Belleau penalty helps Northampton repel Gloucester’s thrilling fightback
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Gloucester 35-37 Northampton
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Hosts fall short after leading from 31-7 behind
For the second game in a row, Northampton tore their opponents to shreds in the first half only to capitulate in the second. Last week they blew a 33-7 lead to draw with Exeter. This time they responded, claiming a nervy 37-35 win over a resurgent Gloucester, narrowly denying them what would have been the largest ever comeback win in English domestic rugby.
“It was a carbon copy, almost,” Phil Dowson, Northampton’s director of rugby, said with a mix of relief and frustration. “We lost momentum and discipline. We were poor for large periods of time. The same thing is happening.”