Time for Saints to push Bath up front

NORTHAMPTON are the Premiership's reigning champions, and when you are in that position you want to defend your title.

That's why today's game at Franklin's Gardens between the Saints and top-of-the-table Bath who many see as the champions in waiting-could be one of the most critical results of the season.

Win this one, and Northampton (8th) can get back in the play-off reckoning to defend their title, because at the moment, with a 13-point gap between them and Leicester (4th), the three-match swing that they require is within their grasp. But, every game Saints lose means another hurdle in their way, with the going getting heavier.

Phil Dowson's team trail Bath by 19 points, and need to turn the page by starting the New Year with a signature victory. This clash with Bath gives Northampton the chance to knock down the notion that the loss of Courtney Lawes and Lewis Ludlam in the pack, and the injury to Alex Mitchell in the backs, has left their crown up for grabs.

It's a sharp fall for Saints, and it contrasts with Exeter, below them in 9th, who were at the top of the league chasing Saracens for the best part of a decade before decline set in. It has taken Northampton only six months to slide down the table.

The difference between the two clubs this season is that whereas Exeter are almost out of the running, the quality and threat of the Northampton backline is capable of lifting them back into contention.

The Saints forwards are another matter. Their main problem is that when many of their Premiership rivals look at the Northampton pack they're thinking, "we can have a poke at this lot - they're do-able".

For instance, there's a lot of chat about Henry Pollock, and there's no doubt that he is an exciting young player. But, for me, Bath openside Sam Underhill at his best is a destructive tackler and jackler of proven Test quality.