🔗 Share this article

This English town isn't exactly the most exotic spot in the world, but its rugby union team delivers a great deal of romance and adventure.

In a place renowned for boot‑making, you might expect punting to be the Northampton's main approach. Yet under the director of rugby Phil Dowson, the side in the club's hues prefer to keep ball in hand.

Although representing a distinctly UK location, they exhibit a flair synonymous with the greatest French practitioners of attacking rugby.

Since Dowson and the head coach Sam Vesty took over in 2022, the Saints have claimed victory in the English top flight and gone deep in the continental tournament – losing to Bordeaux-Bègles in last season’s final and ousted by Dublin-based club in a last-four clash earlier.

They sit atop the Prem table after four wins and a draw and travel to Ashton Gate on matchday as the just one without a loss, aiming for a maiden victory at Bristol's home since 2021.

It would be expected to think Dowson, who featured in 262 top-flight fixtures for Newcastle, Northampton and Worcester in total, always planned to be a coach.

“During my career, I didn't really think about it,” he remarks. “Yet as you age, you realise how much you love the rugby, and what the real world is like. I had a stint at a banking firm doing a trial period. You make the journey a several occasions, and it was challenging – you realise what you have going for you.”

Discussions with former mentors culminated in a role at Northampton. Move forward several seasons and Dowson manages a roster increasingly packed with national team players: Tommy Freeman, Fraser Dingwall, Alex Mitchell and Alex Coles lined up for the national side versus the New Zealand two weeks ago.

The young flanker also had a profound impact from the replacements in the national team's successful series while the number ten, down the line, will inherit the No 10 jersey.

Is the development of this exceptional cohort attributable to the team's ethos, or is it fortune?

“It's a mix of each,” says Dowson. “I’d credit an ex-coach, who basically just threw them in, and we had challenging moments. But the exposure they had as a collective is definitely one of the reasons they are so close-knit and so skilled.”

Dowson also namechecks his predecessor, another predecessor at Franklin’s Gardens, as a key figure. “I was lucky to be guided by exceptionally insightful individuals,” he adds. “Jim had a significant influence on my professional journey, my management style, how I interact with people.”

Saints execute attractive football, which was clearly evident in the example of the French fly-half. The Frenchman was a member of the opposing team beaten in the European competition in last season when Freeman scored a triple. He liked what he saw enough to reverse the trend of British stars heading across the Channel.

“A friend rang me and remarked: ‘There’s a fly-half from France who’s seeking a side,’” Dowson recalls. “I replied: ‘We lack the money for a French fly-half. A different option will have to wait.’

‘He desires new challenges, for the opportunity to prove his worth,’ my contact informed me. That caught my attention. We met with Anthony and his English was outstanding, he was eloquent, he had a witty personality.

“We questioned: ‘What do you want from this?’ He answered to be trained, to be challenged, to be outside his comfort zone and beyond the domestic competition. I was saying: ‘Welcome aboard, you’re a great person.’ And he turned out to be. We’re blessed to have him.”

Dowson comments the 20-year-old Pollock brings a particular energy. Has he coached anyone similar? “Never,” Dowson replies. “Everyone’s original but Pollock is different and unique in many ways. He’s fearless to be who he is.”

Pollock’s breathtaking try against Leinster in the past campaign demonstrated his unusual talent, but a few of his demonstrative during matches antics have brought allegations of arrogance.

“At times appears overconfident in his behavior, but he’s not,” Dowson says. “And Pollock is not taking the piss constantly. In terms of strategy he has input – he’s no fool. I believe at times it’s shown that he’s merely a joker. But he’s bright and great to have in the squad.”

Not many managers would claim to have having a bromance with a colleague, but that is how Dowson describes his connection with Sam Vesty.

“Sam and I have an inquisitiveness regarding various topics,” he notes. “We have a literary circle. He wants to see everything, aims to learn everything, desires to try varied activities, and I believe I’m the similar.

“We converse on many subjects outside the sport: cinema, books, thoughts, culture. When we played our French rivals previously, the landmark was being done up, so we had a brief exploration.”

One more date in Gall is looming: The Saints' return with the domestic league will be short-lived because the Champions Cup intervenes soon. The French side, in the shadow of the mountain range, are the initial challenge on the coming weekend before the Pretoria-based club travel to the following weekend.

“I refuse to be presumptuous to the extent to {