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| Saracens 28 - Northampton Saints 24 |
By Justin Feck
Saracens extended their lead at the top of the Aviva Premiership after a tough fought match against second placed Northampton at Allianz Park.
Saracens took an early lead through David Strettle before the Saints struck back through a converted penalty try. Kelly Brown restored Sarries lead, before Marcelo Bosch landed two huge penalties to give the home side breathing space.
Bosch went over early in the second half, before the Saints fought back with tries from Burrell and North but Saracens managed to hold on for a vital victory.
In the battle of the top two teams, Saracens drew first blood with Strettle crossing to open the scoring, but Farrell failed to convert from close to the touchline.
The try sparked Northampton into life as they came thundering back, first with a Stephen Myler penalty and then a controversial penalty try awarded by referee Matthew Carley. Myler slotted over the conversion to give Saints 10-5 lead after 18 minutes.
However, their lead was to be short lived as Brown walked over after a scorching run from hooker Schalk Brits down the middle of the pitch; Farrell made amends for his previous miss and added the extras.
The moment of the half came from the boot of Bosch who landed a huge penalty from close to the halfway line, and followed it up moments later to extend Sarries lead. Farrell slotted over just before the half-time whistle to give Saracens a 21-10 lead.
Farrell failed to make it out for the second half with a foot injury, but it didn't stop Saracens from pushing on as Bosch gave them perfect start to the second half when he bundled over the line in the corner and Hodgson, who came on for the injured Farrell, slotted home the conversion.
The match saw late drama with Matt Stevens' yellow card giving Northampton the chance to strike back with two tries in the last ten minutes.
Luther Burrell broke through a disjointed Saracens defence to score although the replays showed that he only just got a finger of downward pressure on the ball, as Myler knocked over the extras to give the Saints refreshed hope of a comeback.
Almost immediately after the restart, Northampton went on the attack and George North powered over in the corner, although the TMO was brought into action to check for a knock on.
Northampton couldn't find another try to steal the points from under Saracens' noses as they held out for the 28-24 victory.