It was also a match that underlined, for anybody still unaware of it, the critical importance of the lineout. Gloucester’s indomitable courage was the staple of their win, but it was Alex Brown and James Forrester, plus their supporting cast, who sealed it. They laid waste to Northampton’s lineout and enabled Duncan McRae to work the touchlines with diagonal kicks. More to the point, in the last 10 minutes, when the whole town of Northampton seemed to be beseeching Gloucester, there was one priceless lineout steal each from Brown and Forrester.
In the bizarre way of things, a man of the match award went to Selborne Boome, the Northampton forward. Yet Brown, his opposite number, did not seem particularly worried. He had played a monumental match.
It was sealed in the grandest manner. Gloucester played a thoroughly attractive game, bursting with width and ideas. Conversely, Northampton relied almost entirely on their own passion, because they created precious little in the way of continuity. So while Ben Cohen was reduced to a ball-fetching role, the likes of Marcel Garvey and James Simpson-Daniel were able to show their skills.
Gloucester were in control for almost all the first hour. They scored their first try after 22 minutes and it typified their approach: the dashing Terry Fanolua released Garvey and, when the ball was recycled, Henry Paul found Terry Sigley thundering up on the perfect angle. The bulky Sigley showed a turn of foot and put Olivier Azam, his front-row colleague, over. A drop by McRae and a penalty from Paul made it 13-6 at half-time, and even though Shane Drahm pegged back Gloucester with a penalty after 47 minutes, it was still 13-9 after 55 minutes, with Gloucester’s defence unshakeable and Northampton seemingly in danger of running out of ideas.
However, Paul missed two kickable penalties, the second of which was awarded after Simpson-Daniel had launched a regal counterattack. Perhaps it was this that spurred on Northampton because, at last, they began to run with conviction and Bruce Reihana began to hurt Gloucester out wide. And after 66 minutes, he hurt them again. Reihana escaped on a counterattack, Corne Krige and Darren Fox drove the ball on and when Forrester killed the play he was sent to the sin bin. The penalty by Drahm brought Northampton to within a point.
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By this time, the stadium was in a ferment and everybody in green scented blood. Northampton’s back row began to thunder at the Gloucester defence and space began to appear. But for all their fantastic efforts, Northampton did not have enough ideas or organisation behind the scrum, and Gloucester’s defence pulled together magnificently.
Another of those match-turning episodes came with Forrester still off the field. John Rudd, the Northampton wing, received the ball in space and picked out the relatively diminutive figure of Simpson-Daniel to run at. They came together with a fierce clatter, and Simpson-Daniel picked up his man and drove him backwards at such a rate that Rudd almost ended up in the stand. Gloucester’s bench rose in acclamation.
It was all over with what was almost the last act of the match. Gloucester’s lineout won some more possession and McRae drilled a diagonal kick towards the corner. Cohen and Steve Thompson chased back, but the electric Garvey overhauled them, sliding in for a try confirmed by the television match official. Paul hit the post with the conversion and the ball bounced away to give Northampton one more play. However, the Northampton public had seen enough and began to leave in droves.
Gloucester are now three from three — and will be worth watching. If they really have managed to perfect the trick of winning away, it will be curtains for everybody else.
STAR MAN: Alex Brown (Gloucester)
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Northampton: B Reihana; J Rudd, M Tucker, M Stcherbina, B Cohen; P Grayson (S Drahm 11min), J Howard; T Smith, S Thompson, R Kempson, S Boome, D Browne (M Lord 55min), A Blowers (D Fox 55min), G Seely, C Krige (capt)
Gloucester: J Goodridge; M Garvey, T Fanolua, H Paul, J Simpson-Daniel; D McRae, A Gomarsall; T Sigley, O Azam (C Fortey 50min), N Wood, P Buxton, A Brown, J Boer (capt), J Forrester, A Hazell (A Balding 50min)
Yellow cards: Gloucester: Forrester (62min)
Penalties: Drahm (4)
Tries: Azam 21, Garvey 78
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Conversion: Paul.
Penalty: Paul.
Drop Goal: McRae
Referee: S Lander (RFU).
Attendance: 12,093