Collins hat-trick sinks Warriors

The win was a much needed one for the Saints after their 25-26 loss to the Newcaslt Falcons last week,

In Manchester, Danny Cipriani's last-gasp conversion attempt of a Tom Arscott try went wide but Sale Sharks preserved their unbeaten home record in the Premiership this season following a see-saw draw with Saracens.

Tom Savage climbed off the bench to wrap up a bonus point as Gloucester recorded a convincing victory over Newcastle Falcons.

Northampton Saints 38-18 Worcester Warriors

The win pushes Northampton up into the top four in the Premiership but they were pushed for much of the game, and were trailing shortly before the hour.

However a strong finish, including Tom Collins' hat-trick score, proved to be the difference, with Worcester eventually going home empty-handed despite a good performance.

Early on Northampton looked the more dangerous and Collins almost had the first try only for Bryce Heem to get back and tackle him on the right.

Still, Saints continued to press but when Chris Pennell picked off a pass in midfield he was able to boot the ball clear, eventually earning a penalty which Tom Heathcote converted.

Northampton could have levelled when they got a kickable penalty in Worcester territory but instead went to the corner and came away with nothing.

And it was the Warriors who stretched their lead just moments after they had appeared to blow a great chance. A good move off the back of a line-out saw Wynand Olivier stopped just short of the line and knock on.

Northampton cleared their lines but were soon facing a lineout in their own territory again and after appearing to go left, the Warriors went back right to send Val Rapava Ruskin through Lee Dickson and over for the try. Heathcote missed the conversion and very soon after Northampton were right back in it.

Harry Mallinder scored the try but it was made by Ken Pisi, who sliced through in midfield beating three men before delivering for his centre to go over. Stephen Myler pulled his conversion attempt wide.

Soon after they had the lead for the first time, when Ben Foden put Collins away on the left for the try. Myler's conversion made it 12-8 to the home side.

However, the lead didn't last long as Worcester hit straight back. A beautiful pass from Francois Hougaard put Olivier through a gap in midfield and he then stepped inside Dickson and had the pace to hold off the chasing Foden. Heathcote's conversion made it 15-12 to the visitors at the break.

However, it was Northampton who flew out of the blocks in the second half, with Collins grabbing his second of the game. Myler missed the conversion as the lead was just two points.

Worcester weren't about to fold though, and moved back in front thanks to a second penalty of the afternoon by Heathcote to make it 18-17.

However, Northampton responded immediately through Dickson, who finished off a fine rolling maul to secure the Saints' bonus point.

That looked to be the decisive score and Ken Pisi almost had a fifth when he cut through in midfield but Heathcote made a brilliant covering tackle.

But it was only a temporary reprieve, with Collins completing his hat-trick on a dream afternoon. Myler converted to stretch the lead to 13 points.

It could have been even worse for Worcester but when Ryan Lamb's chip kick went straight to Foden leading to a Ken Pisi score, it was called back for obstruction by Myler.

While Ken Pisi was denied, his brother George was not to be, finishing off after Tom Kessell had pounced on a loose ball following a Collins kick. JJ Hanrahan converted to seal the win.

The scorers:

For Northampton Saints:

Tries: Malinder, Collins 3, Dickson, Pisi

Cons: Myler 3, Hanrahan

For Worcester Warriors:

Tries: Ruskin. Olivier

Con: Heathcote

Pens: Heathcote 2

Teams:

Northampton Saints: 15 Ben Foden, 14 Ken Pisi, 13 Luther Burrell, 12 Harry Mallinder, 11 Tom Collins, 10 Stephen Myler, 9 Lee Dickson (captain), 8 Teimana Harrison, 7 Tom Wood, 6 Jamie Gibson, 5 Victor Matfield, 4 James Craig, 3 Kieran Brookes, 2 Mikey Haywood, 1 Alex Waller.

Replacements: 16 Reece Marshall, 17 Ethan Waller, 18 Gareth Denman, 19 Sam Dickinson, 20 Jon Fisher, 21 Tom Kessell, 22 JJ Hanrahan, 23 George Pisi.

Worcester Warriors: 15 Chris Pennell, 14 Bryce Heem, 13 Wynand Olivier, 12 Ryan Mills, 11 Cooper Vuna, 10 Tom Heathcote, 9 Francois Hougaard, 8 GJ van Velze (captain), 7 Carl Kirwan, 6 Dewald Potgieter, 5 Darren Barry, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 Nick Schonert, 2 Jaba Bregvadze, 1 Val Rapava Ruskin.

Replacements: 16 Niall Annett, 17 Na'ama Leleimalefaga, 18 James Johnston, 19 Dan Sanderson, 20 Phil Dowson, 21 Luke Baldwin, 22 Ryan Lamb, 23 Andy Symons.

