Fun and frustration: Tom Vickers' review of Saints' 2022

Because up until early March it looked like the black, green and gold would not secure the top-four finish they craved - and now they have returned to square one.

Between times, Saints showed more than flashes of what they are capable of when they get it all right.

They secured six bonus-point wins in the space of just seven league games, soaring into the Premiership play-off semi-finals in sensational fashion.

They had more than a sniff of beating the team who would eventually lift the title as chances came and went against Leicester Tigers at Mattioli Woods Welford Road in June.

That game was the microcosm of Saints’ 2022.

So near, so far and certainly no cigar.

Chris Boyd’s team, which has become Phil Dowson’s side, have dazzled at times.

But for all the tries they have scored - prior to last weekend they had notched more than any other outfit in the Gallagher Premiership this season - it is the ones they have conceded and the ones that have eluded them that the past 12 months will be remembered for.

Saints should have been out of sight at Tigers in June, but they left the door open and the old foe waltzed through it to Twickenham and title glory.

It was hoped that, under Dowson, the black, green and gold could really kick on.

That they could continue to ride the wave that saw them recover from three successive agonising defeats to mount the trophy charge earlier in the year.

The coaches called on their prodigious players to come of age.

Assistant coach Matt Ferguson summed it up when he tasked his young props to metamorphose from decent Premiership players to dominant ones.

But that has still to happen.

Saints have fallen back further than where they were in February in recent weeks, failing to win games and slipping down the standings at home and abroad.

Their defence and discipline has left a lot to be desired, while their razor-sharp attacking style has been blunted, making it easy for big teams to bag wins against them.

They came so close to a statement success at Saracens last month, but, after being 39-17 up, they shipped 28 unanswered points late on after being hit by two sin-binnings.

And the damage done at StoneX Stadium lingered into December, with defeats against Gloucester, La Rochelle and Munster hitting Dowson’s side hard.

They continue to struggle to record wins against the clubs they would hope to compete with for trophies.

And there seem to be far more questions than answers at the Gardens as 2023 arrives.

There are three gargantuan league games in January, most likely deciding the course that the season takes.

If Saints can turn the tide against Harlequins, Exeter and Leicester, they can bring the fun back for their fans.

And that has to be the main aim at the end of a year that at one point promised so much but eventually delivered so little.