Hartley wants more of the same
Northampton captain Dylan Hartley has called for more of the same after his side's opening day win over Leicester.
Northampton beat the defending Premiership champions in convincing fashion by running out 27-19 winners to give themselves a perfect start to the league campaign this season.
Hartley now wants the side to maintain their momentum going in to further Premiership matches as well as the start of the Heineken Cup. This will be very important for Northampton if they want to continue the momentum they have now created.
There are many areas of the game Northampton played well in against Leicester. They must continue these positive areas and make sure they don't allow any unforced errors to creep in.
A solid performance
Northampton's win over Leicester was a solid performance but not a spectacular one. The team defended very well and set their stall out to be very difficult to break down.
All of the Northampton players moved the ball well during the whole match. This was very important in setting up tries and stretching the Leicester team who started to look a little bit tired late on in the game. The quicker Northampton move the ball, the harder they are to defend against.
The whole atmosphere around the ground for the game with Leicester was positive. Northampton has always enjoyed great home support from fans and this was evident again. It created a very hostile environment for Leicester to play in.
Hartley said: "It's a special achievement, seeing off a pack as powerful as Leicester's, so we are feeling good inside. They are a quality side so the victory is excellent. This is the perfect start to the season, a reward for our hard work and a positive attitude. Now it's up to us to build on this."
The next step
The next step for Northampton will be to take this sort of form on the road when the club plays away games. They are well respected for their home record but often make too many unforced errors when they aren't playing on their own turf. These unforced errors could turn out to be the difference between winning and losing for the club.
Each win creates more confidence and this is only a positive issue. However, it's important the side proves that the win over Leicester was not just a one-off and that the club possesses the quality needed to win consistently over a long season. Momentum is everything and if the club loses the next game then it will render the win over Leicester as a pointless victory.
Director of rugby Jim Mallinder added: "It was about a good combination of forwards and backs and we ran at their weaknesses, at the heart of them. To see both props scoring tries is very pleasing because we want our props to be good in the tight, but also around the field. You won't get much better than that this season, three tries from two props."
Betting advice
This win over Leicester is a very early indication that Northampton are more than capable of being able to win against the bigger and better sides in the Premiership. Have a punt on them to win the league if you were impressed by what you saw during this match.
Avoid betting on the props in the side to maintain their points scoring. It's not very often that props dominate the scoring in a game and Mallinder is quite right when he says there may be no more examples of props scoring all the tries during a game this season.
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