Match Report: Northampton Saints 34-32 Munster Rugby

A Tom Seabrook hat-trick sealed a bonus point win for Northampton Saints, as they secured a home knock-out clash with a dramatic 34-32 victory over Munster Rugby in the Investec Champions Cup. 

Saints scored five tries in the final round of the European pool stages – sending over Curtis Langdon in the first half and James Ramm in the second, alongside Seabrook’s triple to top Pool 3.

An early Calvin Nash brace and a Jack Crowley penalty saw Munster ahead at the break, and while Diarmuid Kilgallen added two in the second half, Seabrook’s third try proved to be enough for the hosts to hold onto victory.

FIRST HALF:

Saints piled the pressure on Munster in the game’s early stages, but it took until the 13th minute for the men in Black, Green and Gold to break through Munster’s line, when space opened up for Seabrook to dive over on the left. 

Smith’s conversion went wide and though Saints kept the pressure on, it was a moment of individual brilliance that saw Nash send a grubber through and win the footrace to the ball to score Munster’s opener. 

Crowley added the conversion to put Munster two points up and that lead would stretch to five just moments later, when Saints were found offside at the breakdown and Crowley sent the resulting penalty through the posts. 

Nash grabbed a second on the half-hour mark as Munster built the phases in Saints’ 22 to open space for the winger out wide but the away side found themselves down to 14 for the half’s final play, when Gavin Coombes was shown a yellow card for Munster’s repeated infringements.

Saints made sure they had the last word of the first half, sending a rumbling maul forwards from the resulting lineout – with Langdon dotting down at the base to send the teams in at 12-15. 

SECOND HALF:

Saints pushed back in front ten minutes into the second half, when Seabrook claimed his second of the afternoon – diving over out wide after a period of pressure from Northampton. 

That pressure was turned more points for the men in Black, Green and Gold in the 54th minute. Saints’ forwards got the maul rolling again, before Alex Mitchell sent the ball out left and Fin Smith was there to tap the ball out to a sprinting Ramm out wide.

Crowley and Smith exchanged penalties on the hour mark, and Munster closed the gap to just two points shortly after when Kilgallen shot through a gap in Saints’ line to score Munster’s third. 

But Saints hit straight back, as Seabrook shot cleanly through a gap in Munster’s line and sprinted in unopposed for his hat-trick score. 

Smith’s conversion made it 34-25 to Saints and the men in Black, Green and Gold looked set for another when Ramm hacked through Munster’s line and won the race to the ball. But Munster’s defence held firm and it was the away side’s turn to heap the pressure on Saints – eventually sending Kilgallen over for a second after building the phases in Saints’ 22. 

Another Crowley conversion closed the deficit to two points with just a minute remaining, but a trademark Henry Pollock turnover as the clock entered the red proved enough to seal the win for Saints. 

Northampton have secured a home Round of 16 tie in the next round of the Investec Champions Cup, with Saints’ opposition to be confirmed after the remaining matches in Round 4. 

Before then, Saints will return to Gallagher Premiership action – facing Harlequins on the road at Twickenham Stoop. 

LINE-UPS:

Saints: 15 Ramm, 14 Freeman, 13 Dingwall (c), 12 Hutchinson, 11 Seabrook, 10 F Smith, 9 Mitchell; 1 Haffar, 2 C Langdon, 3 Davison, 4 Coles, 5 Lockett, 6 Kemeny, 7 Pearson, 8 Augustus. 
Replacements: 16 Walker, 17 West, 18 Green, 19 Hunter-Hill, 20 Scott-Young, 21 Pollock, 22 James, 23 Litchfield. 

Munster: 15 Haley, 14 Nash, 13 Farrell, 12 Scannell, 11 Kilgallen, 10 Crowley, 9 Murray; 1 Bleuler, 2 Barron, 3 Jager, 4 Wycherley, 5 Beirne (c), 6 O’Mahony, 7 Kendellen, 8 Coombes.
Replacements: 16 Scannell, 17 Ryan, 18 Archer, 19 Ahern, 20 O’Donoghue, 21 Patterson, 22 Butler, 23 Gleeson.