Northampton vs Stade Francais (EPC Qualifier - Friday 19:45 - Sky Sports 2)

[Guwuffle]

Northampton Saints

15 Ahsee Tuala
14 Ben Foden
13 Nafi Tuitavake
12 Luther Burrell
11 George North
10 Harry Mallinder
9 Nic Groom

1 Alex Waller
2 Dylan Hartley
3 Kieran Brookes
4 Courtney Lawes
5 Christian Day
6 Teimana Harrison
7 Tom Wood (capt)
8 Louis Picamoles

16 Mikey Haywood
17 Campese Ma'afu
18 Gareth Denman
19 Api Ratuniyarawa
20 Jamie Gibson
21 Lee Dickson
22 Sam Olver
23 Rory Hutchinson

Stade Francais Paris

15 Djibril Camara
14 Waisea Vuidarvuwalu
13 Geoffrey Doumayrou
12 Jonathan Danty
11 Jérémy Sinzelle
10 Jules Plisson
9 Will Genia

1 Zurabi Zhvania
2 Remi Bonfils
3 Paul Alo Emile
4 Willem Alberts
5 Paul Gabrillagues (capt)
6 Antoine Burban
7 Raphael Lakafia
8 Jonathan Ross

16 Craig Burden
17 Rabah Slimani
18 Giorgi Melikidze
19 Mathieu De Giovanni
20 Sekou Macalou
21 Clement Daguin
22 Morné Steyn
23 Herman Meyer Bosman

No Parisse seems the most notable news, suspect Stade will have a little bit too much for Saints even so unless home advantage is more of a leveller than I'm expecting.

[Adam_P]

It's a shame we wont see Picamoles vs Parisse. It's also quite bemusing why Slimani start on the bench for Stade - excellent for Saints chances in the scrum though.

[fivepointer]

Scrum dominance really told for Stade against Gloucester in the Challenge Cup final. Repeat that and Saints will find life very difficult. Gain parity and they're in with a shout as they are at home.

Cant help feeling Stade should already have qualified for the senior event as they've won the CC. Seems a bit unfair to me.

[Adam_P]

Saints getting torn up in parts of that first half, and making stupid decisions and errors when we start to look like we might do something. John Lacey is having a stinker as well, denying us an advantage that would have resulted in a try for Tuala and not noticing the forward pass from Genia for the last try.

[Adam_P]

Huge amounts of possession being coughed up by Saints trying to throw stupid offloads in every tackle

[Guwuffle]

What on earth is Wood trying to claim he was doing legally there?

Also, appalling behaviour on his way off the pitch.

[Edinburgh in Exile]

Eeeeesh, yeah. Not a great look from Wood there. Not sure what the Northampton fans are giving out about really.

Shame, thought they were getting back into this. Two dumb cards, one of them red.

[hellovating]

wood confirming what i had already thought of him.

[Adam_P]

Eeeeesh, yeah. Not a great look from Wood there. Not sure what the Northampton fans are giving out about

The Stade fullback milking it? It's a clear red card don't get me wrong, but that was some shocking play acting by Camara.

Anyway, exciting end coming!

[Edinburgh in Exile]

Eeeeesh, yeah. Not a great look from Wood there. Not sure what the Northampton fans are giving out about

The Stade fullback milking it? It's a clear red card don't get me wrong, but that was some shocking play acting by Camara.

Anyway, exciting end coming!

He had his face stood on. But yeah "cheat, cheat cheat".

Hell of a second half from Northampton. Sure they were down to 13 for about 10 minutes at one point. That's an astonishing result.

Laws looking on form.

[Adam_P]

Well he looked fine when he jumped up to give Wood a shove

[Adam_P]

Finally Saints have managed to get on the right side of a slim victory. The first half was all Stade, but Saints always seem to pick up their game when a red card is involved.

[Edinburgh in Exile]

Well he looked fine when he jumped up to give Wood a shove

Not sure how that makes any difference at all, speaking of Wood going off, take your clear red card like a man, and get off the pitch.

