\n<\/p>\n
Northampton:<\/strong> (17) 34<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n| Tries: <\/strong>Freeman, Langdon, Mitchell, Dingwall <\/span>Cons:<\/strong> Smith 4<\/span> Pens:<\/strong> Smith 2<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | Exeter:<\/strong> (5) 19<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | Tries:<\/strong> Vermeulen, Sio, Roots <\/span>Cons:<\/strong> Slade 2 <\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n | Northampton leapfrogged 14-man Exeter into fourth place in the Premiership after a dominant 34-19 home victory.<\/span><\/p>\n Northampton impressed in the opening quarter as tries from Tommy Freeman and Curtis Langdon put them 17-0 up.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Jacques Vermeulen got a try back before the break despite Saints’ dominance.<\/span><\/p>\n Alex Mitchell extended Saints’ lead before Scott Sio replied, but Exeter had Niall Armstrong sent off for dangerous play on 68 minutes and Fraser Dingwall scored the bonus-point try.<\/span><\/p>\n Ethan Roots got a late consolation score for Exeter, but their 10th successive Premiership defeat away from Sandy Park leaves them in fifth place after five rounds of matches.<\/span><\/p>\n Tom Seabrook’s break down the left wing after 90 seconds, that was superbly stopped close to the Exeter line by Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, set the tone and field position, and Freeman went over on the right for Newcastle a minute later – thanks to Fin Smith’s grubber kick. <\/span><\/p>\n Having missed a long-range penalty Smith kicked an 18th-minute three-pointer before Saints’ second try three minutes later, as Langdon got on the end of a maul from a five-metre scrum.<\/span><\/p>\n Northampton dominated much of the opening period apart from a few minutes around the half-hour mark where Exeter scored – Vermeulen going in from close to the Saints line after Exeter had won three consecutive penalties deep in home territory. <\/span><\/p>\n Another Smith penalty after 51 minutes extended the lead to 15 points before the try of the afternoon – Alex Coles picked the ball up 15 metres inside his own half, skipped past a tackle and fed Sam Matavesi – who in turn set Freeman free down the right wing – and he put Mitchell in to score on his return from World Cup duty with England.<\/span><\/p>\n Freeman thought he had secured a try-scoring bonus point six minutes later, but his score was chalked off after video reviews showed a neck roll by Ethan Waller in the build-up, and Exeter cut the gap when Sio went in from close range soon after having seen Henry Slade blast through for a rare foray into the home red zone. <\/span><\/p>\n But any hopes of an Exeter comeback were dashed when replacement Niall Armstrong was red-carded for dangerous play, as his outstretched foot hit Smith flush in the face as he jumped for a high ball. <\/span><\/p>\n Dingwall went in under the posts four minutes later after quick thinking from replacement scrum-half Tom James, before Roots went in from a metre after Exeter again converted when they were within five metres. <\/span><\/p>\n Northampton director of rugby Phil; Dowson told BBC Radio Northampton: <\/strong><\/p>\n “On both sides of the ball we did lots of things really well. <\/span><\/p>\n “What we spoke about was the balance between the discipline and not giving them fast ball, around which they can really generate momentum.<\/span><\/p>\n “They’ve been so effective at that, particularly at home, so that was a key factor in us being physical but also being disciplined.”<\/span><\/p>\n Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter told BBC Radio Devon:<\/strong><\/p>\n “I’ve got a little bit of frustration, but also an understanding that we’ve got a lot to learn.<\/span><\/p>\n “Whenever scoreboards create pressure and moments in games create pressure, that’s when we’ve really got to learn things.<\/span><\/p>\n “I think we took a step forward last week against Bristol, but I think today, I’m not saying we took a step back, but we didn’t quite hold our composure.<\/span><\/p>\n “I would say it was a game where if you said ‘what was the difference between the sides’ I would have said Northampton put A, B, C of pressure together and we created lot’s of A’s and couldn’t make many B’s happen.”<\/span><\/p>\n Northampton: <\/strong>Hendy; Freeman, Dingwall (capt), Hutchinson, Seabrook; Smith, Mitchell; A Waller, Langdon, Hill, Moon, Munga, Lawes, Scott-Young, Graham.<\/span><\/p>\n Replacements: <\/em>Matavesi, E Waller, Davison, Coles, Pearson, James, Litchfield, Sleightholme.<\/span><\/p>\n Exeter: <\/strong>Wyatt; Feyi-Waboso, Slade, Hawkins, Hammersley; Skinner, Cairns; Abuladze, Frost, Iosefa-Scot, Jenkins (capt), Pearson, Roots, Vermeulen, Vintcent.<\/span><\/p>\n |