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Northampton is hardly the most glamorous destination in the world, but its rugby union team delivers an abundance of thrills and drama.

In a town renowned for boot‑making, you could anticipate kicking to be the Saints’ modus operandi. However under leader Phil Dowson, the team in green, black and gold prefer to keep ball in hand.

Although representing a distinctly UK community, they exhibit a flair typical of the greatest French masters of expansive play.

Since Dowson and the head coach Sam Vesty took over in 2022, the Saints have claimed victory in the English top flight and progressed well in the European competition – beaten by their Gallic opponents in the ultimate match and eliminated by the Irish province in a penultimate round before that.

They lead the league standings after multiple successes and a single stalemate and travel to Bristol on matchday as the sole undefeated team, seeking a maiden victory at Bristol's home since 2021.

It would be expected to think Dowson, who featured in 262 top-flight games for various teams altogether, always planned to be a manager.

“As a professional, I didn't really think about it,” he remarks. “However as you mature, you realise how much you love the game, and what the everyday life is like. I worked briefly at a financial institution doing an internship. You travel to work a few times, and it was difficult – you see what you do and don’t have.”

Conversations with former mentors led to a role at the Saints. Jump ahead eight years and Dowson manages a squad progressively crammed with internationals: key individuals started for England against the New Zealand two weeks ago.

The young flanker also had a profound impact from the replacements in the national team's flawless campaign while the fly-half, eventually, will inherit the pivotal position.

Is the rise of this remarkable group because of the club's environment, or is it fortune?

“This is a bit of both,” states Dowson. “I’d credit the former director of rugby, who basically just threw them in, and we had challenging moments. But the exposure they had as a unit is certainly one of the reasons they are so united and so gifted.”

Dowson also namechecks Jim Mallinder, a former boss at the club's home, as a significant mentor. “It was my good fortune to be mentored by highly engaging people,” he notes. “He had a significant influence on my professional journey, my management style, how I interact with individuals.”

Saints execute attractive the game, which proved literally true in the case of their new signing. The Gallic player was a member of the Clermont XV beaten in the Champions Cup in April when Tommy Freeman registered a hat-trick. The player liked what he saw sufficiently to reverse the trend of UK players moving to France.

“A mate called me and said: ‘There’s a fly-half from France who’s in search of a team,’” Dowson recalls. “I replied: ‘We lack the budget for a imported playmaker. Thomas Ramos will have to wait.’

‘He’s looking for experience, for the possibility to challenge himself,’ my mate told me. That caught my attention. We had a conversation with him and his language skills was incredible, he was articulate, he had a funny side.

“We questioned: ‘What do you want from this?’ He responded to be trained, to be challenged, to be in a new environment and away from the domestic competition. I was saying: ‘Join us, you’re a fantastic individual.’ And he turned out to be. We’re lucky to have him.”

Dowson states the 20-year-old the flanker brings a specific energy. Does he know anyone similar? “No,” Dowson responds. “All players are original but Henry is distinct and special in multiple respects. He’s unafraid to be authentic.”

The player's breathtaking score against Leinster last season demonstrated his exceptional ability, but a few of his demonstrative in-game behavior have resulted in allegations of overconfidence.

“He sometimes comes across as overconfident in his conduct, but he’s not,” Dowson clarifies. “Plus Pollock is not joking around constantly. Game-wise he has input – he’s a smart player. I believe sometimes it’s shown that he’s just this idiot. But he’s bright and good fun in the squad.”

Not many coaches would claim to have enjoying a tight friendship with a head coach, but that is how Dowson characterizes his connection with his co-coach.

“We both have an inquisitiveness regarding various topics,” he notes. “We run a book club. He wants to see everything, wants to know all there is, aims to encounter different things, and I think I’m the similar.

“We converse on many subjects outside rugby: cinema, reading, thoughts, culture. When we met the Parisian club previously, Notre-Dame was being done up, so we had a brief exploration.”

One more fixture in Gall is looming: The Saints' reacquaintance with the Prem will be brief because the Champions Cup takes over shortly. Their next opponents, in the vicinity of the border region, are up first on matchday before the Pretoria-based club travel to soon after.

“I won't be overconfident enough to {