6 Courtney Lawes (c): Not the 9/10 display we’ve perhaps become accustomed to from the great England forward but still pretty damn good. Didn’t quite get the reward at the breakdown but still found ways to impact the match. 7
Dominant front five
5 Alex Coles: Huge in defence where he was the game’s top tackler. Also had a couple of nice moments with ball in hand. 7
4 Alex Moon: Quieter than his locking partner but still effective enough to end in credit. 6
3 Trevor Davison: An underrated player that has been mightily effective for Northampton, especially in recent weeks. Controlled the battle with Mako Vunipola. 7
2 Curtis Langdon: Should be going to New Zealand with England after a stunning season and was once again excellent here. 8
1 Alex Waller: A Northampton legend who was excellent in his final home match. Got a deserved standing ovation from the crowd after dominating the set-piece. 7
Replacements: The scrum effectively won the game for them with Emmanuel Iyogun and Elliot Millar-Mills making big contributions. Lewis Ludlam also shone off the bench but it was those two props that made the difference in the final quarter. 8
READ MORE: Fin Smith kicks 17 points as Northampton Saints knock out Saracens in Premiership semi-final