Northampton Saints 26 Exeter Chiefs 19: Tom Vickers' review and player ratings

"We've got to show we've got the ability to do it through the dark months," Dowson stressed, having seen his side tough it out to see off the battle-hardened Chiefs.

During the early days of Chris Boyd's reign, back in 2018, fans were enthralled by the Super Rugby swagger Saints played with but fearful that it wouldn't take them all the way.

They felt the physicality of the game during the winter months had been sidelined, meaning they wouldn't be able to win the required number of matches.

Things gradually changed, with more and more emphasis being placed on the pack as Saints developed their overall style.

And with last season's forwards coach, Dowson, placed in charge during the summer, you always knew even more focus would be placed on doing the dirty work.

That was on show on Friday night as Saints abandoned the desire to run it from everywhere, instead engaging in a clever battle with Exeter.

When speaking on BT Sport during the match, Chiefs head coach Ali Hepher admitted he had hoped Saints would run at Exeter so they could use their line-speed to its full effect.

But Saints refused to play into their hands, instead handing possession back and challenging the opposition to do something with it.

And with Exeter missing many of their usual backline threats, they looked limited, as Saints showed superb defensive resilience.

Something else Saints showed was fantastic discipline, something that had been badly lacking at the start of this campaign.

They lived up to their name, shedding their sinners tag as they stopped Exeter getting the chance to secure field position with kicks to touch.

In fact, the away side rarely looked like scoring after taking the lead early in the game.

Saints kept them at arm's length, and the only problems they had were self-inflicted.

The lineout started to fall apart during the second half, with Exeter decoding it well, and a Fraser Dingwall chip was charged down by Joe Simmonds for a score that gave the Chiefs real hope of the win.

But Saints simply would not relent.

They maintained their physicality, turned up the heat and eventually forced their way over the line for a second time thanks to the class of Alex Mitchell and Tommy Freeman.

You always knew that if the forwards could provide a platform, the backs would do the damage - and so it proved as Mitchell drew his man and Freeman finished in the corner.

It was a moment of real relief on a night when Saints deserved their win.

Now they will be tasked with producing a similarly physical and disciplined showing against Saracens as the huge challenges keep coming.

But they have now shown they can do it on a dark night at the Gardens, so don't rule them out on a Sunday afternoon at the StoneX.

How they rated...

TOMMY FREEMAN - CHRON STAR MAN - made a huge difference for Saints here, with his awareness earning him two crucial tries and a penalty that propelled his team to victory... 8.5

COURTNALL SKOSAN - did what he had to do, and his kicking was decent during the battle early in the match... 7

FRASER DINGWALL - will be frustrated to have seen his kick charged down, leading to an Exeter try, but this was a largely strong defensive showing with a couple of key grubbers thrown in... 7

RORY HUTCHINSON - wasn't really afforded the space he thrives in so often as Exeter kept the game tight while he was on the field... 7

OLLIE SLEIGHTHOLME - didn't really get a chance to make an impact as he was taken out of the game by an Olly Woodburn clear-out. It had been a kick battle up to that point... 6

FIN SMITH - two games, two huge showings from the fly-half as he kicked all his points once again and looked good in open play, too... 8.5

TOM JAMES - produced some lovely fizzing passes and helped Saints to play in the right areas of the field... 7

MANNY IYOGUN - impressive around the field and put up a good fight at scrum time as Saints hit back after a tough start in that area... 7.5

MIKE HAYWOOD - a few late lineouts went astray, but that was more down to good Exeter reads than the throws. His overall showing was superb, in attack and defence... 8

EHREN PAINTER - a really strong return to Premiership action for the prop, whose appearances for Bedford Blues clearly stood him in good stead... 7.5

LUKHAN SALAKAIA-LOTO - what a signing this man has been. He's Samu Manoa-esque in the way he goes about his business, ruling the skies and powering into contact on the ground... 8.5

ALEX MOON - got through a huge amount of work in the engine room, making tackles galore... 8

ANGUS SCOTT-YOUNG - very defensively aware as he wrapped his arms around Exeter players time and again, making a whopping 30 tackles without missing a single one... 8

AARON HINKLEY - had to have a 10-minute breather due to a sin-binning but came back on with the same fire and desire, producing another all-action performance... 8

SAM GRAHAM - won one key penalty at the breakdown to stop Exeter at a crucial time, and he was full of desire... 8

Replacements (who played more than 20 minutes)

GEORGE FURBANK (for Sleightholme 32) - will be disappointed he missed the late penalty, but he did little wrong overall, producing another good display... 7

ALEX WALLER (for Iyogun 52) - if this is what a week off does for Alex Waller, give him a few more of them. He came on and made a real impact, counter-rucking with real effect... 7.5

PAUL HILL (for Painter 52) - like Waller, this man enjoyed an impressive cameo, putting under Exeter under pressure... 7.5