While Angus Scott-Young was frustrated with Northampton Saints’ 54-33 loss to Leicester Tigers last weekend, the stand-in captain was delighted to see Saints’ younger squad members get a shot in the Premiership Rugby Cup.
The 27-year-old Australian captained Northampton for second time in his career in the clash and proved to be one of Saints’ most senior players in the matchday squad with his 63 appearances in Black, Green and Gold.
The performances of some of Saints’ younger stars – including the likes of Will Glister, George Makepeace-Cubitt and Billy Pasco – impressed at Mattioli Woods Welford Road; and while the result did not go Northampton’s way, Scott-Young insisted that the experience will have been invaluable for development.
Of Saints’ youngsters, he said: “I just told them to not be frantic and that it was a great opportunity to get out there and play at Welford Road in a derby.
“It’s probably a big game for a lot of the young guys and there were some nerves, so they just had to figure out how to calm their mind to play the game.”
Angus Scott-Young
“We saw glimpses of good things but there's obviously some development still to go.
“It was a great crowd, a great atmosphere and the rivalry is quite aggressive at times so I'm sure they will have enjoyed that experience and they’ll definitely grow from it.
“It's good to see the next generation get on the park and do their stuff.”
A slow start cost Saints as Tigers stretched out to a 21-0 lead, and while Northampton rallied to send Tom James over for a hat-trick alongside scores from Glister and Fyn Brown, a further three Leicester tries put a comeback out of reach.
For Scott-Young, while Saints’ discipline let Northampton down against Leicester, the reaction of the squad to that early deficit and desire to stay in the fight was pleasing.
“We didn’t start very well,” Scott-Young said. “Our discipline was pretty poor from the get-go, penalty after penalty didn't help us to get into the game and get any momentum.
“There was Dan Cole, Ben Youngs, guys who have played around 100 Tests for England, and it's the beauty of the PRC.
“There were guys who have played international rugby for decades playing against 18, 19-year-olds and our guys did stand up to the challenge.
“I’m proud of the way we fought back before and after half-time and there were glimpses there of if we get our shape right and play how we want to play, we can score at will.
“It’s just a matter of ‘how do we get our minds right to get sustained periods of our game on the pitch?’”
Saints dropped to second in Pool B after the weekend’s results but remain level on points with this week’s opposition Coventry Rugby – with the two sides set to lock horns in a top-of-table decider at cinch Stadium at Franklin’s Gardens on Saturday 8 February (kick-off: 2.45pm).
Northampton came out 19-10 victors when they faced Coventry at Butts Park Arena earlier this season, and Scott-Young knows Saints are in for a tough challenge for the reverse fixture this weekend in Northampton.
Scott-Young said: “They’re a good team and it will be a physical challenge for sure back at Franklin's Gardens.
“I’m looking forward to it. I’m a big fan of this PRC block because we can just focus on ourselves and try to get better so we’re looking forward to the challenge of Coventry this week.”
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