Northampton Saints 17 Nottingham 10

Northampton Saints expected a tough game, but few would have expected to come so close to seeing their 100% record slip away.

All the more so as Nottingham played the entire second half a man short following a red card for Joe Duffey. Any thoughts of a landslide though were swept aside as Nottingham put together what Glenn Delaney described as the best defensive performance of the season.

As if that were not enough, Nottingham finished the game camped in the home 22 and had a good case for a penalty try that could have brought a draw.

It was a magnificent effort all round, one that left every Nottingham supporter bursting with pride. A strong start from the home side saw New Zealand international Bruce Reihana kick a brace of penalties.

But as Nottingham began to get into the game they caused a few problems for their hosts, particularly at the lineout. Another spell of pressure from Saints looked likely to produce a score but when the ball fell loose Tim Usasz hacked it forward to set up a race that took play back into the home 22.

The defence cleared to touch, but the Nottingham pack got its reward with a pushover try from the resulting lineout, prop Matt Parr celebrating his 50th league game for the club and David Jackson giving them a one point lead a minute before the break with the conversion.

But then came the incident which changed the game as Saints hit straight back.

Duffey got a red card for allegedly stamping, and Reihana’s last kick of the half put his side back in front at 9-7. Duffey’s card meant Nottingham had to bring on a front row forward for the second half.

That in turn meant sacrificing winger Andy Savage, which left them seriously exposed down the right. And so what was already a difficult task should have become an impossibility. But the landslide many Saints supporters anticipated never happened. Joe Ansbro crossed ten minutes into the second half, but the longer the game went on the stronger the Nottingham defence became. Saints went close several times, with one shuddering try saving tackle from Tim Molenaar on former Green and White hero Mark Easter the highlight.

The frustration among the home crowd also grew, and there was considerable relief when Reihana slotted over his fourth penalty of the day to open up a seven point lead with a couple of minutes of normal time remaining. But it was Nottingham who finished the game on the attack, forcing a lineout in the home 22 and going for the drive.

With Saints penalised for pulling the first maul down the kick brought a closer lineout, and an even stronger drive. Saints supporters held their breath - the Green Army urged their heroes on. But somehow the defence held them up and eventually forced an error to regain possession and clear, signalling the final whistle.

But every Saint - player and supporter - knew how close they had come to losing their 100% record.

Nottingham: Jackson; Savage (Loney), Molenaar, Smith, Dodge (Nirmalendran); Thompson, Usasz (Pilgrim); Parr (Hopkins), Duffey, Hall, Rouse, Morley (Stannard), Hammond (capt), Sherriff, Montague. Try: Parr. Conv: Jackson. Pen: Jackson.