Referee: Matthew Carley 

Sale Sharks 36-36 Saracens

Sale Sharks had raced into a 17-point lead from the off, with Sam James, Johnny Leota and Tom Arscott all crossing in the opening quarter.

But Saracens stormed back with 22 unanswered points to complete the half – Chris Wyles notching a try-double after Jim Hamilton's effort.

Then, after Danny Cipriani's three penalties had given Sale the advantage, Nick Tompkins and Mike Ellery took advantage of two Sharks mistakes to put league leaders Saracens ten points ahead.

However, Cipriani was left counting the costs of his missed conversions – scoring just one of five attempts – as TJ Ioane and Arscott tries made for a grandstand finish.

It was Saracens who had the better of opening exchanges after Hodgson kicked out on the full from the drop out, before the boot of Ben Spencer had the hosts defending deep in their own territory.

But a crooked line-out saw Sale put together some momentum – with the jet-heeled James at the forefront.

With James having started things off at halfway, Sale hared up the pitch in a lightning counter-attack and the centre was there to provide the finish some 50 metres later.

Cipriani made no mistake with the conversion and a good start got even better by the 12th minute after Leota scored try number two.

Again James provided the spark as he gathered in his own chip – thanks to a fortunate bounce – and played in Leota on the wing, though Cipriani missed the touchline conversion.

And it was beginning to look rather worrying for Sale when Arscott crossed moments later, Leota this time playing creator with an incisive offload.

Arscott still had it all to do however, as he held off his Ben Ransom with a dummy before ploughing through into the corner.

Cipriani let Saracens off the hook again with a missed conversion – and the league leaders are a side that need no second invitation.

Charlie Hodgson kicked to the corner after Saracens won the first penalty of the game, and their rolling maul was simply unstoppable with Scotland lock Jim Hamilton applying the final touch.

Indeed the visitors had well and truly flipped the switch and could have been in for their second on the 25th minute if Mike Ellery's final pass had gone to hand.

Play came back due to the advantage and Hodgson reduced the arrears to seven points with a penalty.

Hodgson then unpicked Sale's defence in the build-up to a superb try from Wyles just past the half-hour mark, though the conversion that would have levelled the scores went astray.

But Saracens would have to make do without the talismanic Hodgson for the rest of the game after he picked up an injury – and exited the field of his former club to a standing ovation.

That seemed to make little difference such was Sarries' surge as Wyles somehow managed to dot down without going into touch – verified by the TMO – in the left-hand corner.

Spencer took over kicking duties and promptly knocked over the extra two and Sarries went in 22-17 up – having scored 22 unanswered points.

Sale stopped the rot by scoring the first points of the second half, as a Leota carry yielded a penalty and Cipriani realigned his radar to kick it over.

The England flyhalf then nosed Sharks back in front with another penalty in front of the posts, as Sale continued to look like a different side to the one that ended the first period.

He made it a third kick in a row after Juan Figallo was caught off his feet, and suddenly Sale were four points in front with an hour gone.

But the hosts were architects of their own downfall soon after as Will Addison juggled a pass into the hands of Wyles, before Tompkins took on the past to touch down.

That not only put Saracens back in front but gave them the try-bonus point, and Spencer's conversion improved the lead to three. 

And the game looked up when Leota flung the ball to a lurking Ellery, and the Saracens wing won a footrace with Cipriani to cross over.

Almost inevitably in this topsy-turvy contest, Ioane rumbled over off the back of a driving maul to give Sale hope with ten minutes left to play – Cipriani's missed conversion leaving the score at 36-31.

In another late twist, with Sale knocking at the door, Arscott surged over at the left corner to level things up.

But Cipriani could not finish the job after his conversion from the touchline went wide of the left upright, and then Nils Mordt miscued a drop-goal attempt to bring the curtains down on a thrilling contest.

The scorers:

For Sale Sharks:

Tries: James, Leota, Arscott 2, Ioane

Con: Cipriani

Pens: Cipriani 3

For Saracens:

Tries: Hamilton, Wyles 2, Tompkins, Ellery

Cons: Hodgson, Spencer 2

Pen: Hodgson

Teams:

Sale Sharks : 15 Mike Haley, 14 Will Addison, 13 Sam James, 12 Johnny Leota, 11 Tom Arscott, 10 Danny Cipriani, 9 Peter Stringer, 8 Mark Easter 7 David Seymour (captain), 6 Cameron Neild, 5 Andrei Ostrikov, 4 Bryn Evans, 3 Vadim Cobilas, 2 Tommy Taylor, 1 Ross Harrison.

Replacements: 16 Neil Briggs, 17 Eifion Lewis-Roberts, 18 Brian Mujati, 19 Jonathan Mills, 20 TJ Ioane, 21 Chris Cusiter, 22 Joe Ford, 23 Mark Jennings.

