Mallinder shows how seriously Saints take Challenge Cup
Jim Mallinder's team selection for Northampton Saints' clash in Montpellier is a real indication of just how seriously he want to win the European Challenge Cup.
With a quarter-final spot already assured it might have been a chance to rest the first-teamers ahead of the resumption of the Guinness Premiership at the end of the month.
But no, Mallinder has made just six changes to last week's team that beat Leicester Tigers with the minimum number of players rested.
It does mean a chance for club captain Bruce Reihana to wrestle the full-back spot back as Ben Foden moves to scrum-half, while Euan Murray gets a well earned rest. But Ignacio Fernandez Lobbe, Tom Smith and Sean Lamont are still on the bench.
Many fans thought it would be a chance for Carlos Spencer to shake off a bit of rust, but Mallinder has stuck with Stephen Myler at fly-half for the seventh game in a row.
Saints have a maximum 20 points from four games, but Mallinder is desperate to finish as one of the top two qualifiers and thus ensure a home tie in the quarter-finals, which would be against one of the two runner-ups from the pool stage as well.
It should also secure a home tie in the semi-finals as well, thus a far easier path to the final for Saints would open up if they not only won tonight, but got the four-try bonus point as well.
London Irish are the other team with a maximum haul, but they have a much easier pool with an Italian side, Irish minnows Connacht and lowly French outfit Dax.
Mallinder knows that winning the European Challenge Cup would not only mean Heineken Cup qualification for next season, but would also be a real statement of the club's continuing progress. He knows how winning Europe's second tier competition can be a launch pad for greater success.
When in charge of Sale he won it in 2002, the club's first piece of silverware, and four years later they won the the Guinness Premiership. Heineken Cup qualification will have a big bearing on next year's squad.
With the prospect of playing in Europe's premier competition, Mallinder will be able to attract bigger and better players.
"We are delighted to have qualified for the knockout stages but we certainly do not regard the job as done and dusted," said Mallinder. "Everyone appreciates how important it is to earn home advantage in the quarter-finals so we will be pushing on against both Montpellier on Thursday night and then Toulon nine days later."
Nine points from tonight and the final game at home to Toulon would gaurantee Saints home ties in the knockout stages and they are currently on a 28-game unbeaten run at Franklin's Gardens.
Saints are on a high after back-to-back Guinness Premiership wins and doubly so for Ben Foden and Stephen Myler after their call-ups to the England and Saxons squads yesterday.
Both were kept away from the media cloying for their attention and both statements they put out made sure that they said how they were concentrating on tonight's game.
Foden has been picked as a scrum-half by Martin Johnson, taking the place of another nine come utility back in Peter Richards. It's unlikely Foden will budge either Danny Care from scrum-half or Delon Armitage from full-back, but a spot on the bench is not out of the question for England's Six Nations opener against Italy at Twickenham on February 7.
After shining at full-back for the last two weeks Foden can show how good he is at nine tonight. As Johnson said: "He is a fantastic attacking rugby player.
"We wanted to get him into the squad at some point and felt now is the right time to do it. It is pretty unusual for guys to have such a range of positions. Pete Richards could do it.
"Austin Healey could do it. They are valuable to their clubs in their versatility and they are valuable to us in putting a squad together."
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Thursday 09 September 2010
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