Bristol Bears 18 Northampton Saints 17: Tom Vickers' review and player ratings

A penny for the thoughts of the Saints players as they stood, hands on hips, and watched the ball bisect the posts in the final seconds at Bristol on Friday night.
Saints were left shell-shocked as Bristol snatched the victorySaints were left shell-shocked as Bristol snatched the victory
Saints were left shell-shocked as Bristol snatched the victory

It was such a cruel conclusion on an evening when it looked like the misery may finally end.

But in the end, it was the most miserable denouement of them all.

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Sam Bedlow, full credit to him, stepped off the bench and slotted the penalty that stuck another knife in Saints hearts.

David Ribbans was hugely influential for SaintsDavid Ribbans was hugely influential for Saints
David Ribbans was hugely influential for Saints

The Bristol fly-half had been due to start but dropped to the bench due to an injury niggle.

And his replacement, Tiff Eden, endured a tough night, missing a couple of what appeared to be crucial penalties during the second period.

Finally, it seemed, Saints, who went into the game on a nine-match losing streak, were riding their luck to good effect.

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But on came Bedlow and to the TMO went referee Luke Pearce, punishing Saints prop Ehren Painter for what he felt was a deliberate knock-on in a dramatic final few seconds.

Sam Bedlow was mobbed by his team-mates after landing the winning penaltySam Bedlow was mobbed by his team-mates after landing the winning penalty
Sam Bedlow was mobbed by his team-mates after landing the winning penalty

You felt, as soon as the penalty was given, that it would be landed.

Such has Saints' luck been in recent times, there was only ever going to be one outcome.

But the old phrase that you make your own luck in this game is true.

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And Saints should, quite frankly, never have been in such a precarious position late on.

For a start, they had Bristol seemingly going nowhere on halfway.

And had the white wall stood its ground, Bristol would not have got into position to kick a penalty.

But Piers O'Conor, who had breathed new life into Bristol with a tidy try eight minutes from time, broke through, a penalty was given as Saints panicked and Bedlow broke their hearts.

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Saints had raced into a 14-0 lead in the match, with David Ribbans and Piers Francis epitomising the early desire their team showed as they both scored fine tries.

But Bristol crept back into the game, slowly but surely, and had it not been for a knock-on from scrum-half Andy Uren, they too would have had two tries in the first half.

The second period was far from what Saints would have wanted.

They conceded an alarming amount of penalties at the scrum and their lineout continued to falter badly.

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Any time they got any field position, they threw the ball away at the set piece.

And ultimately, that proved to be their undoing.

Because you can't score just three points in the final 65 minutes of a Premiership match and expect to win.

You can hope, but you can't expect.

And so it proved.

Yes, the defence was so much better at times.

And yes, the character and spirit was on show.

But, make no mistake, this was ultimately a huge opportunity missed.

Saints were missing a few stars, including Courtney Lawes and Dan Biggar, but Bristol were missing a laundry list of them.

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The Bears were down to the bare bones, so much so that Henry Purdy, who was a scorer on the night, was making his first ever Premiership appearance at full-back.

Saints had players of real pedigree on the pitch.

They had plenty of experience.

But what they didn't have was the kind of belief that they possessed a year ago.

That may sound harsh given how close they came to victory.

But had they had the kind of confidence they enjoyed just a year earlier, this game would have been put to bed far, far sooner.

Instead, they allowed Bristol to boss the second half, and the scrum in particular.

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And it was the same old story of when one area - this time it was defence - improves, another - this time it was the set piece - let them down.

Yes, they could take plenty from this match in terms of spirit and pushing Bristol all the way on their own patch.

But, crucially, they couldn't take the four points they badly wanted and needed.

What they must take though, is some extra belief.

Because they are going to need that in abundance as they once again adopt the underdog tag in Europe during the next two weeks.

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Saints won't be allowed to ship so many penalties and get away with it against the likes of Bordeaux and Leinster.

And perhaps what happened late on at Bristol is a warning for what lies ahead.

Now Saints need to learn that lesson and hope a change of scenery works wonders, especially with fans set to come back through the Franklin's Gardens doors on Friday.

How they rated...

AHSEE TUALA

Couldn't really make the inroads he wanted as Bristol kept an eye on his footwork and prevented him breaking through... 6

MATT PROCTOR

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Was beaten by Henry Purdy for the first Bristol try but there wasn't too much he could have done about that and, overall, he defended well and looked lively... 6.5

PIERS FRANCIS

Was absolutely everywhere during the first half as he showed impressive desire in defence and attack, which was epitomised by his try, in which he beat three Bears players to the ball. Such a shame to see him have to go off two minutes into the second half... 7.5

RORY HUTCHINSON

Was tested defensively by Bristol but looked ready to create when he got the chance and he will be important for Saints going forward... 6

TOM COLLINS

Not the result he wanted on his 100th appearance but he did show flashes of class, particularly in tight spaces... 6

JAMES GRAYSON

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A more composed display from the fly-half, who kicked what came his way and defended well at times... 6.5

HENRY TAYLOR

A couple of his kicks didn't quite work out but he was very sharp with ball in hand, helping Saints to set a good early tempo... 6.5

ALEX WALLER

The co-captain looked desperate to deliver a result for his team and he showed plenty of spirit throughout... 6

REECE MARSHALL

Was clearly relishing being part of the action before an unfortunate collision led to him having to be replaced early in the second half... 6

OWEN FRANKS

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Enjoyed a really good first half as he won a crucial scrum penalty to help Saints escape and did well around the field, but he started to be penalised far more in the second period... 5.5

DAVID RIBBANS - CHRON STAR MAN

Showed his England pedigree here with a performance that included turnovers and a tidy try that needed power, good footwork and sheer determination... 7.5

API RATUNIYARAWA

A real shift from the Fiji lock as he tried to steamroller Bristol while also showing good skills to help Saints go ahead early on... 7

NICK ISIEKWE

Dropped the kick-off but improved after that and didn't make too many mistakes as he used his power well on a couple of occasions... 6

LEWIS LUDLAM

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A really strong showing from the co-captain as he won several breakdown penalties and put so much effort into this... 7.5

TOM WOOD

What an engine this man has as he thundered around the field for the full 80 minutes and did everything he could to try to get his team over the line... 7

Replacements (who played more than 20 minutes)

FRASER DINGWALL (for Francis 42)

Certainly brought plenty of energy to proceedings and this was a strong showing from the bench... 6

JAMES FISH (for Marshall 44)

Wasn't able to help Saints to steady the lineout though he showed some nice touches when on the ball... 5

FRANCOIS VAN WYK (for Waller 55)

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Tried to push Bristol back with some strong carries but they stood up to him well and turned the screw at scrum time... 5

EHREN PAINTER (for Franks 55)

An agonising moment for the young prop late on as he conceded the penalty that won Bristol the game, but before that he hadn't done too much wrong... 4

ALEX MITCHELL (for Taylor 55)

Added a real spark and placed one superb kick into the corner that Saints failed to take advantage of... 6.5

TAQELE NAIYARAVORO (for Collins 59)

Wasn't really able to get in the game as Saints spent much of the time he was on the field on the back foot... 5