Saracens: 15 Ben Ransom, 14 Mike Ellery, 13 Marcelo Bosch, 12 Nick Tompkins, 11 Chris Wyles, 10 Charlie Hodgson (captain), 9 Ben Spencer, 8 Jackson Wray, 7 Jacques Burger, , 6 Kelly Brown, 5 Jim Hamilton, 4 Hayden Smith, 3 Petrus Du Plessis, 2 Jared Saunders, 1 Titi Lamositele. 

Replacements: 16 Dave Porecki, 17 Richard Barrington, 18 Juan Figallo, 19 Kieran Low, 20 Michael Rhodes, 21 Henry Taylor, 22 Nils Mordt, 23 Nathan Earle.

Referee: Tim Wigglesworth

Gloucester 32-6 Newcastle Falcons

Newcastle came into the game off the back of home wins against Leicester Tigers and Northampton Saints but they are still searching for an away victory in the Premiership this season.

Their hopes of changing that suffered a blow with the news that flyhalf Andy Goode was a late withdrawal and they looked to be reeling from that loss as Gloucester flew out the traps at Kingsholm.

Billy Meakes was first to cross over, before James Hook and Ross Moriarty each followed suit before the break.

That left Newcastle with a mountain to climb and the hosts – beaten just once at Kingsholm in any competition since October – ensured they never looked like bridging the gap.

Nor did the Cherry & Whites look likely to score an all-important fourth try, however, until Tom Savage powered his way over late on.

Hook missed an early shot at the posts, following a high tackle on Jacob Rowan, but the flyhalf soon made amends when Gloucester were awarded a second kickable penalty.

When the Falcons began to find their footing, they were met by a solid Gloucester defence, while Rob Cook passed an early test under the high ball.

And the Cherry & Whites were further ahead inside ten minutes, when Meakes collected a well-weighted grubber from Willi Heinz to cross over and score, Hook converting.

The hosts began to establish some dominance at scrum time and earned another penalty within kicking range after 18 minutes but Hook missed the target for a second time.

However, Craig Willis – a late call-up for Andy Goode – sent the kick-off straight out and Newcastle were punished. The ball was swiftly spread wide and Hook spotted a gap to burst through to score, converting it himself.

Hook made it 20-0 shortly before the half-hour mark, after Scott Lawson was caught offside, but Newcastle picked up their first points of the game five minutes later, Willis slotting a penalty when the Cherry & Whites failed to roll away.

However, it didn't take long for try number three for the hosts, as Mariano Galarza's offload sent Moriarty over to score, though a strong breeze blew Hook's conversion wide.

The Falcons did at least finish the half on the front foot but sustained pressure on the tryline and a pair of kickable penalties finding touch, Willis eventually settled for three points – 25-6 at the break.

Billy Twelvetrees almost sent Charlie Sharples away in the corner early in the second half but Newcastle began to show a newfound resilience and found their way out of danger.

The hosts were caught offside 15 minutes into the half, only for Willis to miss the resulting penalty, before a host of replacements prompted a lull in proceedings.

Gloucester lacked a spark of inspiration in search of a bonus-point try and eventually found their way into the Falcons' 22 ten minutes from time, only for Darren Dawidiuk to spill forward in contact.

However, the fourth score arrived at last on 75 minutes when Lewis Ludlow powered his way towards the line and Savage piled over it, Twelvetrees converting.

The scorers:

For Gloucester:

Tries: Meakes, Hook, Moriarty, Savage

Cons: Hook 2, Twelvetrees

Pens: Hook 2

For Newcastle Falcons:

Pens: Willis 2

Teams:

Gloucester: 15 Rob Cook; 14 Charlie Sharples, 13 Bill Meakes, 12 Billy Twelvetrees (captain), 11 Henry Purdy, 10 James Hook, 9 Willi Heinz, 8 Lewis Ludlow, 7 Jacob Rowan, 6 Ross Moriarty, 5 Mariano Galarza, 4 Jeremy Thrush, 3 John Afoa, 2 Richard Hibbard, 1 Paddy McAllister.

Replacements: 16 Darren Dawidiuk, 17 Yann Thomas, 18 Paul Doran-Jones, 19 Tom Savage, 20 Matt Kvesic, 21 Callum Braley, 22 Billy Burns, 23 Henry Trinder.

Newcastle Falcons: 15 Simon Hammersley, 14 Giamba Venditti, 13 Chris Harris, 12 Adam Powell, 11 Marcus Watson, 10 Andy Goode, 9 Sonatane Takulua, 8 Ally Hogg, 7 Will Welch (captain), 6 Richard Mayhew, 5 Mark Wilson, 4 Calum Green, 3 Taione Vea, 2 Scott Lawson, 1 Rob Vickers. 

Replacements: 16 George McGuigan, 17 Alex Rogers, 18 Kensuke Hatakeyama, 19 Mouritz Botha, 20 Todd Clever, 21 Michael Young, 22 Craig Willis, 23 Juan Pablo Socino.

Referee: Tom Foley