Seems pretty indefensible to me.

Sure, fuck it, it doesn't matter, and this is the match Fred, I'll leave you be man, congrats, if you are a Northampton fan. Have a good one.

[Timbo]

Lawes was immense. Genuinely, this season he's been the best second row in Europe.

Presumably Wood will not be touring with England now. Really hope Don Armand gets the call.

[padprop]

Foden really beginning to look his age, skinned by Camara at least 3 times (Saying that, a lot of wingers would be).

[Puja]

Well he looked fine when he jumped up to give Wood a shove

Not sure how that makes any difference at all, speaking of Wood going off, take your clear red card like a man, and get off the pitch.

Seems pretty indefensible to me.

Sure, fuck it, it doesn't matter, and this is the match Fred, I'll leave you be man, congrats, if you are a Northampton fan. Have a good one.

I'm with you; shocking behaviour from Wood. I don't blame Camara for jumping up and giving him a shove - he'd just had his face stood on by a 16st man wearing studs, who then had the gall to jeer, "He's not injured - there's nothing wrong with him. I bet he plays on. I bet he plays on. What are you taping? What've you got to tape?" on his way off the pitch.

Frankly, if someone stood on my face when I was trapped in a ruck and then accused me of lying and cheating, I'd deck the tw*t.

Puja

[p/d]

Well done Saints, fantastic result. Thought Lawes class tonight.

Still think there is discontent within the camp

[Adam_P]

No post-game announcement regarding Picamoles which I thought there might be. The saga continues. I expect we'll hear next week if he's off.

Lawes has been superb all season, now he has sorted his carrying out I really think he is the best lock in England.

[Puja]

No post-game announcement regarding Picamoles which I thought there might be. The saga continues. I expect we'll hear next week if he's off.

Lawes has been superb all season, now he has sorted his carrying out I really think he is the best lock in England.

I'd pick Lawes as a starter in my Lions actually. He really has turned into the player that we all hoped he would.

I was wondering whether, if you had lost, that would've been the end for Mallinder. Do you think that getting into the ERC has been enough to save his job?

Puja

[Adam_P]

I think we'd have been stuck with him and West regardless - although maybe the Montpellier money could be used to pay off Westy

[Guwuffle]

No post-game announcement regarding Picamoles which I thought there might be. The saga continues. I expect we'll hear next week if he's off.

Mallinder gave the standard he's under contract for two more years answer when asked about it pre-match.

[fivepointer]

Good effort by Saints to turn that around. They could have collapsed but stuck in the game and made it over the line. The yellow and Wood's red seemed to galvanise the team. Thought both Lions were terrific and lots of good things from Mallinder and, dare I say it, Burrell. Foden is finished as a top class player and Wood acted like a prize tit to his very correctly awarded red. He'll now miss out on Argentina I imagine. Yet again Gibson and Haywood made telling contributions.

[Digby]

Wood quite simply lost it. If he expects to be paid as a professional then he really should behave like one, last night whilst it's hardly the worst stamp he failed to behave as he should during play, and then failed to behave as he should once ordered from the field.

[Puja]

Mallinder (Jim) has had the gall to say that, "I've looked at the video and I don't think anyone can see Tom put his foot on the player's head." Clearly he hasn't looked at all the angles, as there is one which is clear, obvious, and blatant. It's not the worst stamp in the world and I completely believe that it was unintentional, but it definitely occurred and both Wood and his manager should have had more class about accepting the red card.

Puja

[Mikey Brown]

It's here if anybody else hadn't seen it either.

http://www.punditarena.com/rugby/rlyons ... ents-head/

What a moron. I can't work out what he was protesting about. Did he not look at the replays on the screen?

I know I shouldn't be but I'm kind of pleased that that should be his England career over for good. Good effort getting out there with a 7 on your back rather than a 6 in Haskell's absence, but England don't need this guy.