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This English town may not be the most glamorous spot on the planet, but its rugby union team provides a great deal of excitement and passion.

In a city renowned for boot‑making, you would think kicking to be the Saints’ main approach. But under head coach Phil Dowson, the team in the club's hues prefer to run with the ball.

Although embodying a distinctly UK town, they exhibit a panache typical of the best French masters of expansive play.

From the time Dowson and fellow coach Sam Vesty took over in 2022, Northampton have secured the Premiership and gone deep in the European competition – losing to their Gallic opponents in the ultimate match and eliminated by Leinster in a semi-final earlier.

They sit atop the league standings after multiple successes and a single stalemate and visit Ashton Gate on Saturday as the just one without a loss, chasing a first win at Bristol's home since 2021.

It would be expected to think Dowson, who featured in 262 elite matches for Newcastle, Northampton and Worcester combined, had long intended to be a trainer.

“As a professional, I hadn't given it much thought,” he says. “Yet as you get older, you comprehend how much you enjoy the game, and what the normal employment entails. I worked briefly at a financial institution doing an internship. You travel to work a few times, and it was difficult – you grasp what you do and don’t have.”

Conversations with former mentors resulted in a role at the Saints. Fast-forward several seasons and Dowson leads a team increasingly filled with global stars: Tommy Freeman, Fraser Dingwall, Alex Mitchell and Alex Coles lined up for the Red Rose facing the New Zealand two weeks ago.

An emerging talent also had a major effect off the bench in England’s flawless campaign while the number ten, in time, will inherit the fly-half role.

Is the development of this exceptional group attributable to the Saints’ culture, or is it fortune?

“This is a bit of both,” comments Dowson. “I would acknowledge the former director of rugby, who gave them opportunities, and we had some tough days. But the exposure they had as a group is definitely one of the factors they are so united and so talented.”

Dowson also namechecks Mallinder, another predecessor at their stadium, as a significant mentor. “I was lucky to be mentored by exceptionally insightful people,” he says. “Jim had a significant influence on my professional journey, my coaching, how I deal with people.”

Northampton demonstrate appealing the game, which was clearly evident in the case of the French fly-half. The import was involved with the opposing team beaten in the European competition in last season when Freeman scored a three tries. Belleau admired the style sufficiently to reverse the trend of British stars moving to France.

“A friend rang me and stated: ‘We've found a Gallic number ten who’s in search of a side,’” Dowson recalls. “My response was: ‘There's no funds for a overseas star. Another target will have to wait.’

‘He wants a fresh start, for the opportunity to test himself,’ my contact told me. That caught my attention. We met with Anthony and his English was outstanding, he was eloquent, he had a sense of humour.

“We questioned: ‘What do you want from this?’ He responded to be trained, to be pushed, to be outside his comfort zone and away from the domestic competition. I was thinking: ‘Join us, you’re a great person.’ And he turned out to be. We’re fortunate to have him.”

Dowson comments the emerging the flanker offers a specific vitality. Has he coached a player like him? “No,” Dowson answers. “Each person is original but he is different and unique in multiple respects. He’s fearless to be who he is.”

The player's breathtaking touchdown against their opponents last season showcased his unusual talent, but various his demonstrative during matches antics have brought allegations of overconfidence.

“He sometimes seems cocky in his conduct, but he’s not,” Dowson says. “Plus Pollock is being serious all the time. Game-wise he has contributions – he’s no fool. I feel on occasion it’s portrayed that he’s just this idiot. But he’s clever and good fun within the team.”

Hardly any directors of rugby would claim to have having a bromance with a assistant, but that is how Dowson characterizes his relationship with Sam Vesty.

“Together possess an interest about different things,” he says. “We maintain a literary circle. He wants to see various elements, aims to learn everything, wants to experience different things, and I think I’m the same.

“We discuss numerous things away from the game: films, literature, ideas, culture. When we met Stade [Français] last year, the cathedral was being done up, so we had a little wander around.”

One more fixture in the French nation is coming up: The Saints' comeback with the English competition will be brief because the European tournament intervenes shortly. Their next opponents, in the shadow of the border region, are the opening fixture on matchday before the South African team visit soon after.

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