Furbank admits Saints 'weren't at the races' during first half of defeat at Bears

The black, green and gold were 35-0 down by the break as they endured a sobering start to the match.

Saints managed to score twice after half-time, but it was too little, too late as they once again took nothing from a trip to Ashton Gate, the scene of some of their biggest league defeats in recent years.

And Furbank, who skippered Saints against the Bears, said: "When Bristol are on, they're a pretty hard team to stop, and obviously with us going to 14 for 20 minutes, they got a bit of a roll on ultimately we weren't at the races for the first 40.

"We didn't move well enough and Dows (Phil Dowson) said we probably looked a bit soft as well and that's probably the most disappointing thing.

"We spoke this year about wanting to be a team that could go away from home and kick the door down and go out swinging, but we didn't do that."

Furbank added: "They're a very hard team to stop when they get going. When you're off it and they're firing, you get scorelines like it was in the first half.

"It's hard to put a finger on and I don't know whether their start shocked us.

"We've been very good in the first 20 minutes away from home this season so far, so to not be there in the first 20 on this occasion, it's a good lesson for us."

Saints wing Edoardo Todaro was shown a 20-minute red card inside the opening minute of the match as he took Sam Worsley out in the air.

There was no malice from Todaro but with the laws as they are, he was always going to have to leave the field.

"The red card did shift momentum and those situations are so unfortunate because if you watch it, he's got eyes on the ball the whole time and the guy just wins the space before he does," Furbank said.

"With the new laws, you're going to get those collisions and he was on the unlucky side of things this time.

"He'll pick himself up, he's a vey good player and we'll be excited to have him back when he comes back."

Furbank completed a full 80 minutes for the first time this season, having racked up 30 and 60 minutes on the previous two weekends.

But, despite producing some typically classy performances, he has still not tasted victory as Saints have suffered three straight defeats in all competitions, having started the season unbeaten.

"I would like an 80 minutes with a win at the end of it!" Furbank said.

"I feel like I'm trusting my body a bit more so to get 80 under my belt is nice.

"Waking up a day after a game and feeling a bit sore is a feeling you sort of miss.

"It's nice to be back, but it was a frustrating one.

"For me, it was about trusting my calf again, thinking about getting whacked and waking up and trusting the rest of my body again.

"I'm hoping I can keep building now and put a bit of a run together."

Saints will look forward to welcoming back Alex Coles, Henry Pollock and Alex Mitchell this week, having rested them against Bristol.

Next up is a huge Investec Champions Cup opener at Section Paloise on Sunday.

"We always seem to come to Bristol when we haven't got a full team so it's pretty frustrating," Furbank said.

"We'll be excited to have the (England) boys back in this week, hopefully refreshed after a week off and go into another European journey.

"In the past couple of seasons, Europe has been good to us, we've enjoyed those experiences of going away from home.

"Pau are flying at the moment and it's their first time in the Champions Cup as well so it's going to be very exciting and a good place to play."

Saints reached the Champions Cup final last season, eventually losing to Union Bordeaux Bègles in the Cardiff showpiece.

And Furbank said: "One step further would be nice!

"We've got a tough group so we'll take it game by game and hopefully make some more memories in the competition."

Saints will face a huge test against a Section Paloise side who recently won 34-33 at Bordeaux.

"They're unbelievable atmospheres and it feels more like a football atmosphere than a rugby atmosphere," Furbank said when asked about playing in France again.

"Hopefully we can relish that and go there and perform."