'It's going to be a strange one' - Gibson looks ahead to Saints' clash with Tigers

Because a fixture that traditionally feeds from the frenzy of the fans will no longer be able to do that.

Welford Road will be empty when Saints attempt to win their fourth successive Gallagher Premiership game at the venue.

And for Jamie Gibson, a man who has sampled both sides of the East Midlands divide, it is very strange to imagine what this weird derby day will be like.

"It's a massive game and it's going to be a bit funny without crowds," said former Tigers flanker Gibson.

"It's one of those games that when you walk out onto that pitch, at Franklin's Gardens or Welford Road, you normally get a tingle up your spine.

"It's going to be a strange one, probably one of the stranger ones so far, but they've rested all their players for that game and it's going to be a fight, it's going to be a battle.

"We've still got Exeter in the European but we know for Leicester it's the only game they're really going to care about for the rest of the season.

"It's chance, something to build on.

"A couple of years ago, we didn't have a great season but we beat Leicester home and away for the first time in so long and it's a platform we built from for the next couple of seasons.

"It's something to focus on and build from again."

Whereas derby days used to be fought between two teams battling for a title, this season both are just battling to be somewhere near the middle of the standings.

"It's one of those games that it doesn't matter where people are in the league, it doesn't matter who's playing, it doesn't matter what's at stake - it means everything to everyone involved," Gibson said.

"That will be the same this weekend, no matter what's going on in the table.

"We have to come out firing."

Saints and Leicester have both endured a really tough 2020.

And there was another horrible night for the black, green and gold on Tuesday, when they were beaten 47-10 at Bristol Bears.

"You can't fault any of our effort and that continued for 80 minutes but it's something that has happened since the restart that there are moments in games where we haven't pulled it together," Gibson said.

"It's not to do with effort, it's about not getting our decisions and our skills right.

"They scored two or three tries in five minutes and against a side like Bristol it means you are really catching up.

"We let it happen in the first half, then we came back for 30 minutes and held our own and could have scored a couple of tries that would have made a big difference.

"But then the same thing happened to us in the second half.

"We had a couple of young players coming off the bench, which may have given them a bit of a shock, but it's a big learning curve and they performed well.

"Josh Gillespie got his first try in his first game and it's not a bad start for him.

"It's a little bit late for us this season now but we've still got a Champions Cup quarter-final to come at Exeter and we need to learn and build and then it all starts again."

Saints have struggled to find a ruthless edge for much of the current calendar year, huffing and puffing when dominating possession in the opposition's 22.

And Gibson said: "It's a frustrating one.

"When we're outside the 22, we're very dangerous, we pull the trigger and we score tries from a long way out.

"As you get closer to the 22, there might be a criticism of trying too much and pulling the trigger too early.

"You see the sides who are good at it and they might be there for 10 minutes and they don't change what they do.

"It's one of those things we're working at, we're getting there and we just need to turn that screw and finish it off."